The Importance Of Standardized Testing In Schools

Standardized tests are just one of the tests where many students, including myself, do not show the true knowledge. These tests are meant to determine what a student has learned in the classroom while the data (results) are compared to all students across the nation. How can this be a fair way to decide if the student understands the content being learned, or determine if they understand the material learned? There are many factors that come into play when one is taking the test; they may not be the best test takers therefore they will not do as well on the test. When looking back at my own high school education, I did very well in class on a day to day basis, however, when it came time to take a test, my anxiety would get the best of me and I would not perform to the best of my abilities.

There is content that a student may have never learned or the teacher just briefly covered.

Students in different regions, cultures, and areas (rural, suburban, inner city) learn the material and content at different times, or may never learn the material at all. For example, maybe the content has never been taught in an inner city classroom, but has been taught in the suburban classroom. How is it fair that the two student’s scores are compared to one another when the same content has not been taught equally to both students? Students who take these Advance Placement courses are receiving a more rigorous curriculum, in turn learning more material, which could potentially be on the standardized tests. Those students who do not take the Advanced Placement courses are at a disadvantage for receiving a comparable score on the standardized tests. Research has proven that minorities typically score lower than the middle class white students; therefore their future is affected based on the standardized test

score.
What about all the students who have learning disabilities? They are already at a disadvantage than the students who do not have disabilities. They struggle in areas, and may receive accommodations through an IEP or 504, however, the accommodations they receive via the standardize test rules and regulations are limited. Therefore, these students are more than likely to not perform to the best of their abilities, putting them at a disadvantage from the start.
Since it doesn’t affect the “classroom” grade, or our GPA, how much time does one actually study for the test? Most students’ in high school who take the test for the first time, do not take it seriously; many are just taking the test to see what the test is like, what it is all about, and basically to just get a “feel” for the test. Several of my classmates as well as myself, felt this way. Obviously, this creates faulty and invalid data which his compared to other students across the nation.
As we get into the upper grades, junior and even our senior year, one finds out exactly how much emphasis is put on those standardized tests; your score can determine what college or university you attend and how much scholarship money you will receive based on your standardized test scores. We have to think about those students with learning disabilities, who have test anxiety or who are not good test takers, the student’s who do not have the support of their parents, or the funds for tutoring in subject areas where they struggle. From personal experience, I know that test anxiety affects the score on standardized tests. Students who suffer from test anxiety experience distress which cause their minds to shut down and hurt their test performance score. This causes those students to feel discouraged because they realize the scores are being compared to other students who are being ranked and can potentially affect their future college choices.
The tests consist of multiple choice answers with a short essay; this does not allow the students to think above and beyond. Therefore, it does not allow the creative individual to think outside of the box and leads one to believe that these are the only answers to the questions; this does not show the true knowledge potential of those who creatively think outside of the box. Since test scores are shared nationally, many teachers fear losing their job based on the test scores; so they focus on the curriculum that will be on the tests, rather than going above and beyond to teach the students real life lessons that they will use in the real working world.
Even though standardize testing is used in most schools they do not show the true intelligence of the student taking the test. Test scores only show what the students know on the day the test is actually taken, not what they learn over the course of the year. Standardized test scores are not what make up a well-rounded student, as a whole; testing is just a score that could potentially be invalid as to what the student truly knows academically. Not to mention the added pressure they have to do well in order to get into the college of their choice, anxiety, stress, nerves, and students who have disabilities who need accommodations to show their true potential; all of these things affect how well one does on the test. Therefore, standardized testing is unfair in determining a students’ ability; each student should have an equal opportunity for an education and standardized test scores should not affect their future education.