Placement Testing Essay

Placement Tests: Can They Make or Break What is Up at Stake? How would you feel if you didn’t get into you’re dream school because of a 3-hour test you took? Many colleges now are looking more at a students transcript rather than just their placement test score. However, placement tests are not an appropriate measurement to get accepted into college because they hurt students that are not great test takers; they do not show a student’s full academic potential, and they are not fair and are discriminatory to certain students. First, placement tests can hurt students who are not good test takers. There are many factors that can play into students’ poor performance on tests, one being test anxiety. Megan Brideau, a student at Penn State

Taking a one day, three-hour test does not show a person’s character, personality, or their ability to achieve in college. Stated by ProCon.org, “A 2001 study published by Brookings Institution found that 50-80% of year-over-year test score improvements were temporary and “caused by fluctuations that had nothing to do with long-term changes in learning” (ProCon.org). Standardized testing does not affect a student’s grade in school, so there are some who do not give as much effort as they are capable of. This can ultimately give a misrepresentation of their test score. Some students who take these placement tests and score poorly, end up having to take remedial classes. These are classes they still have to pay for, but do not get any credit towards their degree requirements. According to Mikhail Zinshteyn, “42% of incoming college students are referred to remedial courses” (Zinshteyn). If a student gets enrolled in at least one developmental course, they will be less likely to complete it. This hurts him or her even more because they are paying for the course that they will not end up using in their life. On the other hand, placements tests should show the understanding of what students have learned in school. Stated by Van Thompson, “many colleges use placement exams - particularly for core classes in math and English – to assess what a student has already learned and place them in a

It is especially discriminatory to those with special needs. Danielle Rose describes how “special education students take the same tests as other children, receiving few of the accommodations usually provided to them as part of their Individualized Education Plan” (Rose). These students do not receive access to the same curriculum as other students. It is much harder for special needs students to advance because of the rules put into place. Rose also describes that “students with diverse backgrounds and skill levels are expected to answer questions written for the white, abled majority” (Rose). English language learners have always taken tests in English, so naturally they have a slight advantage. Conversely, placement tests are inclusive because they ensure content is the same for all students. According to Michelle Rhee, former Washington, DC, school’s chancellor, “You can’t separate them, and to try to do so creates two, unequal systems, one with accountability and one without it (qtd in ProCon.org). The use of alternate tests for minorities and children with disabilities would be unfair not only to them, but also to the rest of the students. It is important to keep everything at the same playing field, so others do not feel left out. Despite the controversy, there are many ways one can test a student’s knowledge in a more accurate way that can best demonstrate his or her