I took the SAT(Sat Reasoning Test) twice. Once in eighth grade, and once in 11th grade. At some point during this time gap, the College Board saw fit to make some changes. I don’t remember how many times I heard that the College Board had forsaken the “dreaded” analogy section, but I know it was a lot. I was disappointed that they were scrapping the analogy section. I’m good at analogies. I have a medal from elementary school to prove it. I’m pretty sure they changed something about the math section, too, but I didn’t really notice when I took it the second time around. It must not have been important.
p. I did, however, notice that the SAT had a brand new section: the writing section. I presume that the idea of a writing section is to test the ability of schoolchildren to write clear, logical essays on prompts that require advanced critical thinking. My prompt asked me to discuss the importance of having a job.
p. I have been informed that in their selection of admitted students, the Admissions Office does not consider the applicant’s score on the writing section of the SAT. Many have suspected for some time that the SAT has inherent flaws and should not be used as a major determinant in college admissions. I have proof of the unfairness of the SAT. I did not get a perfect score. Thus, I am confounded as to why, aware of this fact, the College still considers SAT scores. However, Thucydides told me to respect those who are more powerful than me, so I will begrudgingly admit that the College has the final say, not me.
p. It is of note, though, that the section on which I was the furthest from a perfect score, the writing section, is not used by the College’s Admissions Office. I did not contact the Admissions Office to find out why they disregard the writing section, but I have a feeling their explanation would be the following, verbatim; “Well, Mark, we decided against using the writing score the first year because you hadn’t taken it yet. We wanted to see how you did on it first. Then, after we saw your application, and realized that of all three sections, you did the most egregiously on the writing section, we decided to continue not considering SAT writing scores. This is because you were so far from a perfect score that the writing section must have a super-ton amount of critical flaws.”
p. I mean, I can only assume that this would be their reason. It makes perfect sense, too, if you think about it. I’m such a superb writer, and so much better than everyone else, that were the writing section a good indicator of “writing ability,” I would have gotten an 800. I just reread what I have written so far. If you think it’s anything other than a perfect example of prosaic genius, then you’re wrong. Thus, I fully support the College’s decision to ignore scores from the SAT writing section, for, as my score showed, the SAT writing section is a very poor indicator of categorical genius.
p. __Mark Johnson is a freshman at the College. His views do not necessarily represent those of The Flat Hat.__
