Should I challenge the GRE requirement for a doctoral program in education (in the U.S.)? I'm just starting to investigate doctoral programs in education in the United States, and I'm considering how to handle the GRE requirement:


Hardline Activism: submit my incomplete application with a well-researched essay justifying my refusal to take the GRE.
Soft Activism: submit my complete application including my first-try GRE scores along with a well-researched essay debunking the significance of my GRE scores related to my value as a candidate in the Ed.D. program, AND flatly stating that I spent no more than four hours (the length of the exam. i.e. No test prep.) on the GRE, in light of my scientific conclusions about it's relevance in this situation.
Passive Acceptance: submit my complete application with my first-try GRE score and hope for acceptance.
Active Acceptance: Study hard and take the GRE, then study some more and take it again. Submit my complete application and hope for acceptance. 


Are there other options that I'm overlooking?

My position is not "the GRE has no value." My position is "I'm an excellent candidate for this doctoral program, as evidenced by my application. GRE scores would not alter that conclusion."   

I found this discussion very useful, especially the answer and citations by Jeromy Anglim.

As an aside, I admit that I enjoy testing boundaries just for fun, but this issue is more than that. As a proponent of thoughtful, responsible education reform, I'm leaning toward options 1 and 2.
I think the answer to your question is this: 

How much do you value getting into graduate school versus how much do you value feeling like you are making a point?

If you value feeling like you are making a point, by all means, pursue the Soft Activism. My guess is that it will come across to the department like a complaint that you didn't do well enough on the test and are going rogue to make your point.

If you value getting into graduate school, then engage in "begrudging acceptance" that this is how you get into that particular graduate school. Like it or not, there's often a line of people willing to take your place, suffer the test, and smile. Moreover, if there's money on the line in the forms of scholarships or fellowships, consider the time/money you put into the test an investment. Study, practice, and prepare until you get a score you can submit in the hopes of getting in. You don't have to actively like the idea, you just need to accept this is the means to acceptance in graduate school. 

For middle ground possibilities, I actually think the "hardline activism" approach is softer and less whiney than your "soft activism", because true or false it makes it seem like you've had a principled stand against the GRE since the beginning. Depending on the contours of the education program that might bode well for you. Some education programs might agree that the testing is bunk; my colleagues in education don't like standardized tests.

You can of course just submit the scores you have, but if you think they are inadequate for acceptance, that seems unwise.



After you're in, then write all the principled essays you want against it and try to change the system.