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Standardized Testing Unfair

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With so much focus and emphasis on standardized testing, education- the main purpose of school- is pushed aside and becomes the side act to the show of what is standardized testing. To begin, the resources used for educational programs are now allocated towards standardized testing. According to a report published by Education Policy at Brookings Institution (2012), “States spend a combined $1.7 billion annually on standardized testing.” Although this only accounts for about 1% of the annual K-12 education spending, this money could be put towards increasing teachers’ salaries, sponsoring programs for the arts, or supplying schools with more technology and resources. Money is not the only resource that is being relinquished to standardized …show more content…

The fact of the matter is that standardized testing does not infer much about the intelligence or progress of a student. First, “For decades, critics have complained that many standardized tests are unfair because the questions require a set of knowledge and skills more likely to be possessed by children from a privileged background” (John 2000). In other words, privileged students have more available resources to achieve higher scores on these tests. This is especially true for high stakes exams in which well-off students have access to tutors and the latest study guides and textbooks to help them prepare for the tests. Furthermore, social-economic status in general has a great effect on the test scores as “Research has repeatedly found that the amount of poverty in the communities where schools are located, along with other variables having nothing to do with what happens in classrooms, accounts for the great majority of the difference in test scores from one area to the next” (Kohn 2000). To explain, these test do a better job at measuring the factors that affect students outside of school than analyzing their educational abilities. This is summed up perfectly in the book entitled The Myths of Standardized Testing, when it is stated, “Instructionally insensitive accountability tests tend to measure what students bring to school, rather than what they are taught” (Harries and Smith 2011). Also, these tests have a very limited scope of what they can evaluate. Clearly, intelligence cannot be inferred from a simple pencil and paper test alone. These tests cannot measure skills such as creativity, thought-analysis, willingness to learn or even character traits such as leadership and integrity. Standardized test can only measure isolated skills and cannot begin to assess “the large domain of knowledge and skill that students possess” (Harries and Smith 2011). The test

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Proponents see standardized testing as a way of making testing more efficient and effective by minimizing cost and increasing people’s accountability for their performance in the system. Opponents on the other hand argue that the systems has limitations based on its very nature on what can be tested and as a result of these standards needing to be met sacrifice some very important aspects of students education experience as well as force onto students and teachers a one size fits all model that has failed to deliver on its promises. After having reviewed all the evidence in detail it becomes clear to me that standardized testing is not an effective system for educating students and does more bad than good

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But test prep is only part of the picture, with much of the test-score differential originating far before any student even thinks about standardized testing. From the beginning, Biamonte (2013) explains, students from higher-income families have more opportunities: they attend better, higher-funded schools with more rigorous curriculums, AP classes, and dual credit, all of which impact standardized test performance. Consequently, higher-income students have an advantage over their lower-income

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Meredith Broussard explains how standardized testing does not prove a child’s general knowledge nor creative in-depth thinking by stating, “Standardized tests are not based on general knowledge... they are based on specific knowledge contained in specific sets of books: the textbooks created by the test makers” (Broussard). Miner also states that standardized testing, “... leads to a dumbed-down curriculum that values rote memorization over in-depth thinking, exacerbates inequities for low-income students and students of color, and undermines true accountability among schools, parents, and community” (Miner). The assessment of a child should encourage a child to want to learn for the sake of learning. Alternative assessments could address a child’s development and learning process. These evaluations can determine why children are more likely to read behind grade level, instead of highlighting their inabilities.

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Introduction Standardized tests may be used for a wide variety of educational purposes. For example, they may be used to determine a young child’s readiness for kindergarten, identify students who need special-education services or specialized academic support, place students in different academic programs or course levels, or award diplomas and other educational certificates. Thesis Statement Standardized tests should not be eliminated completely, but should rather be evaluated in addition to other factors such as grades, extracurricular activities, and volunteer hours. This would take pressure off of students during standardized tests, allow colleges to see how well-rounded the students are, and give students who are better in other areas

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Standardized tests are one of the most popular ways schools attempt to evaluate academic intelligence of students, school districts, and teachers. These tests are used more specifically to evaluate student performance in the education system by testing their abilities in mathematics, english and sciences. By giving every student the same test, they are setting a standard idea for how well every student should score on the test, such as the SAT or the ACT, no matter the school or educational process they are receiving. Allowing every student to take the exact same test, gives the state a way to generalize student’s academic intelligence without having to do much work to make the testing one hundred percent fair. Standardized testing in schools should no longer be required because it discriminates against the less wealthy families, does not effectively measure achievement and becomes a distraction to the student’s learning environment.

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Increasingly today in America’s school system, there is a recognition of tension between individuality and conformity. The struggle between students’ personal needs and the needs of the whole continues to grow. This can be seen though the controversial issue of standardized testing. These are tests that are designed in a way, which are administered and recorded in a consistent method. In standardized testing, all test takers are required to answer the same set of multiple-choice, true or false questions, short answer, and essay questions.

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The fact that standardized test can decide one’s future intensifies the pressure bestowed on a high school student. Many people have different opinions towards these type of exams, ranging from college admissions required to use these exams for their admission process to some arguing against these exams not being an accurate measure of one’s true potential. Standardized testing in the college admissions process does not clearly emphasize a student’s knowledge and intelligence. I believe that these exams should not remain as an important factor in admissions decisions. The elimination of exam scores will create a fair admissions process, it will also help those who can’t afford the price these exams can cost, and will relieve the stress of many students.

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As lots would say, “Standardized tests don’t necessarily measure a student’s knowledge and skills.

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Standardized tests have been around for over a century and with its perceived effectiveness, this will continue. A student’s intelligence should not be tested through a series of standardized tests; as there are many alternatives and with the current track the education system is on, may leave a negative impact on more than just the students. Students face many obstacles as they grow in a constantly changing society. The nation’s youth is boggled with mental illnesses and disorders that often go undetectable. The addition of standardized tests adds to psychological torment.

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