Merit Finds a Way with the CLT

April 3, In the Year of our Lord 2025: Why the Classic Learning Test will change the educational landscape.

Jeremy Tate, founder of the Classic Learning Test (CLT), often cites David Coleman of the SAT’s College Board: “Teachers will teach towards the test. There is no force on this earth strong enough to prevent that.” This is how the SAT is imposing new standards on k-12 education through the back door. But the CLT's long-term influence might be even more profound than k-12 educational content. Here’s why.

Two key features make the CLT critical to the future of good education in America.

1. Verbal Reasoning: The Forgotten Predictor of Success

The first is that the CLT continues to test Verbal Reasoning while the SAT has diminished or removed this factor in its testing.  Not much is said about this metric these days.  However, over the past 80 years, no metric has correlated with success in college, business, or career more than Verbal Reasoning.  In fact, it's estimated that 70-80% of corporations use a verbal reasoning test as part of their hiring and evaluation. 

DEI initiatives in colleges put pressure on the SAT organization to move away from Verbal Reasoning because it favors those in stable families, in homes with many books, and in families where more formal English is spoken.  DEI proponents call this a "disparate impact" on minorities.  They know Verbal Reasoning is the key indicator of successful people.  But, their DEI goals outweigh merit.

2. The College Admissions Shakeup

In 2003, SCOTUS ruled in Gratz v. Bollinger that the University of Michigan's admission policy which awarded 20 points to minorities and only 12 points to those with perfect SAT scores was unconstitutional.  Colleges could no longer override the standardized test based on DEI.  The SAT reacted as it moved away from Verbal Reasoning to limit this "disparate impact."  Instead, it moved to test "common core knowledge" which could be more easily infused through test preparation and k-12 curriculum standards.  This had some limited effect, but it didn't change fast enough.  By 2021, amid the DEI frenzy, there was a rush to drop the requirement for ANY college entrance test and as of 2025, 80% of colleges have gone test optional.  This creates a problem.

High School GPA's are notoriously "grade inflated," which makes them a poor predictor of college success -- there are a lot more "straight A" students than there used to be!  Admissions essays can be written well by AI.  And, for those who do submit SATs, the new test has lost its claim on meritorious success because these claims were based on Verbal Reasoning, which it jettisoned.  So, colleges basically now admit solely on soft non-measures which allows them to perpetuate their DEI practices. Even if a college wanted to admit students based on merit, all of the indicators of merit have been compromised.  This is where the second reason for CLT's importance comes into play.

The Rise of a New Academic Elite

There is a coming shakeup in the college world.  Over a longer time-horizon (I'm predicting about 15-20 years), the lack of standards will impact employers who hire college graduates.   For quite some time, elite colleges have been able to turn out good employees based on their reputation.  The best and brightest apply to the top colleges. This means that even if the college parks its students in a party dorm for 4 years, naturally gifted kids will still emerge.  Inputs equal outputs.  So, hiring from an elite college historically still got employers top-tier talent.  Now, the top 100 colleges, by and large, are admitting based on DEI.  And, even non-minority students are being admitted based upon soft standards.  This upends the whole natural advantage that came from selective enrollment.  Of course, for a while, DEI friendly employers will still seek these elite graduates.  But, capitalism is not mocked.  A lack of meritorious standards always results in long-term failure.

Colleges that catch on to the reality of this qualification sink hole the soonest will shift back to merit-based admissions and eventually leapfrog the elites.  But, with the SAT compromised, how can colleges do this?  Enter the CLT.  This test remains steadfast in its pursuit of merit.  In the past year, we've seen corporation after corporation reject the DEI narrative.  These employers will soon figure out, through their own Verbal Reasoning tests, that colleges that accept the CLT as an entrance measure will turn out better employees. The new elites in the college world, at least for employers, will be the tier of colleges that reflect merit in admissions and graduation.

Now, we all want everyone, including "disaffected" minorities, to participate in the American dream.  The way to achieve this is through merit, not through DEI.  DEI will simply place more and more "underrepresented" groups in positions for which they are less prepared than their counterparts.  This results in resentment, and it drives biases, based in real policy, that are harmful to a society which should be color blind.  

Regardless of where you stand on DEI, the college world is changing.  I believe this change will thrust the CLT upward as the go-to standard for college admissions.  Whether we like it or not, merit finds a way.