The Classical Learning Test

Test Preparation
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I tutored a student in Florida on this. It is accepted at all Florida state university. I think it is in some ways a better test than the SAT/ACT. It is in 3 sections, Reading, Grammar, and Math. The Verbal passages are all from classic sources, such as the epic of Gilgamesh or 18th / 19th century novels. Math is all no calculator, which I think is better, as the SAT now allows Desmos and you can use calculator programs on the SAT and ACT.

Aside from Florida, it is mostly accepted by religious schools, Catholic, Baptist, Methodist, Lutheran, etc. It is not accepted by top Catholic universities. It is accepted by St. Johns College Annapolis and Santa Fe, with their great books programs, but not by many other competitive colleges.

It has been criticized for including religious passages, like from the Bible, by saints, or theology. I think that is a mistake to include them, because it limits its acceptance beyond religious school, and IMO it is a good exam.

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Perhaps the use of religion is intentional for marketing toward those colleges with a specific religious or political leaning.

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In a world with calculators always available and expected to be used in college courses, why would a non-calculator test be better? I can see more equitable perhaps (except for those with SLDs), but not better. Once you enter academia or the workforce it’s about using the tools that are available.

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