Do ACT scores really tell how smart you are?
By mysticalmoonray - Posted on March 8th, 2006
Tagged: Education
I've taken the ACT a few times, however one question always goes past my mind....Does the ACT really test how smart you are? I almost always fail math, well on the ACt it was a little low, however once in college I was able to pass buisness math with a B.
I've talked to people who've failed the english section yet excel the college level english. So what does the ACT really measure? Is it really determining how smart you are?
In any case, it is a very bad idea to judge your own personal intelligence on one test. Sure, your score judges your ability to take that particular test, but intelligence is something that can only really be measured qualitatively and subjectively.
ACT is a form of standardized test to see how well students can comprehend and work with certain types of material. The scores are taken into serious consideration by colleges because these are skills that will end up being essential later on down the line academically and professinally. It doesn't necessarily measure intelligence, although, by your own definition, it might. It depends on what type of intelligence you're talking about because somebody else might be thinking about that word in a completely different context than you are.
I think that you're asking a very broad question here. There are many different interpretations to the word "intelligence", and when you're asking us to be this broad, you're going to get very few people who will know how to approach this question and deal with it effectively in the form it is presented.
Hope that this presents some insight for you.
True I did have a broad question, My main point is how can others, or ourselves judge how smart we are by one test. I've seen people who have had a score of 28 on the ACT however they weren't really that smart. I don't think that colleges should look primarily on one test, there are many factors that can collide with your score, such as a bad day, or someone studing their tails off for a good ACT score, then forgetting it all.
Then it is up to that particular student to decide whether they are satisfied with their results based on their personal views of their own competence and decide whether they want to take it again.
Once again, you're not getting the point here. "They weren't really that smart." In what context, and who are you judge someone else's intelligence?
Jordan Stovall
IB Junior
www.progressiveu.org/blog/chasing-bohemia
When I entered UT in 1999, they used my SAT and SATII scores to place me in classes. I feel that is the only effective usage of standardized tests. Sure they can make sure you learned the things you were supposed to learn in high school, but as for colleges I think that it is more about placement.
I dont think that these standardized tests are a good measure of intelligence. It is difficult to measure intelligence because it comes in so many forms. There is so much emphasis put on these tests that it is not fair.
If the ACT or any other standardized test can't measure intelligence, than what can? A GPA can't since some teachers are harder on their students and give lower grades compared to others who give grades out like free candy. Class rank won't work either, because the amount of smart people differ from school to school. You could be first in class rank because the rest of the student body is not interested in academics.
So does anyone have a consistent way to measure intelligence besides a standardized test?
True, the ACT doesn't always get an accurate measure of what you really know, but it can also confuse you into doing the problem wrong. My last math score was considerably lower than my first one because I got confused on part of the test and started trying to solve simple triganometry problems with complicated calculus formulas and derivatives whereas on my last MAT test, I only missed one problem on the whole math section.
I think it gives you an idea on what level or classes to start out at in college so you are not overwhelmed and no clue the first classes.