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Bar Course Aptitude Test launched amid student outrage

One of the sections of the BCAT is that of evaluating arguments. In other words, you are presented with an argument and a conclusion; and, proceeding on the assumption that the argument made is true, candidates are asked to judge, in effect, whether or not the conclusion actually follows from the argument. So let's apply this process to the two anonymous posters above. The second draws the conclusion that the fees are 'fair' due to the need to put off those who aren't of barrister quality. What he forgets, of course, is that whether you have money is no indicator of whether you are of 'barrister quality'. Thus, his argument is extremely weak indeed. The first is no better. He says that these fees are 'reasonable' because they are only 1% of the BPTC course fees. Using identical logic, the matter would be reasonable were the students (before proceeding on to the BPTC) being forced to wash Baroness Deech's car - and pay £150 to do so. The point is that it is not enough to consider merely the amount of money being asked for in comparison to the BPTC fees. Rather. one must also look at what the students are being forced to do. And what the students are being forced to do is sit a test that the evidence (ie, the cost of the LNAT) suggests costs nowhere near £150 pp to provide. That is unfair. But his reasoning failures continue. For he goes on to make precisely the same mistake as the second anonymous poster, by drawing the same false link between a person's intellectual abilities and their ability to put their hands in their pockets and come up with yet another £150. Another BCAT test is that of deduction: namely, working out what conclusions necessarily follow from a given set of facts. The first poster has clearly shown a breathtaking lack of reasoning skills; but, interestingly, he goes on to say: "I've seen these tests and by god you'd have to be a muppet to fail one." Given this information, I will leave it to the reader to work out the conclusion that does appear to follow from it.

21-Feb-2013

9:30 am