While I find the actual content of the SATs and ACTs to be effective, I find the companies that produce them to be quite corrupt. To do well on the SATs, students have the option to buy materials to study with. The books, classes, all of these are very expensive and could potentially cause financial hardship for many families. Also, the actual costs of taking these tests is rather expensive. Clearly, if a wealthy student wanted to do well on this test, they have all the resources available to them to do so. However, if a student simply can’t afford to buy a study book, take a prep class, or retake the test multiple time, then they are at a disadvantage to other students. If this test is to be truly fair and standardized, then it should allow for all students to be at the same level of play. Favoring wealthy students is not the way to provide for a fair and reliable test.
While I agree that standardized testing to this extent is ridiculous, there are ways that under privileged people can take them without going bankrupt. There are test fee waivers and numerous free online resources that can be used to prep. I think the major discrepancy here isn't necessarily monetary, but the quality of education. The SAT and other such tests favor students with higher quality schools, so I think the problem should be solved at the school level first.
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