<p>Hey, cangel.</p>
<p>That's exactly my point. For states that don't require Algebra II as a graduation requirement, how will these students, who may not want to attend the Harvards of the world, apply to college yet must know Algebra II to do well on the SAT? even when their district/state does not require it? This will involve states (or the entire nation) to restructure their curriculum, whether they have the money or not, so that their studens will pass the test. I see this as a problem that can be corrected through requirement changes.</p>
<p>The math section does not worry me as much. My biggest concern is the writing section. I'm not saying that children cannot write essays. No where in this thread did I state that. All students by the time they graduate from high school should be able to write a coherent essay or paper. My biggest issue is the type of essay topics the College Board has on their exams. I don't even recall the SAT II Writing section to be this descriptive in their topics (and I did take the SAT II Writing years ago).</p>
<p>Some of these sample topics are elitist or biased towards a certain group (middle class families who have exposure to the resources and news outlets that can make writing on the arts, politics, science, current events, etc. a breeze.) . Some people on this thread state that all students should be held under the same criteria. What about students from rural districts who may not have the museums, news outlets, access to expensive equipment for labs and to learn science, etc. ? It's already a national consensus that rural and (sub)urban America view the country differently. As for low-performing, inner-city schools, they have their own social and financial issues like budget deficits, high teacher turnover rates, concentrated poverty, security, etc. that takes away (or a better word, shortchanges) the education for its students. </p>
<p>While there are some positive changes to the SAT, don't get me wrong here, I also see some flaws with it too. I see regional and class biases. Writing an essay? Great. Writing an essay where there will be class/cultural/regional biases? Not so great.</p>