By Sofia Williams
Editor-In-Chief
In fall 2023, the Practice SAT (PSAT) exam was administered digitally, rather than on paper. The College Board, the organization that facilitates the SAT and Advanced Placement (AP) tests, elected to administer the PSAT digitally in fall 2023 to allow students to acclimate to the updated format, according to collegeboard.org. In spring 2024, the SAT will transition to a completely web-based format. The digitalization of the PSAT and the SAT will work to the detriment of students, limiting accessibility due to internet access requirements, posing potential technical issues, and complicating the test-taking process.
According to the Educational Testing Service, only 64% of schools in the U.S. have access to the internet. Therefore, the use of Bluebook, the testing site utilized to administer the digital PSAT and SAT, will be limited in over 1⁄3 of schools throughout the nation. This disparity in access to technology will put students in schools located in low-income school districts, at a disadvantage because they will be unable to take the exams on campus.
If students need to travel to testing centers or other schools to take the PSAT and SAT, testing sites will become busier due to a larger influx of test-takers. This could additionally disadvantage students looking to take the exams, as a more crowded, unfamiliar environment can be distracting while taking a test. According to a study performed by Frontiers, students’ performance in a logical reasoning task decreased 11% in efficiency in an environment with ambient noise and conversation as compared to a quiet environment. This demonstrates that an increased number of testers in a smaller amount of space will contribute to lower overall test performance.
Additionally, according to a study performed by the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, average test scores decrease when students transition from a paper test to an online test. Per future-ed.org, this phenomenon could be attributed to groups with limited English proficiency or those enrolled in Special Education programs. Because these groups are already disadvantaged in traditional test-taking environments, it is important that new technology not be mandated in order to maximize the educational success of these groups on exams such as the PSAT and SAT.
The online administration of the PSAT can be difficult to manage, especially in the event of technical problems. Even in a school with such ample access to resources as Costa, internet connection and properly functioning technology are a concern—according to Vice Principal Deborah Park, one of the main challenges that Costa’s administration has already experienced is technological problems, as Costa’s Wi-Fi has to be very strong to support the hundreds of registered PSAT-takers, and assistance was necessary for any glitches that could have occurred with the testing program. If the test were optionally administered on paper, there would be a smaller likelihood of technological difficulties, and students would not have to harbor additional stress about the function of their technology.
However, the newly digital SAT and PSAT are currently administered under secure conditions, alleviating test security concerns. According to Park, the Bluebook testing program, which can be downloaded from the College Board website, has embedded technology that blocks external sites and browsers to ensure the test is secure. Per Park, students were also monitored during the test by trained proctors to also ensure that the testing environment and experience were aligned with College Board guidelines for testing environments.
It is important that the PSAT and SAT be given optionally on paper, as the digitization of the exams poses concerns because of students’ varied accessibility to the internet, possible technical difficulties, and the additional complications that an online exam may cause.
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