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Arguments Against Standardized Testing

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For years, standardized testing was the first choice to assess students across the nation on their abilities to comprehend information and be able to answer a question effectively. This method has been used since the 1800s. But is it still the best way to effectively test a student’s abilities? No,it is not.When one test is supposed to determine a student’s future and mental ability,it is not fair.Each individual is different and intelligent in their own way and there simply cannot be one test to measure intelligence. Many years ago, tests were administered mostly to decide placement of students in their classes, or to decide which students needed additional help.Today, test scores are quoted by newspapers, they are used as the primary criteria …show more content…

”China displaced Finland as number one in reading, math, and science when Shanghai debuted on the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) rankings in 2009.” Despite calls for a reduction in standardized testing, China’s testing regimen remains firmly in place. Chester E. Finn, Jr., Chairman of the Hoover Institution’s Koret Task Force on K–12 Education, predicts that Chinese cities will top the PISA charts for the next several decades.Another reason why standardized tests are good is because most students believe they are fair.“A June 2006 Public Agenda survey of 1,342 public school students in grades 6-12 found that 71% of students think the number of tests they have to take is “about right” and 79% believe test questions are fair”.This might be right,because maybe if we only look at a student’s grades without standardized testing.A student who is nice to a teacher over a student who misbehaves in class might get a better grade even though both of the students are equally

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1212 Words | 5 Pages

Exploratory Paper: Is Standardized Testing Bad? Standardized testing has been around in one form or the other for centuries based on historical data which shows its use way back in imperial China and was used to determine the strengths and talents of individuals so that they could be effectively used in the emperor’s service. In the 19th century Great Britain introduced standardized testing to its’ territories and eventually Europe. The United States introduced standard testing to its citizens in the late 20th century and has rapidly integrated this testing tool into the nation’s public school system.

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837 Words | 4 Pages

Leslie Rayburn is a teacher in Santa Cruz, California, and she, too, believes that this is unfair to students, and to teachers who are graded based on their students’ grades. She explains that, ‘the children who perform poorly on multiple choice standardized tests (but perhaps might perform well on an open-ended form of test) are labeled as “less intelligent’ and the school suffers” (Rayburn) Since progress of a student is mainly viewed based upon the outcome of standardized test scores, the lower-performing students are seen as “not college- ready”, which creates a roadblock to a student about where they may want to attend college. The fact of the matter is that no two students are the same, learn the same, or test the same, so standardized tests are inaccurate measurements of a student’s full learning capability and

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1229 Words | 5 Pages

Standard testing is a very controversial and important subject because it deals with the progression of the American education system. The practice of these assessments has been highly scrutinized not only for the way it has changed the format of classrooms, but also for its accuracy, pressure, and abundance. In 2001, standardized testing became federally mandated through the No Child Left Behind Act by former president George Bush Jr. According to research from the Council of the Great City Schools, students have been taking “an average of 113 tests from pre-kindergarten through 12th grade” (K. Hefling). These numbers have increased to the point where parents have opted for their children to not attend standardized exams.

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742 Words | 3 Pages

However testing isn’t proven exactly to be effective. Particularly, standard yearly testing has been a part of American education since the mid 1800’s, and is currently used in all the 50 states. Furthermore, excessive testing may teach children to be good at taking tests, but does not prepare them for productive adult lives (Knight Foundation, 2007). Since 2001, 44% of school districts had reduced the time spent on science, history and the arts by a total average of 145 minutes per week in order to have a full focus on reading and math (everettsd, 2014). With this in mind, chinese schools are very good at preparing their students for tests.

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174 Words | 1 Pages

This book analyzes the problem of acquiring standardized tests. It discusses where they originated, their limitations and flaws, what the point of taking them is, as well as what concerned parents and teachers can do. It discusses how schools seem to forget the fact that students go to school in order to learn the material which is presented to them, versus just going to pass a test or a class. It goes on to state the negative effects that produce from standardized testing. Testing on incorrect material, high stakes for cheating, and the fact that the tests may contain multiple errors are just a few of the many reasons provided for as to why standardized tests do more harm then good.

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803 Words | 4 Pages

So how can we trust a system that does not accurately measure a student’s intelligence? According to Osman Ozturgut, a professor of international education, China has been using the standardized testing for centuries, but “there is no evidence that they have become successful in educating their children..”  The test usually test memorization of facts, names, and dates but not if the student has a thorough understanding of the topic (Donald 197). Seeing if a student is able to retain information is not a good way of measuring academic abilities. To fully know if a student understands a topic, the tests need to have more critical thinking problems which demonstrate the student’s full comprehension of that topic.

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1255 Words | 6 Pages

For years standardized tests, such as the ACT, have been used as a way to rank students, determine their classes for the next year, and decide if they get into a college. Standardized testing does not show how smart a child is, it simply demonstrates how good they are at taking tests. It evaluates a student’s performance and alertness on one particular day, not in general. It is unfair to determine a child’s future with a test when it’s based on test- taking skills, and not actual knowledge. This is also unfair because many children, who are forced to take standardized tests have medical problems, such as anxiety.

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127 Words | 1 Pages

The issue with intelligence testing also relates to the issue with schools producing conformity. One of the many ways that conformity is taught is through standardized testing (Wheeler, 2013). These tests only evaluate ours skills based on one type of intelligence. Therefore, “standardised testing, in all its forms, is designed to capture a narrow, quantifiable impression of children's abilities”(Wheeler, 2013, p.5). Intelligence tests fail to evaluate a majority of the vital components of intelligence (“Intelligent intelligence”,n.d.).

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300 Words | 2 Pages

Do standardized tests actually help a students knowledge? Should we actually take them in school? Some people support standardized tests and others don’t. I personally think we should not take standardized in school because they don’t measure a whole person’s abilities, they are performed poorly by they US, and they don’t measure a teachers abilities well.

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240 Words | 1 Pages

students success. Students worry about not being able to memorize terms and formulas. Teachers worry about their teaching ability and being evaluated based on their student's performance. Many parents believe that standardized testing is overshadowing other teaching methods, and styles of learning. “ A recent poll by teachers college at Columbia University who opts-out and why shows 33.8% activists in the opt-out community believe standardized tests force teachers to teach the test” (Howell, 2016).

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521 Words | 3 Pages

Standardized Testing is a very controversial topic in the academic teachings community lately. There is a very big divide between what students and parents feel about these tests verse what big corporations think about these tests. Is it viable? Does it truly test the smartness of a student? These questions are the few questions that are at the core of this topic.

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573 Words | 3 Pages

The average American student takes about 112 standardized tests between pre-kindergarten and 12th grade (Strauss). A standardized test is any form of test that requires the student to answer the same selection of common questions in a consistent matter, which makes it possible to compare relative student performance. Standardized tests restrict creativity, waste time, and waste money. We should get rid of standardized tests in our school system. Standardized tests limit a student’s ability to express creativity.

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1170 Words | 5 Pages

Say No To Standardized Testing (Rough Draft) On average, students are given 113 standardized tests from their kindergarten through their senior year, most of them being given in the 11th grade year. “‘In some places, tests — and preparation for them — are dominating the calendar and culture of schools and causing undue stress for students and educators.’” (“Testing: How Much Is Too Much?”) The cause of all of this testing is simple: The No Child Left Behind Act.

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1369 Words | 6 Pages

How do you determine the amount of intelligence someone possesses? You give them an intelligence quotient or IQ test. Almost every possible means to determine someone’s intelligence is derived from a standardized test that will give an answer as to how intelligent or not someone who takes these tests might be. But where do you judge the creativity and ingenuity in standardized tests?

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1206 Words | 5 Pages

Research conducted by Noah Berlatsky, an editor who writes about popular culture proves that standardized testing is unethical. In his article, “Teachers Take an Ethical Stand Against Testing”, Berlatsky shows that testing a child’s abilities based off of one test does not provide a true representation of the student’s abilities. There could be outside factors involved, such as a student’s poor health or income inequality poverty (Berlatsky). One test does not provide enough information to inform a teacher or parent about a student’s progress in a subject. The student may have had a bad day, or not been feeling well.

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