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Standardized testing in the united states
The importance of standardized tests
The importance of standardized tests
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Ever since the first American schools were established in the 17th century, millions of students have been enrolled in the public schooling system since then. However, since the years have passed, the main focus on schooling has been shifted. What once was a place to learn and build upon already acquired knowledge has turned into a setting of extravagant tests. The American public schooling system’s prioritization of standardized testing wastes classroom time, does not teach students the required life skills they need to succeed in life, causes unhealthy stress and is not an accurate measurement of student progress.
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.
The state of Texas has been in a constant struggle within itself over just how to evaluate education, and standardized testing in Texas has been a major influencer in terms of the state’s standards for over thirty years. Though these methods of testing have been utilized for decades, resentment to the tests have been continuously rising among educators, parents, and students, but not everyone agrees. Despite government officials trying to quell these protests with changes to administration, and the way the test itself is formatted and formulated, there seems to have been little to no improvement made and those opposing the tests have started calling for an end to all standardized testing. For one to truly understand this ongoing struggle, one must first look at standardized testing’s beginning, then how government today is trying to fix the broken system, and finally consider the opinions of notable figures in the testing world.
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.
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
Over two hundred parents claim to not let a student go through standardized testing. The earliest records of standardized testing come from China, for the subjects of philosophy and poetry. America “copied” the European education system. In the early 20th century, immigrants took “standardized tests”. To determine possible career and where each person stood socially.
Even though many students absolutely hate them, state assessments are a big part of the American education system. Everyone has taken a standardized test at some point in their life, and almost everyone has done poorly on one. They are primarily used as a measurement of how well students learn, but are they truly accurate? There are strong arguments on both sides, which has started a heated conflict about the productiveness of these tests. Standardized testing has been around for many years, starting in Imperial China where it was intended to determine a person’s aptitude for a government position (“Do Standardized Tests Show an Accurate View of Students’ Abilities?”).
Standardized tests are one of the most popular ways schools attempt to evaluate academic intelligence of students, school districts, and teachers. These tests are used more specifically to evaluate student performance in the education system by testing their abilities in mathematics, english and sciences. By giving every student the same test, they are setting a standard idea for how well every student should score on the test, such as the SAT or the ACT, no matter the school or educational process they are receiving. Allowing every student to take the exact same test, gives the state a way to generalize student’s academic intelligence without having to do much work to make the testing one hundred percent fair. Standardized testing in schools should no longer be required because it discriminates against the less wealthy families, does not effectively measure achievement and becomes a distraction to the student’s learning environment.
Increasingly today in America’s school system, there is a recognition of tension between individuality and conformity. The struggle between students’ personal needs and the needs of the whole continues to grow. This can be seen though the controversial issue of standardized testing. These are tests that are designed in a way, which are administered and recorded in a consistent method. In standardized testing, all test takers are required to answer the same set of multiple-choice, true or false questions, short answer, and essay questions.
Holding School districts, teachers, and students accountable through the process of standardized testing has not improved the nation’s educational status, but worsened it. Students are now being “taught to the test” , and instead of acquiring knowledge they are acquiring the
Introduction Attention Grabber: If you are not good at taking tests, does it mean that you are not going to be successful? The test is just a number who can be alternated whether you cheap it or not and how focused you were when taking it. As students, teachers, and parents, we are all familiar with the concept of standardized testing. However, have you ever stopped to consider whether or not these tests are actually necessary or beneficial? Today, I want to discuss why I believe standardized testing should be eliminated in our education system.
“Standardized Testing”, an article published by Gale claims “standardized testing ultimately leads teachers to spend more time on test preparation than on the actual material students need to study as part of their intellectual development” (1). This divulges that time that could be spent learning, is being wasted by test prep and
Over the years, standardized test have become more heavily depended on within the school system. The perspective on this type of testing system is 50/50 when the public perceives its importance. The question is, do these test adequately judge a students ability academically. Also, do they strip teachers of their freedom to teach freely based on the fact they have to teach for the test. When it comes to education as we all know, standardized test dictate the curriculum in the school system (Classroom Assessments for a New Century; one teachers quest to move beyond the bubble test).
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
Standardized testing are giving in many areas of the nation According to a article by “The Washington Post” “The study analyzed tests given in 66 urban districts in the 2014-2015 school year. It did not count quizzes or tests created by classroom teachers, and it did not address the amount of time schools devote to test preparation”(Layton Lyndsey). Teachers are being evaluated by students and how well they do on the standardized test. Several states have tied student performance to teacher evaluation. The National Council on Teacher Quality reported in January 2014 that “about
