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ERIC Number: EJ784068
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2007
Pages: 10
Abstractor: Author
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0017-8055
EISSN: N/A
College Admissions in Twenty-First-Century America: The Role of Grades, Tests, and Games of Chance
Zwick, Rebecca
Harvard Educational Review, v77 n4 p419-428 Win 2007
In this essay, Rebecca Zwick confronts the controversy surrounding the use of standardized tests in college admissions. She examines the degree to which the SAT and its lesser known cousin, the ACT, limit access to college, particularly for racial and ethnic minorities, and considers two alternative admissions policies that do not involve tests: class rank admissions systems and admissions lotteries. She finds that these initiatives carry their own controversies and have little impact on campus diversity. Zwick notes that some small liberal arts colleges have deemphasized tests and have achieved some success in increasing campus diversity while maintaining high academic standards, but highlights the difficulty of replicating these policies at large institutions. Her analysis sheds light on the ongoing tension between maintaining college selectivity and promoting equal opportunity. (Contains 5 notes.)
Harvard Education Publishing Group. 8 Story Street First Floor, Cambridge, MA 02138. Tel: 617-495-3432; Fax: 617-496-3584; e-mail: hepg@harvard.edu; Web site: http://www.gse.harvard.edu/hepg/her.html
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: Higher Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Assessments and Surveys: SAT (College Admission Test)
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A