Examination of the history of the Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT) program and the College Board can inform the current debate about testing by shedding light on admission and access issues that have been addressed by the program over the years. It has strived to balance consistency with the flexibility to adapt testing to new knowledge about…

Testing has almost completely lost its identity as a device to increase access to college for the underprivileged. Testing today is seen as a device to deny access. Intelligence is randomly distributed among the rich and the poor, and testing helps remove privilege as a guarantee of success and advancement. (MLW)