Chapter 3

Systme International d
'Units
One day, Little Red Riding Hoods mother said
to her, Take this basket of goodies to your grandmas
cottage, but dont talk to strangers on the way!
Promising not to, Little Red Riding Hood skipped off.
On her way she met the Big Bad Wolf who asked,
Where are you going, little girl? To my grandmas,
Mr. Wolf! she answered.
The Big Bad Wolf then ran to her
grandmothers cottage much before Little Red Riding
Hood, and knocked on the door. When Grandma
opened the door, he locked her up in the cupboard.
The wicked wolf then wore Grandmas clothes and lay
on her bed, waiting for Little Red Riding Hood.
When Little Red Riding Hood reached the
cottage, she entered and went to Grandmas bedside.
My! What big eyes you have, Grandma! she said in

surprise. All the better to see you with, my dear!

replied the wolf. My! What big ears you have,
Grandma! said Little Red Riding Hood. All the better
to hear you with, my dear! said the wolf. What big
teeth you have, Grandma! said Little Red Riding
Hood. All the better to eat you with! growled the wolf
pouncing on her. Little Red Riding Hood screamed and
the woodcutters in the forest came running to the
cottage. They beat the Big Bad Wolf and rescued
Grandma from the cupboard. Grandma hugged Little
Red Riding Hood with joy. The Big Bad Wolf ran away
never to be seen again. Little Red Riding Hood had
learnt her lesson and never spoke to strangers ever
again.

Little Red Riding Hood []

Regardless of whether we read the entire story or

not, we all know what happens after only the first line.
The story is a classic, a constant in literature. This story
has become a standard. If this story was somehow made
into a test some of you would have failed, a majority
would have fared fairly, and a few would have done

well. If we plot a numerical extrapolation, an old friend

(or foe) presents itself:

A standard curve for a standard test does not

describe what you do and do not know. If I decided to
test every reader on this story, and not everybody read it
or cared enough to finish reading it, what exactly does
the test test for? Does it test for completion or for an
ability to parse details from a jumble of text? Does it tell
us how much someone likes the story of Little Red
Riding Hood?

Standardization and testing for it is a roundabout

way of doing nothing. At least nothing that is good.
Every year, students take standardized tests. Whether
they be the SAT, ACT, the new PARCC, or any other
state or nationally administered test, data is generated on
achievements of certain students. This data, however, is
scaled only from an extrapolation of its own
measurements. This means that a high score for one test
means that another (or many other) students must do
worse. This is the same type of ranking system that
works in athletics, and it works only because there exists
no standard test. If an athlete is attempting to make a
sports team, they may be asked to run through the basics
(for example a baseball player may be asked to pitch or a
soccer player asked to shoot on target) but other than this
small set of standards the binary decision of whether
or not a candidate makes the team depends on
performance within the environment of the game.
Standardized testing, to continue with the analogy of
sports, isnt even in the same ballpark as what it
supposedly is testing for. According to the College
Board website (College Board is the company that
publishes the SAT)

The SAT and SAT Subject Tests are designed to assess

your academic readiness for college. These exams provide
a path to opportunities, financial support, and
scholarships, in a way that's fair to all students. The SAT
and SAT Subject Tests keep pace with what colleges are
looking for today, measuring the skills required for
success in the 21st century.

Quite a noble mission if one doesnt dig any further. But

dig we must, and so dig we shall.
If Sally has one dollar
If Sally has one dollar and takes the SAT, how many
dollars will she have left? A.) None, B.) Less than none,
C.) A lot less than none, D.) Just tears. Sally, if she
somehow only manages to take the SAT once, will be
$53.50 short of her one dollar (the test, as of 2015 is
$54.50). According to College Board, at least half of all
students take the SAT twice. So now Sally owes $109,
and thats only if she doesnt request any extra services,
such as an answer verification service which only
ensures that the test was scored correctly and nobody
messed up. Many students will take the SAT more than
twice, or possible take the ACT as a comparison to see

which they did better on. A multitude of colleges and

universities now require students to submit scores for
SAT subject tests in addition, raising the cost for some to
over $200.
Two-hundred dollars is no measly amount of
money, but it is a pittance compared to the fees charged
by SAT helper courses guaranteed to raise scores or
your money back (note: this is a fake advertisement, I
do not offer money back). One-on-one courses can
garner up to one thousand dollars, a fee that most people
would be unwilling to part with. Those who are willing
(and able) to, however will most likely get better scores
on their standardized tests than someone who was not
willing or able. After all, that is exactly what the
advertisement promises.
In order for a test to be standard, it must be fair.
And while test-takers across the country are held to strict
standards inside the test centers, they may do whatever
they like outside of them. This holds true for all testing,
not just these standardized or college admissions tests.
No student should be able to perform better on an
assessment because they are able to spend more money

preparing for it. That is why there are salary caps or

financial fair play regulations in sports; no team can
have an unfair advantage only because they have more
money to spend (in many cases it is also for their own
good; i.e. no team can spend more money than they have
to prevent them from entering serious debt. This can be
thought of as an education debt).
In a society where childrens futures depend on
their ability to get an education, that ability cannot be
hampered by the economic situation of their parents. If
so, the American Dream will only further be privy to
those who are already are.