NY Times today has an article about testing character traits in public schools. The article doesn’t mention anything about the new section of the SSAT which does the same thing. Interesting to know that researchers is in the field think that the testing is flawed … Based on what I’ve seen on the SSAT’s new test I have To agree. Maybe I’m missing something but it seemed as though any reasonably intelligent person could tell the answer that the test was looking for.
I think this is a disastrous attempt at politically correct social engineering. You cannot test for niceness and altruism. Talk about ability to game the test. In my field we have used assessments as part of hiring for years. High level algorithms. Most of it is simply ascertaining a persons thought processes or decision making in various scenarios. I.e common sense. Not about right and wrong. More about appropriateness. The PC crowd thinks that standardized testing is biased against poor and minorities now, then this may be even more subjective and inherently biased …
I immediately recognized the SSAT’s new trait test as a bullshit and ignored it as it should be. I never clicked the link.
Sculptor Dad, DC took the new test; I think at least one school requested that. We don’t put much stock in it but DC wasn;t afraid of it either. May as well be cooperative.
6teenSearch, I recall my son saying he had to take it for one of the BS applications also. I wondered what it was and I didn’t bother to check his answers … I wonder how much that portion counts. But I thought he should answer as he feels (based on being 13 yrs old) and the schools will know it’s coming from a 13 yr old boy … I wonder if I should have supervised his answers???
It was sent as an optional test not administered at testing site . We found it in spam and deleted it , later hearing what it was
CLNMom, No, not at all. I think it supposedly stil does not “count”. But I think helping kids too much on any part of the app is suboptimal on a lot of fronts. I looked over DC’s shoulder at some of the q out of curiosity.
edited to add: That reminds me of something I found from our notes at one school, where they actually said you can/should have a parent or English teacher proofread. I think “proofreading” is a very slippery slope, and can’t imagine having the English teacher do that!
IIRC Lawrenceville asked you to do it and provided a link. Choate included their own version and said it was optional.
I feel as if this may be yet another way to screen the applicant pool. More and more students are applying to private schools; but their available slots don’t increase in number. It’s seems like another way to make admission even more competitive.
We did the Choate’s optional one too. But I didn’t occur to me that any school would ask applicants to take the experimental test. Well, actually I would have dd do it if we were asked to do it too.
Thanks 6teenSearch, I feel better. I’m constantly second guessing what I should have done. We don’t have any educational consultants in our town. I feel like my DS’ application is going to seem so “unprofessional” but I figured we can’t be the only family in this situation … I’ve been getting a lot of emails recently from the SSAT organization about the character assessment test and like Center, I’ve just been deleting them.
CLNMOM, The application is from your son. IMHO it should not be “professional” unless your son wears business casual every day, earns six figures and is 30yo. :-*
Serious, the proponents of this type of testing would say it is a way to be even more equitable and inclusive. It’s not about SSAT scores, which affluent people can game with extensive tutoring. It is trying to divine who the student is as a person. I understand the idea but wonder if it works.
It can work like “Kumon Kindness Centers” all over the big cities.
@SculptorDad . Hilarious!
SculptorDad - thanks for the idea, I’ve been looking for a new business idea (smile)
FYI Choate has been using their own assessment for a few years now, and they are on the committee of schools that is developing the new test. Obviously, they must feel that the results of their own assessment have been helpful in terms of differentiating candidates.
@GMC2918 With all due respect schools of all stripes do things and develop assessments and programs because everyone wants to be an innovator and because they feel compelled to appease the critics. What Choate must feel about its own processes doesn’t inspire confidence. That any reputable school thinks you can test for character, empathy and social responsibility is absurd.
Someone will surely correct me if I’m wrong, but I think even for Choate their own assessment was still optional this year, and was not supposed to be considered for the application. In other words I think they’re still developing a data set and probably want to see how these results track performance for those kids who do end up at the school. I take it on face value that if they say they’re not using it for admission, they are not.
But yes, Diffley of Choate is a big proponent of these tools…and I think the reason he is moving to TSAO to further develop then.
I remember my daughter having to take some sort of character test for Thacher admissions. It was incredibly transparent. It reminded me of a seventeen magazine quiz. I knew exactly how she was “supposed” to answer it but I did not “help” her and she was wonderfully all over the map with her answers. It was (and remains) the only thing about the Thacher application experience that wasn’t really great and authentic. IMO.