ipl-logo

Pros And Cons Of Standardized Testing In Schools

512 Words3 Pages

No one ever said school was easy. It takes quite a bit of hard work and preparation from both the students and teachers. All within a school year there are different homework, assignments, projects, tests, quizzes, presentations and much more to try and fit into an already busy course schedule. To add to that the Education Reform Law of 1993 was introduced to schools, which required that all public school students have to be tested in the subjects of English Language Arts, Mathematics, and Science and Technology Engineering. Those set of tests are called Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) and they are meant to measure students performance based on the Massachusetts Curriculum Framework. Due to Massachusetts requiring all sophomore and some ninth grade students to take the MCAS, students are only …show more content…

In Massachusetts schools there is an average of 16 students that are at a warning/failing level for the three test subjects. At some schools in the county there are no students that are at the point of failing or needs improvement levels for the MCAS tests but at others majority of the results fall under those categories. At Berkshire Arts and Technology Charter School (BART), “ 0 students are warning/failing grade 10- Mathematics,” test for MCAS but at Pittsfield High School (PHS), “ 16 students are warning/failing grade 10- Mathematics,” test for MCAS (School and District Profiles). The difference in tests scores between schools like these are thought to be because of the rate of low-income families that are in attendance. Even with all of the time taken in classrooms to prepare for the MCAS, there are still a lot of students that do not pass or need improvement despite all that

Show More
Related
1313 Words | 6 Pages

When comparing the test scores to state averages, Monroe High

Read More
822 Words | 4 Pages

Some students do not score good on these tests, they may be nervous and fail or they do not score high enough. These standardized testing systems are no understatement. I used The

Read More
837 Words | 4 Pages

Instead, the boss will present a problem and expect its employees to come up with solutions to this problem , anticipated to be presented for discussion later that week. It is expected, in whatever career, to know simple skills like problem solving and even how to write a well-educated report based on research. Many schools have switched over to standardized testing as an accurate measure of a student’s, teacher, and a school’s success. However, evidence shows that standardized tests lead to stress, most importantly,

Read More
494 Words | 2 Pages

In most great schools, assessment is at the heart of educating students. Not only is assessment used to support students in their learning, but it is also leveraged by Boards, administrators and teachers to certify the level of student learning. During the 2014-15 school year, there were many assessment-related changes. Some schools transitioned to administering the Northwest Evaluation Association Measures of Academic Progress (NWEA MAP) for the first time, other schools enhanced their skills in using the Performance Series assessment, and all schools made a successful transition to the Michigan Student Test of Educational Progress (M-STEP).

Read More
1776 Words | 8 Pages

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

Read More
1749 Words | 7 Pages

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

Read More
1352 Words | 6 Pages

Time and preparation is “needed” for the younger grades. “Even though first-grade students would not be made to take any standardized tests until the third grade, they would spend the next two years practicing and preparing for the test” (Malott, Marie, and Curry). Not all of the time will be used to “teach to the test.” Students will gradually work towards the test, but teaching the young kids all the information needed will take time, slower students may need more time than others. Time is nearly everything when it comes to standardized testing.

Read More
1130 Words | 5 Pages

There are also much better ways to test a student’s capability to learn; a 2006 Center on Education Policy conducted a study and found that a curriculum that follows state standards and uses the test data as feedback led to higher scores than those that prioritized test-taking skills. When teachers are more focused on teaching material rather than test strategies, their students benefit from it (“Do Standardized Tests Show an Accurate View of Students’ Abilities?”). Several alternative methods to state assessments for measuring a student’s academic success include comparing high school graduation rates and the number of dropouts, offering advanced placement courses, and looking at the percentage of the former students that are admitted to colleges. State assessments are more harmful than helpful to students; they are a large cause of test anxiety and a majority of teachers can never fully prepare their students. Although state assessments are an easy way to be able to see the growth of students, that does not mean that they are the best

Read More
734 Words | 3 Pages

Thank you so much for taking your time out of your very busy days to join us. It is always wonderful to share thoughts with people of your expertise, especially on a subject that affects my everyday life. Education is paramount to achieving success, and living in the modern world. In my school we take several standardized tests that are supposed to measure how much knowledge I’ve retained throughout the year. These exams have changed the way that children are taught, and have made public schools int a limited learning environment.

Read More
1960 Words | 8 Pages

Standardized tests also favor those with socio-economic advantages. If one child lives in an environment with bad teachers and poor classroom basics, and another child lives in an environment with great teachers and many opportunities, how are they both supposed to succeed on a standardized test? It is almost impossible. And, in another way standardized tests are discriminatory, a study by the Annie E. Casey Foundation says that the gap for achievement test scores between rich and poor have grown by almost 60 percent since the 1960s(Rocks). As it has been seen, standardized tests are not fair to many different

Read More
1191 Words | 5 Pages

School’s are using standardized testing for the wrong reason. “A standardized test is any examination that’s administered and scored in a predetermined, standard manner. There are two major kinds of standardized tests: aptitude tests and achievement tests” (Popham, 1999). The most common examples of aptitude tests are the SAT and the

Read More
1458 Words | 6 Pages

The standardized testing merely focuses on reading and math proficiency, and some schools have put less of an emphasis on teaching subjects such as social studies, art, music, and physical education. (Mulholland, 1) The rising, high prices of college also continue to intimidate students graduating from high

Read More
919 Words | 4 Pages

Schools are giving out too many standardized tests. It’s not only robbing them of their time, but it’s also causing stress and anxiety and going into far levels. Students need to be focusing on their learning academics and preparing for their future. Taking unuseful tests are not only pointless, but they put too many kids/teens into anxiety and even depression.

Read More
1283 Words | 6 Pages

Recently, the Common Core State Standards were developed and kids were going to be tested more than ever. However, all of this education reform has been a failure because our testing scores have not improved, the testing makes children suffer, and it doesn’t improve how teachers teach. Education reforms has had little effect on our testing scores. The average score for a 17 year old student doing a reading test in the beginning of school is 285 and over 40

Read More
1098 Words | 5 Pages

To begin with, standardized tests are not wholly reflective of a student’s knowledge.

Read More

More about Pros And Cons Of Standardized Testing In Schools

Related Topics

Open Document