Grades and SAT scores do not determine intelligence.
Scores are used in an attempt to determine who will have success in a college program. No one has ever pretended that that success is directly related to intelligence.
Grades absolutely have a place, and are part of the college application. Grades indicate a strength, or lack thereof, in the pursuit of academic knowledge. Since that pursuit is why you’re going to college, it’s natural that colleges would be interested in grades.
But there are lots of different kinds of intelligence. Academic intelligence is but one. Yes, it’s one that comes in handy in college-- without it, your odds of success are lower. That’s why colleges ask for scores. Without basic academic intelligence, your odds of success are lower, and they want people in college who tend to do well academically.
But this thread illustrates that there are also other kinds of intelligence, which are sometime lacking in kids with high scores. The lack of those other kinds of intelligence can be a huge stumbling block to success, both in college and in adult life. Those types of intelligence are harder to measure, but that doesn’t negate their value.
I think the reason so many of us have reacted so strongly is because the opening post reeks of hubris. It seems to indicate a lack of compassion, of empathy, and of a realization that there’s a whole lot more to “intelligent” than scores on a piece of paper. The use of the word “dumber” struck a nerve with a lot of us, as we realize the limitations of all those scores and what they indicate about a person.