Easier AP Exams Offer College Students a Path to
$30,000 Savings
At worst, you’re out $500. At best, you get into your
dream school and knock $10,000 off the bill.
That’s
the wager presented to students taking the Advanced Placement exams, a series
of tests for college-bound kids that count toward course credits at many US
universities. The exams — long known for their rigor — have become markedly
easier to pass, making it more feasible for pupils to cut their future
tuition bills by thousands of dollars at a time when the cost of college is
under intense scrutiny.
GPT takes the SAT: Tracing changes in Test
Difficulty and Students' Math Performance
Abstract
Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) is crucial for college
admissions but its effectiveness and relevance are increasingly questioned.
This paper enhances Synthetic Control methods by introducing Transformed
Control, a novel method that employs Large Language Models (LLMs) powered by
Artificial Intelligence to generate control groups. We utilize OpenAI's API to
generate a control group where GPT-4, or ChatGPT, takes multiple SATs annually
from 2008 to 2023. This control group helps analyze shifts in SAT math difficulty
over time, starting from the baseline year of 2008. Using parallel trends, we
calculate the Average Difference in Scores (ADS) to assess changes in high
school students' math performance. Our results indicate a significant decrease
in the difficulty of the SAT math section over time, alongside a decline in
students' math performance. The analysis shows a 71-point drop in the rigor
of SAT math from 2008 to 2023, with student performance decreasing by 36
points, resulting in a 107-point total divergence in average student math
performance. We investigate possible mechanisms for this decline in math
proficiency, such as changing university selection criteria, increased screen
time, grade inflation, and worsening adolescent mental health. Disparities
among demographic groups show a 104-point drop for White students, 84 points
for Black students, and 53 points for Asian students. Male students saw a
117-point reduction, while female students had a 100-point decrease.