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[quote=pbraverman][quote=Anonymous]No grades, and no APs, and colleges making SAT/ACT optional means that the entire application will be based on soft and subjective elements, mostly reflective of privilege. Interesting.[/quote]

I don't think anybody believes that a new transcript will eradicate the disparities of privilege, but it's universally acknowledged, even by their publishers, that standardized test scores are [i]already[/i] widely reflective of privilege. Witness the College Board's aborted attempt to assign "Adversity" scores on the SAT.

Today's standardized tests are still based fundamentally on a 1905 belief that people's overall intelligence can be measured and compared. (Incidentally, the Stanford tests were undertaken to "prove" that white people are smarter than all others, so it's hardly surprising that they reached that conclusion.) Back here in 2019, the adjunct high school program that Hawken is piloting this year is in Cleveland, not the suburbs (where Hawken's two main campuses are), and from what I understand the applicant pool has been largely non-wealthy — kids who, on the whole, perform far below their suburban counterparts on standardized tests. There is little danger that they will fare worse in a new system.

I'm not sure what point the PP is making. It seems like it's either: 1. there is no need for a better system, or 2. people shouldn't try to address that need because their attempts will be imperfect. The people working on the Mastery Initiative are far smarter and more practical than I am, and they are grappling earnestly with a stubborn problem. They may not solve it, but seeking to reduce inequality is certainly one of their goals. I'm excited to see how it launches.[/quote]

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