One bill would let school districts give the SAT or ACT to all students, at state expense; another calls on UC and CSU to consider phasing out the tests altogether.
Leaders of youth-serving organizations in California and elsewhere said William Singer, who pleaded guilty to orchestrating an elaborate fraud to skirt admission standards at elite universities, falsely claimed to be partnering with them to help low-income children go to college.
While overall scores rose, only 48 percent of California students did well enough on the SAT to be considered fully college ready. Ethnic disparities remain as well.
There are signs of "encouragement" and "distress" in implementing the Common Core standards after four years of Smarter Balanced testing. There is also a dilemma: 11th-grade results.
Dozens of districts are offering the tests at their own expense already, because scores on SAT and ACT, not Smarter Balanced, are what matters to high school juniors.
State Superintendent Torlakson and some superintendents are at odds on the issue. An analysis by the prominent nonprofit Achieve will add fuel to the debate.
The test’s content was dramatically changed last year to align much more closely with subject material taught in high school. Gaps among racial groups persist in California and nationally.
