Look at this! this... blasphamy! this... awful stuff! link
Thats right- I'm going to have to write an ESSAY! what the fuck? i'm prefectly fine on standardized tests, but I can't write worth anything! I'm the student that bullshits their way through essays for english class. and science class. and all other classes. this is really unfair.
Plus they're taking out the quantitative comparisons. I LIKE quantitative comparisons. I was GOOD at those.
*mopes*
Sooooo glad I've finished that.
However, the Writing SAT II, which most people end up requiring to take, also asks for an essay. So you'd have to do one anyhow.
deleted user 20.02.2004 08:45
Not to mention you will have to write loads of essay and 1-20 papers once you are in college anyway...
Hehehe Amanda has a point there.
Essays for standarised exams aren't a pain in the sphincter as it is made to be heard, Margo.
I've taken about three standarised exams that included essays, and they aren't that difficult. Sometimes the College Board doesn't even read the essays, and just count the words to see if it meets the word limit count. Sometimes they do. It's a 50/50 chance, see.
Still I think the best way to practise essay writing, and as a teacher I've seen this to be very effective, is to write 300 word essays about your favourite topics. I advise you to seek help from your English teacher or if the editor/supervisor of your school paper to help you. Believe me, it works.
Tell ya what, post it here afterwards and we'll give it the once-over. Only constructive comments of course ;)
Also, here's a tip for those multiple choice questions, always answer (c) it never fails trust me.
They killed the analogies too? Thank God.
Dude, it looks almost like they're trying to orient the test toward me. Although I didn't do badly when I took it in 7th grade.
I don't think essays belong on standardized tests. The value of writing should be left up to the evaluation of the writer. It doesn't seem right to judge a student's worth on one panel's opinion of their writing, with a prompt that is bound to be ludicrous. Besides, I know some brilliant, brilliant kids for whom the chance that anyone would pay them for their writing is a billino times less than zero.
"The value of writing should be left up to the evaluation of the writer."
Writing often is the best means to determine someone's ability to effectively argue a point or make a statement. Essays require more analytical thought than multiple choice questions and show a greater comprehension of the material.
Besides, the real world rarely operates by multiple choice. Last time I took one was for my driver's license. On the other hand, I write every day.
enough with the real world junk. This is a test that often determines the probability of you getting into your college of choice. And as I said, I know some brilliant people who aren't great shakes with writing. This is going to hurt them.
"This is a test that often determines the probability of you getting into your college of choice."
And of course, you never write an essay in college.
Having been in a position to determine one's ability through a multiple choice test and through an essay, give me the writing sample any day.
As for the "real world junk" comment, like it or not, that's the point of higher education.
Hey, I've tested 8th in the state (ok, so its kentucky. there are some smart people in kentucky. maybe)in Language Arts and I still can't write worth anything. I can write college admission essays because I'd have more time and I wouldn't be in a classroom with a proctor breathing down my neck- but having an essay on the SAT is just uncalled for. I truly hate writing.