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High Stakes Testing In Schools Essay

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Education has had some form of high stakes testing for many years, the SAT, ACT, AP, and so on. Testing in this form was used to measure how much a student had learned and retained over the course of a student’s education. However, over time the testing focus changed. High stakes testing morphed from a useful tool that gauges achievement to becoming the primary focus in education. The focus is no longer about what the child has achieved, instead the emphasis is on achieving top scores. High stakes testing effects education by impacting the curriculum (made by states and districts), classroom procedures, and negatively impacting a student’s right to receive a fair and equal education. An extreme narrowing of the curriculum has damaged American …show more content…

Several studies have found that teachers will often place their focus on teaching to those kids who are most likely to pass the tests disadvantaging those students who need it just as much, if not more than the other students. Children who are the primary focus are called “’bubble kids’ because they are on the bubble of passing the test or moving up to the next performance level” (Madaux, Russel 27). One teacher in Texas explains her bubble kids as, “The ones who miss by one or two points-they just need a little extra help to pass so we concentrate our attention on that group. The bubbles are the ones who can make it” (Madaus, Russel 27). This demonstrates teachers have given up on underperforming kids which was definitely not the point of No Child Left Behind. Jennifer Booher-Jennings studied the treatment of “bubble kids” in Texas. She found that these kids received more teacher attention, extra help and class time to prepare for the test, small group or individual instruction, and after school or Saturday tutoring. She also found that schools could improve their accountability rating by exempting them from the requirements by referring kids to special education (Madaus, Russel 27). High stakes testing makes education unequal- underperforming kids are left behind while the others are pushed

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(43). Berger gives some insight on what she thinks is the best way to invest in education. She states that she would reduce and adjust how often the standardize tests are and that parents are the ones that need to get involved in their kids’ lives for their children to succeed. Through this information not only students will see the damage that teaching to the test has done, but also the damage to society. The society needs to understand the importance of challenging a student in their education and not letting a student’s simply go through the phase of higher

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From studying education, I have noticed how many school districts teach based upon what the students will be tested over. As a future educator, I feel as if a standardized test cannot determine what a student is capable of. The individuals creating the test often don’t realize that many students suffer from test anxiety, in fear of failing the test and what is more fearful is how the school districts pressure the teachers to stress to the students the importance of passing the test. Also, in this chapter Boaler describes assessment for learning as having three components clear communication about what students have learned, a way to help students understand where they are on their journey to mastery and where they still need to improve, and information on ways to get from where students are currently to where they need to be to meet success criteria. This chapter offered several strategies that will help students have a better grasp of where they are in the learning process and that will help them develop and maintain a growth mindset.

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When I was a child, my parents would tell me and my siblings that we only have one job and that was to go to school and get good grades. Although we weren’t for school, we knew that we had to go because to be something in the future we need to have some sort of education to be something good in life, but there were some days that we despised school. The day that we despised school was the day after the teachers say to make sure everyone gets a goodnight sleep and a good breakfast, because everyone knew that there was a test coming the next school day. Education journalist Valeri Strauss, in her article How Can Anyone Take Standardized Test Scores Seriously when Stuff like this Happens? explains why the standardized test should not be used to evaluate children’s knowledge or to rate teachers. In How Can Anyone Take Standardized

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As a result, some schools are finding it tough to score above average on these test giving teachers no option, but to focus solely on learning outcomes that meet high stake test requirements. Additionally, students with low test score were always pressured by their teacher to achieve high test, scores and when they did not produce higher results, some educator, believed, if they punished the student they would become more serious with schooling and work hard to avoid the pressure or humiliating punishments (Hurley, 2007). I used to be an advocate of high stakes testing, but now I oppose high stakes testing sine I have seen first hand myself the damage it does to a student. Also, I several educators and professional use high stakes test results as a single indicator for measuring a person's competence or determining their future outcome, even though research has proven these tests is highly

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As “Education week 's” Ron Wolk’s has said, “The system failed to educate them adequately, and now it punishes them for not being educated. " Ron Wolk is stating that with a school district failing to educate its students, these students have to pay the price by failing the test. High Stakes testing may also affect the district. Low scores could result in the reorganization of schools or a shift of resources to charter schools or private-school vouchers. Who knew that one test could severely damage a community and school

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Discussion Post- Chapter 7- High stakes testing Claim: High stakes testing is an extremely problematic political issue within the education system because it holds all students to the same standards regardless of disabilities or disadvantages , it encourages educators to teach strictly on information that relates to the tests, and it can have major consequences for schools across the country that are unable to make Adequete Yearly Progress (AYP). Evidence: The Learning to Teach Edition Nine textbook outlines key disadvantages to high stakes testing. Although the textbook does consider some of the advantages, which include a focus of attention on the achievement of students and providing information on areas where students may need to improve,

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The state tried to force this child, Ethan, to take this test. In the meantime while Andrea was fighting the school system, Ethan Rediske passed away. It doesn’t have to be this way. Our children aren’t all dying of terrible diseases, but these standardized testing is killing our brothers and sisters creativity and passion for school instead. Standardized tests do not accurately measure what students know and what they can do, nor are they accurate predictors of future success

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However, it seems to contradict what teachers are trying to establish for students. Schools should reevaluate high-stake testing because tests are not accurately graded, tests are intelligence based, and tests creates curriculum conformity. High-stake tests are not accurately graded and are inconsistent. Students’ futures are in the hands of these unbiased scorers, yet these employees have an

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Testing and schools go hand in hand, and they generally have a positive impact. High stakes testing has become vital for public schools; consequently, high-stakes testing has risen and spread like a bad case of the flu.[PP3] High stakes testing is detrimental to American education due to the accountability, course favoritism, and negative attitude it brings to school systems. A major creditor to the evolution of high stakes testing is the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), which was enacted in 1965 to help fund school districts and assist minority groups in achieving a proper education.

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So when students fail the grade or curriculum because they can’t quite reach the standards of the test, not only does the child suffer but the school itself suffers as well. Students across the globe study and work hard all year long to be successful in life, but the pressure of one test failing them, brings them stress and ruins not only their goals of graduating on time, but it also brings down their self - esteem. This idea of a standardized test defeats the purpose of attending to school one hundred and eighty days a year for 12 or more

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The third argument that I have for against high stakes testing is it can show administrators and higher level people that the students are given more confidence in themselves because they will feel that the students are mastering the concepts in school at a higher

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What is education? According to the Oxford dictionary “Education is the process of receiving or giving systematic instruction especially at a school or university”. Most agree with Nelson Mandela's statement “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world”. Education is one of the most precious thing in one's life. The act of learning empowers most especially the ones that know how to use the resources surrounding them.

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This method will prevent students from gaining the knowledge they seek and will not work to their advantage later on in the future. Most high school classes are teaching students how to take tests rather than teaching them how to skilfully answer them and master them. This causes students to enter college and university unprepared as they develop little skill-making abilities. High-stake standardized testing, such as the SAT, is burdensome for students. The standardized test scores that a student receives determine which university a student can attend and this greatly impacts his or her future.

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In schools all around the nation, students are taking mandatory standardized tests. To some people, they are the dreaded tests that they never want to take. However, others love to take these standardized tests. Should these tests be mandatory in all high schools? I don 't believe so for many different reasons.

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