Editing Educational Testing Service (section)

==Criticism==
[[File:ETS lake and fountains.jpg|thumb|right|Pond with fountains behind Messick and Lord Halls. [[Steven Brill (journalist)|Steven Brill]] reported in 1974 that ETS is known "around Princeton ... for its extravagance."<ref name="Brill">{{cite journal |last1=Brill |first1=Steven |author-link1=Steven Brill (journalist) |title=The Secrecy Behind the College Boards |journal=[[New York (magazine)|New York]] |date=October 7, 1974 |volume=7 |issue=40 |pages=67–83 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=k-gCAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA67 |access-date=October 19, 2020}}</ref>]]
ETS has been criticized for being a "highly competitive business operation that is as much multinational monopoly as nonprofit institution".<ref>{{cite news | url = http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F30915FB3B5E0C738FDDA00894DF494D81&n=Top%2fReference%2fTimes%20Topics%2fOrganizations%2fE%2fEducational%20Testing%20Service| title = Testing Giant Exceeds Roots, Drawing Business Rivals' Ire | work = [[The New York Times]] | access-date = 2007-07-07 | first1=Jon | last1=Nordheimer | first2=Douglas | last2=Frantz | date=September 30, 1997}}</ref> Due to its legal status as a non-profit organization, ETS is exempt from paying federal corporate income tax on many, but not all, of its operations.<ref name="Brill" /> It annually reports detailed financial information to the [[IRS]] on [[Form 990]], which is publicly available.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://andyhilbert.blogspot.com/2005/11/teacher-watch-ets-monopoly-continues.html| title = Teacher Watch: ETS Monopoly Continues | work = [[HorseSense and Nonsense]] | date = 11 November 2005 | access-date = 2007-07-07 }}</ref>

In response to growing criticism of its monopolistic power, New York state passed the Educational Testing Act, a disclosure law which required ETS to make available certain test questions and graded answer sheets to students.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.answers.com/topic/educational-testing-service-company-private-not-for-profit?cat=biz-fin| title = Educational Testing Service - Hoover's profile | work = [[Answers.com]] | access-date = 2007-07-07 }}</ref>

Problems administering England's national tests in 2008 by ETS Europe were the subject of thousands of complaints recorded by the [[Times Educational Supplement]].<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://www.tes.com/magazine/archive/chaos-casts-doubt-over-tests-deadline|title=Chaos casts doubt over tests deadline|author=Warwick Mansell|date=4 July 2008|publisher=Times Educational Supplement}}</ref> Their operations were also described as a "''shambles''" in the [[Parliament of the United Kingdom|UK Parliament]], where a financial penalty was called for.<ref>{{Cite book|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/7409234.stm|title=MPs criticise testing 'shambles'|publisher=BBC|date=20 May 2008}}</ref>  Complaints included papers not being marked properly, or not being marked at all<ref>{{Cite book|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/7511922.stm|title=More questions about Sats results|publisher=BBC|date=17 July 2008}}</ref> and papers being sent to the wrong schools or lost completely.<ref>{{Cite book|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/7521459.stm |title=Schools hunting missing papers |publisher=BBC|date=24 July 2008}}</ref> It has even been suggested that the quality of service is so poor that the [[Department for Children, Schools and Families]] (formerly the [[Department for Education and Skills (United Kingdom)|Department for Education and Skills]]) might not be able to publish the 2008 league tables of school performance.<ref>{{Cite book|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/7513619.stm |title=League tables 'might be scrapped' |publisher=BBC|author=Mike Baker|date=18 July 2008}}</ref> However, the contract was ended by "mutual consent".<ref>{{cite news| url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/7562835.stm | work=BBC News | title=Sats marking contract is scrapped | date=August 15, 2008}}</ref> The UK government asked Lord Sutherland to conduct an inquiry into the failure of the 2008 tests. The report included in its main findings:

''•	primary responsibility for this summer's delivery failure rests with ETS Global BV, which won the public contract to deliver the tests;''<br>
''•	ETS's capacity to deliver the contract proved to be insufficient. A lack of comprehensive planning and testing by ETS of its systems and processes was a key factor in the delivery failure;''

In 1983, students of [[Garfield High School (Los Angeles County, California)|James A. Garfield High School]] in [[East Los Angeles, California]], achieved unexpectedly high exam results on the ETS Advanced Placement Exam. ETS implied that the students may have cheated to obtain such results based on common mistakes across different exams.  The students were required to prove their abilities and innocence by taking a second exam, which they did successfully.<ref>[http://reason.com/archives/2002/07/01/stand-and-deliver-revisited Stand and Deliver Revisited]</ref>

[[Americans for Educational Testing Reform]] (AETR) claims that ETS is violating its non-profit status through excessive profits, executive compensation, and governing board member pay (which the IRS specifically advises against<ref>{{cite web | author=United States Internal Revenue Service | title=Good Governance Practices for 501(c)(3) Organizations | url=https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-tege/governance_practices.pdf | date= February 7, 2007| access-date=2009-05-31}}</ref>). AETR further claims that ETS is acting unethically by selling test preparation materials, directly lobbying legislators and government officials, and refusing to acknowledge test-taker rights. It also criticises ETS for forcing GRE test-takers to participate in research experiments during the actual exam.<ref>{{cite web | author=Americans for Educational Testing Reform | title=America's Corporate Guinea Pigs - How ETS Exploits GRE Test-Takers | url=http://aetr.org/downloads/How_ETS_Exploits_GRE_Takers.pdf | date=10 May 2009 | access-date=2009-05-30 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110724224711/http://aetr.org/downloads/How_ETS_Exploits_GRE_Takers.pdf | archive-date=24 July 2011 | url-status=dead }}</ref> 

In 2014 the [[BBC]] reported that the [[Home Office]] has suspended English language tests run by ETS after a BBC investigation uncovered systematic fraud in the student visa system. Secret filming of government-approved English exams needed for a visa showed entire rooms of candidates having the tests faked for them.<ref>[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-26024375 Student visa system fraud exposed in BBC investigation]</ref>