ERIC Number: EJ852297
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2004-Apr-5
Pages: 23
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1068-2341
EISSN: N/A
The Achievement Gap: Should We Rely on SAT Scores to Tell Us Anything about It?
Whittington, Dale
Education Policy Analysis Archives, v12 n12 Apr 2004
Increasing numbers of students taking the SAT have declined to identify their race/ethnicity. I examined the impact of non-respondents on the validity of reported racial/ethnic differences and year-to-year changes in test performance. Using an analysis reported by Wainer (1988) and SAT data from 1996 to 2003, I confirmed Wainer's findings that non-respondents prevent accurate estimations of group differences based on SAT data. I then explored the impact of College Board press release information on news reports about the achievement gap. I found frequent reports of racial/ethnic differences in SAT scores and year-to-year changes in scores but negligible consideration of non-respondents. Press releases and media reports should include information about non-respondents and their impact on accuracy of reported differences based on race/ethnicity. (Contains 4 tables, 5 figures and 2 notes.)
Descriptors: Achievement Gap, Ethnicity, Race, Identification, Context Effect, Feedback (Response), Scores, Test Validity
Colleges of Education at Arizona State University and the University of South Florida. c/o Editor, USF EDU162, 4202 East Fowler Avenue, Tampa, FL 33620-5650. Tel: 813-974-3400; Fax: 813-974-3826; Web site: http://epaa.asu.edu
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Secondary 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