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Should standardized testing be used
Standardized testing effects on education
Pros and cons of standardized testing
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There’s no doubt that challenging, high-stakes tests can provoke anxiety in some students. According to Bright Hub Education, some school systems are under great pressure to raise their scores so they have resorted to decreasing time spent in recess. This can have negative impact on children’s social, emotional, and academic well-being. Furthermore, people who are against standardized testing argues that often times, standardized tests try to fit all students in certain categories and oppresses them too much. But, perhaps counterintuitively, the solution to this problem is not to get rid of testing; instead, it is to encourage more testing – particularly frequent, lower-stakes testing. With many tests spread out across the year, each individual …show more content…
It is understandable, since standardized tests are not the great equalizer that will eliminate discrimination. There was a research that even SAT tests, which is widely used as a part of American college admissions process, are in favor of students with certain personalities. However, it is highly unlikely an individual teacher alone could create a fairer, less biased test than many experts with access to a lot of resources, a huge amount of diverse data, and the ability to refine tests based on those data. As stated in the ETS video, once a new question is introduced, statisticians work to figure out whether it’s performing equally well for different groups. Unfair, biased questions are certainly an important ongoing issue for the makers of standardized tests to address, but much work is going into the refinement and improvement of these questions, with the goal of avoiding and, hopefully, eventually eliminating such biases. All individuals have implicit biases that are almost impossible to override, so leaving assessment to individual instructors can only worsen the problem. The crux of the matter is trust – can we trust a board of experts that includes experienced teachers to act in our best interest as a nation of educators, parents, and children? And if the answer is no, then how can we trust individual teachers, and how would we hold them
Smith, M. (2010). Why NOT a National Test for Everyone. Kappan, 1. Retrieved March 16, 2014, from www.pdkintl.org
High-stakes testing also has negative effects on learning because it tells students what education means- which appears to be something too complex and difficult to understand and relate to. These tests, being too long and beyond their level of cognitive development, would unnecessarily eat away their confidence, and perhaps even their motivation to learn. In addition, if assessments become too geared toward these tests, affective assessments would take a backseat. Affective assessments, however, are essential to understanding what our students know and prefer and their attitudes
...ry curricular diversity, test developers have to create a one size fits all test. These test developers however, can’t really pull it off. This leads to some questions in a standardized test that are not necessarily aligned with the curriculum in a particular setting. An important study done in 1993 in Michigan regarding this issue on standardized tests concluded that 50 to 80 percent of what was measured on standardized tests was not covered in the textbooks for that particular curriculum. Based on this study, it can be concluded that if the content of standardized tests is not addressed in the textbooks, topics that are covered on the test may not have been covered in that particular classroom setting This is an unfair flaw in test design which can result in lower test scores not enabling the tests to accurately measure the students’ learning achievement.
I guarantee you that.” This is a woman who is doing very well for herself and is pretty high up there. She even says that standardized tests don’t really do anything for you, or your future.With that being stated we go back to how standardized testing does not work. On May 26, 2011, A National Research Council report found no evidence test-based incentive programs are working: "Despite using them for several decades, policymakers and educators do not yet know how to use test-based incentives to consistently generate positive effects on achievement and to improve education." What this means is that educators and policymakers are just shooting in the dark. They don’t have for sure test or anything of the sort that can consistently gives the results that they want. So what would make them give a test that is fifty fifty on whether or not students have learned “what is
The world is no longer concerned with educating whole human beings, but instead, it is focused on collecting “data.” “Standardized testing robs students and teachers of using their creativity and critical thinking. It holds everyone accountable for meeting this one standard when that is nearly impossible to do. It turns us into robots, dehumanizing both teachers and students.” (Gettysburg College, 1) Standardized test are given to schools by the government. The problem with that is that the government is not in the classroom with students every day. They do not know what the students need. Standardized testing takes away time from student learning experiences where they are not able to think critically or be creative. Standardized tests take place in an artificial learning environment. They are timed, students are not allowed to ask questions, use references, talk to another student, and they cannot even get up and move around. All of these things do not mirror the reality of the real world at all. These tests are reducing the richness of human experience and human learning to a number/ set of numbers. A student may have a deep knowledge of a particular subject, but receive no acknowledgement for it because their test score may have been low. Maybe if students could draw a picture, lead a group discussion, or make a hands-on project, they could show all the knowledge that they really have. They cannot do any of these things in a standardized test. As stated before, testing also creates “winners” and losers.” The “winners” get to move on with their life, but the “losers” often suffer from loss of self-esteem and the damage of “low expectations.” Standardized tests do not value diversity either. There are a wide range of differences in the people who take standardized tests. People have different cultural backgrounds, different levels of proficiency in the English language, different learning and thinking styles, different
Authors Amy Witherbee and Denise B. Geier of “Point: Standardized Testing is the best Way to Establish Education Standards” say, “Standardized tests are important, not for the testing, but for the standards. They are, in essence, a benchmark that when properly done, sets out for students, teacher, parents, and a nation, goals for the next generation” (1). Standardized testing can aid in measuring student success, but they are not always an accurate representation of a student’s knowledge or a teacher’s capabilities. The key phrase in their claim is “when done properly”, which is not something that is easily said or done. It is nearly impossible to ensure that the system is not being corrupt, or to prove that everyone is testing the same way, “standardized” or not. Some students are simply not good test takers. They could be the next Einstein, but when it comes to their ACT scores students may seem as though they lack basic knowledge. Other students may be master test takers but have no comprehension of what they are answering. Sure, they know the nucleus is the center of the atom, but do they know what that means? These tests are much less accurate than their supporters may
Standardized testing has swelled and mutated, like a creature in one of those old horror movies, to the point that it now threatens to swallow our schools whole.... Our children are tested to an extent that is unprecedented in our history and unparalleled anywhere else in the world. While previous generations of American students have had to sit through tests, never have the tests been given so frequently, and never have they played such a prominent role in schooling. (1)
For students to be able to do well on standardized test they rely on their teachers. Several teachers interviewed said they spent hours of extra planning time and hundreds of dollars to create more interesting lessons. They said they must be supremely organized and strict enforcers of classroom rules. (Watanabe). Some teachers are pressured to the point that they make education all about the test and up to the test. The pressure to improve students test performance in California and across the country often meets with disdain from teachers who say they are compelled to throw out creativity and “teach to the test.” (Watanabe). If somehow the test were based on what students learn, then students could score better. Educators are unanimous that high-stakes test should be aligned with curriculum and instruction-taught and are expected to know – and that teachers should be involved in the process. (Nina and Sol Hurwitz). Teachers should continue to teach to the test, standardized test will end up being a simple exam in which every student should find it easy to take. If high-stake tests adequately cover the essential material to be learned in each grade, these practices can enhance the teaching in the classroom. Teaching to a well-designed set of tests can improve both test scores and student achievements. (Crone). Even
It’s an age-old question. Do standardized tests really show what students know? Some may think they are a great way to measure education and others may think that one test does not justify a child’s knowledge. What is this test exactly? A standardized test is any test that requires all test takers to answer the same questions, or a selection of questions from a common bank of questions, in the same way. They are used to “judge” or “measure” the knowledge or skills that students learn in school. The problem with these standardized tests is that they measure all students on the same material, leaving out special skills the student may have. It also puts a great deal of stress on a student to know that they will be timed on these questions that
“If my future were determined just by my performance on a standardized test, I wouldn't be here. I guarantee you that.” This quote by Michelle Obama illustrates the idea that standardized testing should not have such a large influence on education in America. However, a majority of people are under the impression that standardized tests are an accurate method to measure a person's intellectual ability. I believe that standardized tests have developed into a very critical part of the American education system; that is hindering the growth of students and teachers instead of providing a tool that can accurately measure knowledge.
Why Standardized Tests Should Be Restricted Vincent Signorile Monmouth University Standardized testing has been a well-debated topic in the U.S. for a long time. The debate is whether standardized tests should be restricted or expanded. It is wrong to judge a student based on one end of the year test, when they have so much more to show throughout their school year. It is almost as if these standardized tests force teachers to educate their students differently by making them teach to what is going to be on the test rather than to the normal curriculum. There are many things wrong with standardized testing, including inaccuracy in scoring standardized writing tests (Au & Gourd, 2013).
Countless amounts of curriculum are excluded from any core matter that is actually tested on standardized tests especially the SATs and ACTs. Therefore, how can a student be accurately measured on what their strengths are, what they are most confident at and who they are as a person on just two simple tests. Many people believe that since these standardized tests are such an important factor of acceptance when college admissions are reviewing a person's application, colleges aren’t receiving a full idea of who the actual applicant is. Additionally, certain selective colleges won’t even continue to look at someone’s application if their standardized tests scores don’t reach a certain bar. How can this possibly be fair, especially if the tests themselves are unfair? Critics of these tests have proven discriminatory language used in certain questions on these tests that obviously put certain racial groups at a disadvantage. Continuing, teachers don’t get the opportunity to fully teach in their style since they have to ensure they are ‘teaching to the test.” Teachers say that “Even in classes less noticeably ravaged by the imperatives of test preparation, there are hidden costs—opportunities missed, intellectual roads
Allan Bloom states, “Education in our times must try to find whatever there is in students that might yearn for completion, and to reconstruct the learning that would enable them autonomously to seek that completion.” In Indiana, children go to school an average of seven hours a day and are required to learn different subjects such as, math, science, social studies, and English. Students take the Indiana Statewide Testing for Educational Process, or ISTEP test. Students take standardized tests to help schools measure how students do in relation to other students who take the same test; however, there are several reasons why this is not working. Standardized tests should be eliminated because they cause children anxiety and stress, do not accurately measure a student’s abilities, and good teachers are leaving the field because of increased pressure to
For many years, school systems and parents all over America have been asking- does high school testing measure a student’s knowledge fairly, accurately, and do they benefit the student. The tests do not accurately measure a student’s true academic ability. Furthermore, testing does not always fairly measure a student’s knowledge. High-stakes testing only adds stress to a student’s life. Studies have proven that testing is not beneficial to a student’s educational growth. Testing in high school is affected by different factors; therefore results can be unreliable and not beneficial to the growth of students.
Just because their test score isn't high in math/reading, doesn't mean they are not intelligent and should be moved to lower classes. As well as them only testing a few subjects, standardized tests waste time from learning in classes due to their preparation. Noah also mentions, “Typically, over a month of instructional time was devoted to test prep. The outcome? More test prep was associated with lower ACT scores” (Berlatsky).