A Thousand Pardons
02-April-2005, 04:16 PM
So now I'm wondering what these SAT-grader's do when they can't read the handwriting of the test-takers. Fast-track 'em to med school perhaps? :D
I think we'll hear a lot about it around March, early or late. :)
The April 4 issue of Newsweek (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7296368/site/newsweek/) has an article about the new test, and the graders of the test:
Winkie sits up, chuckles and gives the essay a 5 on a 6-point scale. But, she adds, "Just because you find a response humorous doesn't mean it's any better."
Does neat handwriting help? (No.) How about vocabulary? (Papers that sprinkle in more sophisticated words tend to do better.) And spelling? (You're allowed some flubs; one student referred to Saddam Hussein as "Who-sane," and still wasn't penalized.)
Rhonda Kekke, a retired teacher and community-college administrator from Coralville, Iowa, looks at a response that's hardly legible and only three paragraphs long. But the writer packs in references to minority views from Galileo and other historical figures—as well as practices still rejected by the majority today—before ending on a note that urges readers to defend different opinions. "This person is simply a thinker," Kekke says. And so, this thoughtful essay earns the top score.
I bet HUb' would get a 7
I think we'll hear a lot about it around March, early or late. :)
The April 4 issue of Newsweek (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7296368/site/newsweek/) has an article about the new test, and the graders of the test:
Winkie sits up, chuckles and gives the essay a 5 on a 6-point scale. But, she adds, "Just because you find a response humorous doesn't mean it's any better."
Does neat handwriting help? (No.) How about vocabulary? (Papers that sprinkle in more sophisticated words tend to do better.) And spelling? (You're allowed some flubs; one student referred to Saddam Hussein as "Who-sane," and still wasn't penalized.)
Rhonda Kekke, a retired teacher and community-college administrator from Coralville, Iowa, looks at a response that's hardly legible and only three paragraphs long. But the writer packs in references to minority views from Galileo and other historical figures—as well as practices still rejected by the majority today—before ending on a note that urges readers to defend different opinions. "This person is simply a thinker," Kekke says. And so, this thoughtful essay earns the top score.
I bet HUb' would get a 7