Discrepancies in standardized testing scores are also caused by the stress that they inflict. Derek Jordan, a current assistant principal, argues that standardized tests could possibly work, but only with the correct use. Since standardized tests are currently used incorrectly, he observes that the required standardized tests are responsible for “a high level of undue stress among educators and students alike” (Jordan). From Jordan emphasizing the high level of stress, it implies that the level is too high. Another source discussed the findings of a research experiment conducted by Mary M. Donegan and Mary Trepanier-Street to examine the extent to which stress is caused. At the end of the study, the pair concludes, “upper grade teachers felt …show more content…
Derek Jordan unravels more on this topic; he writes, “The Chicago Public Schools are required by federal and state law to improve student performance on standardized tests, which are used to make crucially important decisions about the future of schools” (Jordan). Standardized tests possess too much power to make decisions about the directions that schools will head, especially because the scores from the test do not show a true reflection of the whole school. Jordan continues:
Schools that experience higher levels of poverty, violence, gangs, pregnancy and drugs are more likely to be negatively affected by the use of test scores as a school measure. Societal ills may hinder a school's ability to adequately prepare students for tests, yet these schools are expected to maintain the same standards and scores as schools that have selective student enrollment and are located in affluent neighborhoods.
Factors outside of the school play a huge role in lowering standardized tests scores. Right now standardized tests are used to punish the schools for factors that may be outside of its control, and this is an unfair practice. Standardized tests should have never been used to make such
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An excessive amount of money is wasted on consistently making new tests. Alyssa Figueroa researched the amount of money that Pearson, one company known for making standardized tests, makes. She reports, “Currently, Pearson has partnered with 18 states in the U.S., as well as Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico, to produce pricey testing materials. For a five-year contract, Pearson was paid $32 million to produce standardized tests for New York. Its contract in Texas was worth $500 million” (Figueroa). Pearson is being promised and has already earned a bulky paycheck to produce tests that are far from perfect; in fact, it can be argued that the negatives of standardized tests outweigh the positives. The point that this is controversial means that we should not spend the excessive amount of money on standardized tests that we currently do.
Proponents of standardized testing will likely disagree with the ideas presented. Some may still believe that standardized tests are in fact non-discriminatory because test questions are the same for all students, teaching to the test is a positive because it saves time, and that the tests are not too stressful. All of these claims are incorrect, as they have been disproven. Standardized tests have been found to be discriminatory, teaching to the test suppresses teachers' passion for teaching, and standardized tests
This is precisely the problem. Standardized tests are old and outdated, and the harm they cause to America’s education system by far outweighs the benefits. These tests were intended to monitor and offer ways to improve how public schools function, but instead they have impaired the natural learning ability of students and imposed upon the judgment of experienced educators. Although a means to evaluate the progress of public schools is necessary, it is also necessary to develop more modern and effective ways of doing so. Standardized testing mandated by the federal and state governments has a negative effect on the education of America’s youth.
Standardized tests have been used to see how much a child has learned over a certain period of time. These tests have been a highly debated issue with many parents and just people in general. In the article “Opting out of standardized tests? Wrong answer,” the author Michelle Rhee argues that people should not be trying to opt out of standardized tests because it allows the country to see how much a child has learned and the things they need to improve. On the other hand, in the article “Everything You’ve Heard About Failing Schools Is Wrong,” the author Kristina Rizga argues that standardized tests are not an efficient way to measure a student’s intelligence.
Standardized tests compare students in different states, districts, and schools. The comparisons lead to “unhealthy competition among the schools” (Pros and Cons 2). In the article, “Pros and Cons of Standardized Testing,” it is stated that “Federal funds are given only to those that perform well” (2). This makes the pressures in schools very high and makes the schools evaluate the performance of the teachers and students constantly. “Low scores can prevent a student from progressing to the next grade level or lead to teacher firings and school closures, while high scores ensure continued federal and local funding and are used to reward teachers and administrators with bonus payments” (Use of Standardized Tests 5). Standardized tests give parents a good idea of how well their students are doing and learning. It also leads to exaggerated reports of success. In Jonathan Pollard’s article he says “Consider this passage taken directly from Kohn’s book:” Then it states how when a test is first administered and scores are low, headlines are bad. Then in a few years the scores go up and the headlines are good. Finally, the scores level off or they substitute a new test and the scores drop. Causing the headlines to be bad again. Kohn then states that “This is not due to a change in the competency of teachers, or level of instruction. This is simply the process of students and teachers acclimating to the tests” (Pollard 4).
Standardized testing assesses students, teachers, and the school itself, which puts a great deal of pressure on the students. High scores show that the school is effective in teaching students, while low test scores make teachers and schools look as though they are not teaching the students properly. This is not always the case. There are teachers who do teach students what they need to know to pass the test, but their students are still unprepared. Although teachers try to improve instruction, student performance is still variable to other factors that the school cannot control.
Standardized testing is not the best way to measure how well a teacher teaches or how much a student has learned. Schools throughout the United States put their main focus on standardized tests; these examinations put too much pressure on the teachers and students and cause traumatizing events. Standardized testing puts strain on teachers and students causing unhealthy occurrences, Common Core is thrown at teachers with no teaching on how to teach the new way which dampers testing scores for all students, and the American College Test determines whether a child gets into college or not based on what they have learned during high school. Standardized tests are disagreeable; tests should not determine ranking of people.
Although there have been legitimate arguments supporting the benefits of standardized testing, such as their ability to successfully measure students’ proficiency, in recent years there have been concerns and disadvantages regarding how their misuse poses a serious threat to the American education system. Despite the belief that standardized tests should be used to measure students’ proficiency, there are more reasons outweighing this statement regarding why they shouldn’t be used for this purpose. Not only is this a particular issue with standardized testing, but the tests are becoming more high stakes and are being used unfairly to determine things such as graduation, or placement in a school, resulting in a significant amount of stress and anxiety in students. Testing corporations are also profiting from the design of these standardized tests, while standardized testing is also forcing teachers to all teach the same thing, leading to a lack of creativity in the students. Aside from these arguments, standardized tests have been found to be becoming flawed and have poor design.
Many people agree that standardized tests are a reasonable evaluation of a student’s capability. Standardized tests originated in the mid-1800s, in the American education system. W. James Popham defines standardized testing by “any test that’s administered, scored, and interpreted in a standard, predetermined manner” (“Is the Use of…,” 2013). After the No Child Left behind Act (NCLB) came about in the early 2000s, the use of standardized testing became popular. NCLB required yearly testing for specific grades and subjects. If schools did not demonstrate adequate improvement, they were either closed or run by the state. This was done so the state and the tax payers of the schools knew that students were learning and knowing the material. Tax payers especially wanted to make sure their money was going to good use (“Is the Use of…,” 2013). High scores on standardized tests can result in funding for the school, along with bonuses to the facility and staff of the school.
Strauss, Valerie. "How Standardized Tests Are Affecting Public Schools." Washington Post 18 May 2012: n. pag. Print.
Standardized testing has taken over the education realm and led to a shift in the institutional goals and values of education. In the last 40 years, standardized exams have changed; they were once used to determine the learning level of students, but now they are being used to determine the teacher’s ability. Standardized tests do not measure education quality and are incorrectly used, leading to the wrongful evaluation of teachers and the limiting of education for students by schools.
Standardized testing has always been a primary concern for teachers, parents, and the students taking the exams themselves. It is believed that standardized testing creates anxiety for all school-aged students, for the fear of failing the test, and puts unneeded pressure on the teachers to “teach to the test” rather than promote free learning. The documentary “Standardized Lies, Money & Civil Rights: How Testing Is Ruining Public Education,” directed by Daniel Hornberger (2013), depicts the misconceptions, truth, and reality of standardized testing, past, present, and future all across the United States.
Standardized tests have been a part of American education since the mid-1800s. Another form was seen in the late 1970s and early 1980s with a short-lived competency test (Linn 3). Horace Mann developed a test to administer to a group of students in the 1800s, his intentions were to make judgments about how the student was doing at their current level and determine if they would be capable of advancing to a higher level. Testing has changed in many ways since it first appeared with the beginning of public education led by Horace Mann. “The purposes of standardized testing have gone from an equalizer of opportunity to a tool of segregation used separate socio-economic status, wealth, and privilege” (Holmes 2).
Whatever the reason may be, many people, including Price, Kahl, and Ayers do not support standardized testing. These authors all have one opinion in common; they are all against testing for the sake of the children, because of the pressures kids already endure without the pressures of testing. They all claim that tests may be an unfair way to rank children in the world today due to: teachers not teaching children the right material in preparation for the test, family upbringing, and even worrying the children would affect the test results. As Ayers indicates, one single test could not determine where a child stands in the business world, due to the fact that the test analyzes specific topics on school and nothing about their personality or more personal traits.
The use of standardized tests is not something new. Everyone should know about their importance and the emphasis put on them, along with the stress that follows. There are multiple choice tests, high-stakes tests, and the dreaded time-limited tests. It is true to say not all tests are created equal; however, every one of these tests has serious flaws. Standardized tests are unfair because they fail to measure students' abilities, they cause an unnecessary amount of stress, and there are too many incentives to teach the test.
Too much time is being devoted to preparing students for standardized tests. Parents should worry about what schools are sacrificing in order to focus on raising test scores. Schools across the country are cutting back on, or even eliminating programs in the arts, recess for young children, field trips, electives for high school students, class meetings, discussions about current events, the use of literature in the elementary grades, and entire subject areas such as science (if the tests cover only language arts and math) (Kohn Standardized Testing and Its Victims 1).
First off, standardized tests do not prove student achievement. The department of education has many goals for their students. Some of these goals include creativity, motivation, and curiosity. “Standardized test measure just a portion of these goals”, which in fact, are more important for their future than a test score can ever be. These goals are real and significant achievements that can’t simply be learned from a test. This is why a test score doesn’t even come close to proving a student’s performance in school.