Test-Optional Isn’t Looking So Good
Few high school students have ever looked at a Saturday morning SAT or ACT and thought, “This is exactly how I want to spend my weekend.” But while standardized tests…
The Myth of Neutral Education
Out of the great 19th-century liberal revolutions, there was the aspiration that society could forge a new path with the formation of neutral institutions. This was particularly salient in public…
The Standardized Test War Heats Up Again
For quite a few years, the opponents of using standardized tests in college admissions were riding high. More and more schools were falling for the argument that the tests were…
What I Learned Teaching Texas A&M’s Freshmen
For millions of college freshmen, their first course isn’t calculus, U.S. history, or English composition—it’s effectively “Introduction to College.” Indeed, more than 77 percent of universities surveyed by the National…
Michigan Thinks Grades Are the Problem
The University of Michigan plans to exclude first-semester letter grades from students’ transcripts to “curb the mental health crisis.” What would seem like a mundane university-level grading change has become…
Foreign Languages Are a National Interest
Ever since Benjamin Franklin wielded his fluent French to persuade Parisian elites to support the War of Independence, foreign language knowledge has enabled American diplomats and representatives—not to mention spies—to…
UT-Austin Puts the “Core” Back in Core Curriculum
For decades, the American university has been drifting away from its most important purpose: giving students a common education in the knowledge and principles they need to become educated citizens.…
The Sorry State of Holocaust Studies in North Carolina
In 2021, North Carolina made a decision that deserves real credit. With the passage of the Gizella Abramson Holocaust Education Act, the state mandated Holocaust education in public middle and…
Bringing Civics To Small Town America
That the United States has entered a crisis of civic knowledge is no secret. Students’ knowledge of American history and politics in recent years has plunged to an all-time low…
Who Put the SAT and ACT in Charge?
In the early years of the Classic Learning Test’s existence, we believed that our fight for acceptance as a college entrance exam nationwide would happen in admissions offices. We were…