Some of Saipan students’ SAT scores are delayed

Several Korean and Chinese students on Saipan were expecting to receive their SAT scores last week Thursday after taking the standardized test on Oct. 11. 2014. Instead, the students received an email from the College Board, stating that they have placed the scores of all students from Korea and China on hold for administrative review. The decision came after allegations of cheating on the test in Korean and Chinese schools surfaced.

The Washington Post and several other major news outlets have reported that the College Board is investigating allegations of cheating on the October test and has delayed its distribution to students who are residents of China and Korea.

The College Board, in a statement, said that they, along with the Educational Testing Service, “are committed to ensuring quality standards and fairness to all students.” 

Students affected by the alleged cheating scandal received an email from ETS saying that they go through great lengths to ensure accurate and valid test results after every test administration.

“It is with this objective in mind that we sometimes take additional quality control steps before scores are released,” they said.

ETS added that the October 2014 SAT scores will be reported to the students and their school if there are no red flags or questions they have pertaining to the individual student’s score. The test is believed to have been the same SAT exam given to U.S. students in December of 2013.

Grace Christian Principal Beth Ann Nunez said that she finds the news “very disappointing”.

“The issue in South Korea has now greatly affected some of the Korean students of the CNMI,” she added. “This delay has specifically affected one of our students who is applying for early admission into a topnotch university in the United States.”

Nunez said she contacted the College Board to try and clear up the issue and hopes that it will be resolved quickly.

One foreign student on island told Saipan Tribune that one of his friends is a student at the Korean Academy accused of cheating. The high school student said that officials at the school allegedly opened the test’s answer sheets before it was administered to students. 

In May of last year, according to The Washington Post, the entire country of South Korea was not allowed to take the SAT exam because of leaked test questions.