M any groups agree with Slack's assessment. The new section should help females score higher on the PSAT because females generally perform better on the verbal section. Just as much as the test measures 'aptitude,' it measures a certain learning style. The SAT, which is mostly multiple choice, has been shown to favor males, who tend to look at multiple choice questions as a game and are more confident taking guesses. Studies by The Center for Women Policy show that young women are reluctant to guess and thus are hurt by the SAT grading system, which gives no credit for a blank answer and deducts a fourth of a point for an incorrect answer.
Critics claim racial as well as gender inequity exist in the test.
After sampling a number of test takers, ETS examines the responses to experimental questions through the DIF procedure. Regardless of ethnicity, race or sex, students of the same caliber should perform similarly. Ideally, through DIF examination of tests, biased questions can be identified before they are used to evaluate students. However, white test takers outperformed Hispanic test takers by about 19 percent. The DIF panel discovered that what appeared to be a straightforward analogy in fact discriminated against one group of test takers.