Tests do not determine what our kids achieve

Friday, Nov. 6, 2009

After reading Arthur Heffron's Oct. 28 letter to the editor, "ACT better measures what students have learned," I felt compelled to respond.

I took the SAT in high school and received a very unremarkable score of 910. When a number of my classmates scored more than 1,000, it had an effect on my self-esteem. I entered college wondering what my probable academic success would be.

Well, I proved my SAT score wrong. With an associate's degree, I graduated with honors. I earned a bachelor's degree, cum laude, and a master's degree, summa cum laude.

My point here is not to brag but to encourage students not to let their self-esteem or their performance in school be affected by low to average SAT scores.

It's good to know that some universities are now making the SAT elective. Community colleges do not require the SAT for admission, and many colleges do not require the SAT for admission for transfer students.

In Heffron's letter, I was interested in learning about the ACT, a standardized test that measures academic achievement. He mentioned that "successful academic achievement in high school is your best predictor of continued academic success in college."

Finally, before a student is reduced to a test score, please keep this quote by Pablo Casals in mind: "When will we teach our children in school what they are? We should say to each of them: ‘Do you know what you are? You are a marvel. You are unique. In all of the world there is no other child exactly like you. In the millions of years that have passed there has never been another child like you ... You may become a Shakespeare, a Michelangelo, a Beethoven. You have the capacity for anything. Yes, you are a marvel.'"

Linda A.Coty, Chesapeake Beach