Current Affairs

Issue

 The College Board, that runs the Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT) and Advanced Placement (AP) tests has updated its exam pattern.

 

Details

• SAT was originally derived from an aptitude test developed by Princeton University psychology professor Carl Brigham, which was administered to US Army recruits during World War I.

• The College Board later asked Brigham to develop a similar test for high school students applying for admission.

• Today, around 2 million students around the world annually take the SAT to secure a place at an American university.

• The three-hour-long test includes multiple-choice sections for math, evidence-based reading, and evidence-based writing, along with an optional 50-minute essay.

• Questions have persisted over the SAT essay’s objective of rewarding formulaic rather than creative writing, and its alleged handicapping of immigrants and international students.

Implication for Indian students

• While international student enrolment in the US is estimated to have decreased significantly due to the Covid-19 pandemic, enrolment is expected to bounce back.

• The changes announced by the College Board could impact test-taking trends among students seeking to travel to the US in the coming years.

• With the possibility of AP exams becoming more popular among Indian students, the number of AP test centres in India is expected to rise from the current 16.