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Argumentative Essay On Standardized Testing

925 Words4 Pages

Lola D. Dunbar
Bales
English IV
6 February 2023
Standardized Tests
Did you know that standardized tests aren’t a factor in a student’s success? Ironically, students are forced to take them as early as the third grade in preparation for success. In some cases, even earlier. While these tests are said to be beneficial to one’s future, it has been proven otherwise that they have negative effects on people who are centered around these tests. They are stressful, discriminatory, and don’t measure a student’s intelligence, which is why standardized tests shouldn’t be heavily enforced.
Students and teachers’ stress and anxiety levels are heightened drastically during testing periods. “As high-stakes tests loom, cortisol levels, a chemical marker …show more content…

“Teachers often don’t have time to teach the content they should because standardized testing has changed the way instruction takes place in a classroom. Many teachers acknowledge that they ‘teach to the test’” (“The Tornadic Effect of Standardized Testing”). Teachers are spending too much time preparing students for standardized tests that they don’t get to teach the actual curriculum. Students begin to lack the educational skills they need because teachers have to set aside lessons to improve testing scores. Teachers end up having to over-teach, causing stress and pressure to creep on their …show more content…

“For example, an excellent writer could struggle with picking out the right answer in a multiple choice grammar and punctuation test. Yet that same student could excel at composing well-thought-out, logical essays about the literature they read and enjoyed in class (Nixon).” Many students excel in the classroom but struggle during standardized tests. That’s because circumstances in the classroom are different in a testing environment. Standardized tests are timed; therefore, students are rushed and have to think more quickly than usual. This often leads to a high chance of getting answers wrong, overall negatively affecting the test score. While in the classroom, students have more time to think and pace themselves. Additionally, students can always ask for help in the classroom to further their work grades. When in a pressured environment, it’s harder to think and there is no outside help so mistakes are easier to make. Standardized tests do not consider those factors when it comes to

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