The Urban Legend

Are standardized tests a thing of the past?

Reese Bassuk, Sports and Caboose Editor • March 14, 2023

The ACT and SAT, previously essential to get into college, have now become optional for the vast majority of universities in the United States. According to Forbes, more than 80% of four-year colleges...

Opinion: the SAT and ACT have overstayed their welcome

Mira Chandriani, Editor in Chief, Creative • November 19, 2020

A rising number of colleges have begun phasing SAT and ACT scores out of their admissions decisions, in a move that is long overdue. Not only are these standardized tests extremely time-consuming to study...

Testing accommodations–not always so accommodating

Sophia Vahanvaty, Editor-in-Chief of Newspaper • November 16, 2017

As the Urban School students gear up for Week 12 testing, students with learning differences face the additional struggle of making sure their testing accommodations are in order. This process can be intense...

Student brains are more than a science experiment and a standard scale

Marie Bergsund, Staff Writer • February 9, 2015

If you’ve ever taken a science class, you know that an experiment requires a dependent variable, an independent variable, and a control. The most important component is the control. If you’re testing...

More students at The Urban School begin early SAT and ACT prep, but how early is too early?

Olive Lopez, Staff Writer • November 14, 2013

A couple of weeks ago, my parents arrived home from a junior parent college meeting bearing a thick folder stuffed with information about the ACT and SAT. A few days ago, I placed an order for three...