Muncie Times, Muncie, Delaware County, 6 April 1995 — Page 9

Muncie Times Thursday, April 6,1995 Page 9

► TO ©E ELQUjMJ Test Scores not necessarily predictors of future success

Hugh c. Price

by Hugh B. Price The tendency to endow test scores with predictive powers they do not necessarily have distorts the debate about affirmative action. The Law School Aptitude Test (LSAT), for example, is widely believed to tell us something valid, not only about who should be admitted to law school and how that person will perform in law school, but also the degree to which the person will succeed in his/her career. A few years ago, there was a controversy in which a student working in the admissions office of a major law school publicized LSAT results showing that blacks were being admitted with significantly lower undergraduate grades and LSAT scores than whites. He also alleged that African Americans so admitted tended to gravitate toward the bottom quarter in the class rankings, clearly suggesting that such blacks did not belong at the school. The incident sparked a debate about the university’s affirmative action program and prompted similar anecdotal stories in the media that led many to assume that qualified whites were being passed over in favor of unqualified blacks. But neither then nor now are enough people asking the

hard questions about how meaningful those test results are and whether they reliably tell us anything about the relationship between class ranking and career success. While low class rankings aren’t a cause for celebration, they are not sufficient reason to dismiss those students as undeserving of admission. After all, they were joined in that bottom quarter by many white students. Weren’t they, too, undeserving? And logically there will always be a lowest quarter in any class, even if admissions were limited to white Phi Beta Kappas with perfect LSAT scores. Given that observation, why then are African Americans the only students who don't belong in the school? Another question demands to be answered—is there a proven correlation between test scores and eventual life success? Do those scores tell us how much people will earn 20 years out, their success and esteem in their chosen profession, their contributions to society, or the pride the school will take in their achievements? Anyone who attends a class reunion at a prestigious university, as I have, will come away surprised that many of the class academic “star” have had solid but un-

spectacular lives, while some of those in the bottom quartile have gone on to fame and fortune. A New York Times article by David Shipler reports: “A study of three classes of Harvard alumni over three decades found a high correlation between ‘success’ — defined by income, community involvement and professional satisfaction — and two criteria that might not ordinarily be associated with Harvard freshmen: low S.A.T. scores and a blue-col-lar background.”

The study tells us that the test scores and grade rankings to which opponents of affirmative action attach so much value can’t predict who’ll do well in the real world. It strongly suggests greater efforts to provide opportunities for all who can contribute to society, without artificially restricting those opportunities to those who meet arbitrary criteria, such as high test scores. The few points separating people on admissions and promotion tests do not mater

all that much in the final analysis. Clearly, candidates must possess the cognitive ability to perform satisfactorily in school or on the job. The highest test scorer isn't always the most successful student or worker. Above the threshold qualifications or competencies required to perform satisfactorily, schools and employers should have the flexibility to utilize selection standards and procedures that enable it to fulfill its fundamental mission. ❖

MUNCIE'S OLDEST MINORITY FUNERAL HOME FAULKNER MORTUARY SERVING THE COMMUNITY FOR NEARLY 42 YEARS

PREPLANNING SPECIALISTS AFTER-CARE IRREVOCABLE TRUST FUNDED AND UNFUNDED PRE-ARRANGEMENTS SPEAKERS BUREAU CREMATION SERVICES 24 HOUR ANSWERING SERVICE INTER-FAITH CHAPEL

PHIL PUCKETT Pre-Need Specialist

Funeral Home Number FH830049f0

Ask the Hundreds of Families Who Have Entrusted Faulkner Mortuary with Services

FAULKNER MORTUARY

915 E. Willard Street P.O. Box 2653 Muncie, Indiana 47307 (317) 284-4449

EDGAR FAULKNER, JR. Funeral Director/Owner

Funeral Directors Number FDD1000637