Are standardized tests really a good way to judge learning in schools? When trying to get the most accurate testament on how much a student learns, testing seems to be the best option, but only on the surface. Recent studies have shown that when basing judgement of a school on standardized testing, many things that don't show up in the numbers are missed. Testing doesn't show overall morale, the learning/school environment, or academic growth of the school district. Standardized testing is important but without the other factors included, it cannot accurately represent a student's learning.
When looking at test scores and numbers it is hard to think about what the students are feeling, but that doesn't make it any less important. If schools are too focused on the outcome they might miss when a student has become too stressed or depressed either from school or outside factors. When a student has conflicting feelings it can affect their learning. This can be easily fixed, but if schools have no
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Student safety is just as important, if not more, than standardized testing. If a student does not feel safe in their school they might find it hard to focus on learning, causing a drop in test scores. In addition, teacher/student relationships must be good in order to ensure that a large amount of learning takes place. Such as, if a student doesn't like his/her teacher then he/she might not wish to pay attention in their class. This is proven by “Two decades ago, Missouri rewarded school districts with good marks if they … had safe schools. Districts were applauded if they had … a competent staff and a school board that got along well...” (Missouri aims for more equitable way to grade public schools). Schools used to be rewarded for good teacher relations and safe schools, but with the focus of standardized testing how can one expect those areas to continue to