The question to ask at this point is, why would something with documented negative medical effects be used all across the nation? There are multiple professionals claiming the adverse effects result from the use of standardized testing as the sole measurement of student success, yet it continues to be a defining factor for students across America. These test results are able to make or break the students, and, according to several professionals, it is in fact breaking them.
Similarly, the stress put on standardized test scores has led to negative results within the classroom. The results of standardized tests within a district has begun to play a role in deciding the amount of financial support a school receives. According to an article written by Van Thompson
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titled “Do Standardized Test Scores Factor in to How Much Money a School Will Receive?”, “a school that consistently fails to meet adequate yearly progress standards may not be able to access some grants and other forms of funding. After five years of failure to meet AYP standards, a school can be closed altogether.” In that same article, it is said that schools can opt out of administering standardized tests, but they lose funding for doing so. Schools feel pressured to meet benchmarks set by the state, which leads to schools pressuring educators to produce the desired results. There are some schools that even tie the salary of the teachers to the ability of their pupils to achieve standards set by the state. For example, Houston’s board of education has begun to offer up to $3,000 annually to teachers whose students consistently meet these benchmarks (Thompson para. 3). Consequently, teacher’s feel enormous stress to produce the results the state wants to see.
The National Education Association (NEA) conducted a survey, wherein teachers were asked various questions about the impact standardized testing has had in their classrooms. According to Tim Walker, “Forty-two percent of the surveyed teachers reported that the emphasis on improving standardized test scores had a ‘negative impact’ on their classroom, while only 15 percent said the impact was ‘positive,’” (para.5). According to this survey, fifty-two percent of teachers said that too much time on test prep, with it being estimated that the average teacher spends about thirty percent of class time focused on preparing for the test (Walker para.7). Despite the majority of teachers, the people who see the effects the most, reporting that standardized testing does significant harm to education, the results of the exams are still stressed far too much. It would appear that the stress on standardized testing has taken its toll on the educators, too, as forty-five percent of surveyed teachers reported that they had considered quitting due to the rising importance of standardized testing and their results (Walker para.
10). If any other evidence is needed to prove the ineffectiveness of standardized testing, it lies in the comparison of the education in the United States and in other countries around the world. America the only “economically advanced” nation to employ standardized tests to assess their students. However, when compared to other nations, American students did significantly worse on international exams (“How Standardized...”para.9). In conclusion, standardized testing has become an increasingly important factor in judging the success of the students, teachers, and schools of America. Companies have made millions producing tests that cause a significant amount of harm to the students and education in the United States. While the results can show a student’s strengths, they cannot measure the ability of the teacher or the intelligence of the student. Standardized tests remove some bias involved in judging students. However, the amount of importance the results of these tests have received has caused students to become sick with stress, and education to become the mindless preparation for a test in an effort to increase scores and funding. Standardized testing has done enough damage to American school systems, and it’s time to make a change before it’s too late.
Parents and advocates of education can all agree that they want their students to be in the best hands possible in regards to education. They want the best teachers, staffs, and schools to ensure their student’s success. By looking at the score results from standardized testing, teachers can evaluate effectively they are doing their job. On the other side, a proponent for eliminating standardized testing would argue that not all students care passionately about their education and will likely not perform to expectations on the test. However, receiving the numerical data back, teachers can construe the student’s performances and eliminate the outliers of the negligent kids. Teachers can then look at the individual scores and assign those outliers to get the help they need in school. This helps every student getting an equal chance at education. Overall, taking a practice standardized test can let a teacher look at individual questions and scores and interpret what they need to spend more time on teaching. A school also can reap the benefits from standard testing to ensure they are providing the best possible education they can. The school can look at the average scores from a group and hold the teacher accountable for the student’s results on the test. The school can then determine the best course of action to pursuit regarding the teacher’s career at the school. By offering teachers and schools the opportunity to grow and prosper, standardized testing is a benefit for the entire education
Solley, Bobbie A. “Standardized Testing Has Negatively Impacted Public Schools.” Opposing Viewpoints: Education. Ed. David M. Haugen. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2009. Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center. Gale. Web. 5 May. 2010.
“Students are taking between ten and twenty standardized tests, depending on the grade. A total average of one hundred thirteen different ones by graduation.”(Locker) A few years ago the United States, along with other nations, was given a test to assess the academic strengths and weaknesses of each nation and rank them accordingly. When the results were released and the United States was ranked near the bottom, it was decided to start incorporating more testing through school. Between benchmark, TLI, PARCC, and common core standards, teaching technique was forced to change. Standardized testing has had a negative effect on teachers and students, implementing inadequate grading standards and the common core curriculum, such testing has made
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).
Since the U.S. Congress passed the No Child Left Behind program, standardized testing has become the norm for American schools. Under this system, each child attending a school is required to take a standardized test at specific grade points to assess their level of comprehension. Parents, scholars and all stakeholders involved take part in constant discussions over its effectiveness in evaluating students’ comprehension, teachers’ competency and the effects of the test on the education system. Though these tests were put in place to create equality, experts note that they have created more inequality in the classroom. In efforts to explore this issue further, this essay reviews two articles on standardized testing. This essay reviews the sentiments of the authors and their insight into standardized examination. The articles provide sufficient evidence to demonstrate that standardized tests are not effective at measuring a teacher’s competency because they do not take into account the school environment and its effect on the students.
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.
These tests can have a negative impact on students as Columbia University recently states that “Standardized testing evaluates a student’s performance on one particular day and does not take into account external factors. There are many people who simply do not perform
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.
Students dread the time of the year when they stop with their course material and begin to prepare for test. Everyone is in agreement that some type of revolution is needed when it comes to education; eliminating standardized test will aid the reform. The need for standardized testing has proven to be ineffective and outdated; some leading educationalist also believe this because the tests do not measure a student’s true potential. This will save money, stop labeling, and alleviate stress in students and teachers.
Since elementary school, students have been sharpening their No. 2 pencils, preparing to fill in the bubbles on their standardized tests. To younger children, these tests aren’t a very big deal. But little do they know that the tests they take in elementary school are practice for the biggest test they will take in their lives. This test is the ACT, or the SAT. These tests are a huge deal. Students’ results on these tests could change their plans for the future, and that’s a lot of pressure. So are these tests really all that they are made out to be? Are they really that important enough to stress about so much? Many people have started to say that standardized tests are hurting American schools, and that they put too much pressure on students.
Standardized testing is not an effective way to test the skills and abilities of today’s students. Standardized tests do not reveal what a student actually understands and learns, but instead only prove how well a student can do on a generic test. Schools have an obligation to prepare students for life, and with the power standardized tests have today, students are being cheated out of a proper, valuable education and forced to prepare and improve their test skills. Too much time, energy, and pressure to succeed are being devoted to standardized tests. Standardized testing, as it is being used presently, is a flawed way of testing the skills of today’s students.
There is added pressure to schools to get better scores which adds pressure to the educators and the students. The added pressure can cause health problems with the students or the educators. If health problem come from the stress of the tests it could negatively affect the student’s ability to learn (Pros and Cons, 2013). The test itself is a problem as well. The test is supposed to be unbiased based on the grade level but in most cases the test is not. As much as they try...
Even though standardized tests have been seen to cause emotional distress in many students and has dramatically
Why do students take tests instead of using all that wasted time to learn about more valuable info? School should eliminate testing due to the fact that students learn how to take the test not really about the test subject, waste instructional time in class, and the inefficiently provide evidence of students and teachers ability. Schools should eliminate standardized testing because it teaches kids just to know how to take the test not to learn the info. In the article written by Lindsey Layton, Joshua P. Starr says that “Too many kids in too many schools are bored” and that “Parents maybe see that and they want their kids to be engaged in school” (A.3). Kids are bored and not engaged at school because so much of their time is taken
These tests have been elevated as a tool for students, schools, and teachers. They are driving our good teachers to leave their profession, that they have worked hard to get. With the standardized testing kids may not be good test takers and the grades on the test may reflect that one subject of the matter but not the other. In that case, schools are spending huge amount of money on standardized testing; later on that money needs to go to the schools to buy updated textbooks to actually teach the children what they need to know. Countless teachers have to eliminate projects and activities that provide students with an opportunity to be creative and imaginative.