Concerns about the accuracy of the SAT I in measuring students' preparation for college-level study have prompted the University of California system to look into the creation of a rival test.
As a part of this ongoing process, the Board of Admissions and Relations with Schools of the University of California's Academic Senate released a discussion paper Wednesday that outlines preliminary recommendations for a new standardized test to replace the SAT I.
UC President Richard Atkinson first suggested the elimination of the SAT I from the admissions process in a speech delivered to the American Council on Higher Education last February.
At that time, he said he favored the development of a new test that would focus more on high school course material than on the assessment of academic potential.
The Web site of the UC's office of the president states that a new test would allow teachers to focus more on expanding the knowledge of their students rather than just improving test scores.
BOARS's paper released Wednesday was the first faculty comment on the issue, said Hanan Eisenman, admissions media coordinator for the UC office of the president.
Eisenman said the release of the paper is just one step in a long process to enact the proposal into policy. The paper will be sent to the Campus Divisions of the Academic Senate for further modifications and review before heading to the University of California Academic Council. The paper probably will not reach the Board of Regents for final consideration until July.
It is too early to speculate how the policy will affect future incoming classes, Eisenman said.
The UC system, like the University, currently requires applicants to take the SAT I or ACT and three SAT II subject tests.
"ACT and the College Board have communicated willingness to work with the UC system" in developing a new test, Eisenman said.
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