by Erica L. Meltzer | Jun 24, 2016 | Blog, The New SAT
In my last post, I took the College Board to task for its boast that its partnership with Khan Academy has led to a 19% decrease in the use of paid prep, presumably defined as classes or tutoring, although the College Board fails to specify. Aside from the questionable basis for that statistic (exactly how was it obtained? what were the characteristics of the groups surveyed? how were the demographic changes incurred by the adoption of the SAT as a state test taken into account?), I do think it’s worth exploring the question of just how the new SAT might affect the tutoring industry.
For what it’s worth, I’ve heard from a number of tutors that their business is actually up this year, although those tutors tend to work with students for whom free, online prep is borderline irrelevant anyway.
I’m also aware that most experienced tutors are pushing their students toward the ACT for the foreseeable future. If there was indeed a drop in paid SAT preparation, it was almost certainly in some part due to students paying for ACT preparation instead.
What interests me here, however, is the assumption that students will be the ones driving the changes.
But what if it goes the other way as well? What if it turns out that tutors don’t want to prepare students for the new SAT? (more…)
by Erica L. Meltzer | Mar 20, 2016 | Blog, The New SAT
Following the first administration of the new SAT, the College Board released a highly unscientific survey comparing 8,089 March 2016 test-takers to 6494 March 2015 test-takers.
You can read the whole thing here, but in case you don’t care to, here are some highlights:
- 75% of students said the Reading Test was the same as or easier than they expected.
- 80% of students said the vocabulary on the test would be useful to them later in life, compared with 55% in March 2015.
- 59% of students said the Math section tests the skills and knowledge needed for success in college and career.
Leaving aside the absence of some basic pieces of background information that would allow a reader to evaluate just how seriously to take this report (why were different numbers of test-takers surveyed in 2015 vs. 2016? who exactly were these students? how were they chosen for the survey? what were their socio-economic backgrounds? what sorts of high schools did they attend, and what sorts of classes did they take? what sorts of colleges did they intend to apply to? were the two groups demographically comparable? etc., etc.), this is quite a remarkable set of statements. (more…)
by Erica L. Meltzer | Nov 18, 2015 | Blog, The New SAT
A couple of days ago, I was interviewed by Michael Arlen Davis for his forthcoming documentary The Test (working title).
Michael had interviewed me before, but this time he wanted to talk about the recent series of blog posts in which I’ve taken the College Board to task for the many inconsistencies and, shall we say, questionable claims regarding the new SAT.
One of the things that Michael asked me in the course of the interview was why so few people seemed to be talking about these issues and why, when they were brought up, they were usually dealt with in such as cursory and superficial manner.
As I explained, I’m a little taken aback that so few people are (publicly) scratching below the surface of the College Board’s claims in anything resembling a substantive manner. After all, only a very small amount of scrutiny is necessary to poke holes in many of those claims. (more…)
by Erica L. Meltzer | Aug 5, 2015 | Blog, Issues in Education
In theory, at least, I should be the very last person to weigh in on this topic. As I usually joke, most of my students could tutor me in math. My mathematical education was mediocre in every way imaginable, and let’s not even talk about that 200+ point score gap between my SAT and Math and Verbal scores. With competent instruction, I probably could have become an excellent — or at least a decent — math student, but alas, that ship sailed many years ago.
So why on earth should anyone listen to me spout off about what ails math education? Well, because by this point, I know a fair amount about the functions and dysfunctions of the American educational system, about pedagogical trends, and about just how difficult good teaching really is. If you’re willing to hear me out, I’m going to start with an anecdote. (more…)
by Erica L. Meltzer | Dec 12, 2014
8/5/2018
You can now follow The Critical Reader on Instagram (@thecriticalreader).
7/25/18
Read an interview with Erica Meltzer at The Native Society.
