How Meme Culture Impacts the PSAT

By: Elise Stefankiewicz

High school inevitably starts every year and the first thing that comes to most Sophomores and Juniors minds is the PSAT. This is the first real stressor of the year. This is the test that starts off initial thoughts about the actual SAT and then sparks thoughts of college. The series of questions, depending on your mindset, means a lot to students because it gives them an estimate of what their SAT scores will be like. Scholarships and opportunities can come from a good PSAT score. To make the PSAT less dreadful and more comical, teenagers have taken to twitter and memes have started to develop about topics that appear on the test. 

A meme is a picture or video that has some sort of text above it symbolizing a joke that correlates with the given photo. Internet memes are virtually spread like wildfire and if you have any form of social media you will easily be introduced to the PSAT memes. The culture of creating a series of memes about the test has been a constant every year. This is simply our generation's attempt to make something stressful more humorous, and it does just that.  

Despite the College Board's concerns with the memes, it has motivated the students that take the test. Students want to take the test to understand the memes that are trending online. If they read the stories provided they will most likely acknowledge the memes they see online. College Board members are not happy with the outlet our generation has created on Twitter discussing the test. Students are not permitted to discuss the test but that does not stop anonymous or no name accounts on Twitter. The constant flood of memes makes it near impossible for the College Board to actually track down and cancel the scores of those who are posting memes. However, every student is taking the test and reading it's content, so memes are bound to be created, and therefore bound to go viral. 

Our generation has its own way of creating comical memes or jokes about things that stress us out. Whether it be school, a sport, a personal situation, or the PSAT. We find ways to make jokes about things that cause anxiety. This eases what we feel and creates a less tense view of taking the PSAT. Generation Z 1, College Board 0.

Sources:

https://clarksburghowl.org/2468/features/student-psat-memes-break-signed-confidentiality-agreement/ 

https://www.reddit.com/r/psatmemes/comments/9n1ycq/press_f/