The SAT Mega-Think-Tank
I was reading today, and probably over tired while doing it (I had to get up at 7am to sing Schütz this morning — twice!), so my mind was wandering and I tend to have odd ideas when that happens.
Anyway, I was reading blog articles about great, seemingly intractable problems like global warming, what to do about Iraq, how to keep our elections fair…. The usual stuff. Then I read another article that mentioned the SAT (you know: that Scholastic Aptitude Test that most high-school seniors take) for some reason when it hit me all of a sudden how to find the solutions to these difficult problems: make them questions on the SAT!
Just think. Every year millions of fertile, flexible, creative young minds could tackle the country's — the world's! — toughest problems. Out of all those millions of possibilities, surely somewhere, someone would think of some useful ideas. The winners could be awarded with with extravagant scholarships and it would still be exceedingly cost effective. The questions for each year's exam could even be published a year ahead of time — but let's save at least one slot for the last-minute, quick-on-your-feet, spontaneous question — so that the talent pool have plenty of time to think over their ideas.
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on Monday, 27 November 2006 at 23.51
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There is something delightful about the idea. Still, it all hinges on the perceptions and attitudes of those evaluating the test-takers' answers, and that could well turn out to be an Achille's heel.
I once heard a comedian (Bob Newhart?) ruminating on brilliant solutions to great problems rejected, and thus lost to us, down through history by scoffing teachers, scornful supervisors, disinterested captains, etc.