Arguments Against Standardized Testing Essay

Standardized testing has become the main component in determining a student’s capability. A test should not determine if the student has a mind that is above average. In the article titled “Standardized Testing: Undermining Equity in Education”, it states, “Qualities such as a student’s sense of citizenship, ethics, confidence/self-esteem,...respect for others, self-discipline,...are not seen in standardized tests.” Every student is unique and has

To many students standardized testing has become another part of schooling that is dreaded. Standardized testing has been a part of school since the nineteen-thirties; in those days it was used as a way to measure students that had special needs. Since the time that standardized test have been in American schools there has been many programs that have placed an importance on the idea of standardized testing such as the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (Evans 1). Over the years the importance of standardized testing has increased tremendously and so has the stakes, not only for teachers but also students. All states in the United States of America have state test in order to measure how much students learn, and help tell how well the

Students dread the time of the year when they stop with their course material and begin to prepare for test. Everyone is in agreement that some type of revolution is needed when it comes to education; eliminating standardized test will aid the reform. The need for standardized testing has proven to be ineffective and outdated; some leading educationalist also believe this because the tests do not measure a student’s true potential. This will save money, stop labeling, and alleviate stress in students and teachers.

Standardized tests are unnecessary because they are excruciating to the minds of many innocent students. Each year, the tests get tougher and stricter until the students cannot process their own thoughts. The tests become torturous to the minds of those only starting in the world of tests. The students already battling in the war are continuing to fall deeper and deeper into the world of uncreativity and narrowness. As the walls narrow in on them, they are lost and unable to become innovative thinkers. Moreover, the implementation of standardized tests into the public school systems of the United States of America has controversially raised two different views –the proponents versus the opponents in the battle of the effectiveness of

The use of standardized examinations have long been debated in American society. In fact, the last several years have seen an immense shift from the prioritization of standardized testing to more holistic measurements of student achievement. Despite this shift, many school districts across the nation and college/university entrance requirements still place a significant, if not pivotal, emphasis on test-taking and standardized exam results. Throughout this paper, I will explore 1) the history of standardized testing, 2) arguments for and against its practice, as well as 3) situate the consequences of its use in one of the three philosophical goals of schooling. All of this will subsequently paint an investigation into the purpose of schooling in American society.

Standardized testing has been ruling over the lives of students, making or breaking them in their education without fair judgement. Tests like the SAT and the ACT count for way too much when applying to colleges, which in turn limits the student 's capabilities to thrive in an environment that would benefit them. There are many problems within a standardized test that deems them to be unreliable as a true test of knowledge. Although designed to test groups of students on intelligence, standardized testing neglects to fairly acknowledge the abilities of each unique student which reflect their true capabilities.

“No issue in the U.S. Education is more controversial than (standardized) testing. Some people view it as the linchpin of serious reform and improvement, others as a menace to quality teaching and learning” (Phelps). A tool that educators use to learn about students and their learning capabilities is the standardized test. Standardized tests are designed to give a common measure of a student’s performance. Popular tests include the SAT, IQ tests, Regents Exams, and the ACT. “Three kinds of standardized tests are used frequently in schools: achievement, diagnostic, and aptitude” (Woolfolk 550). Achievement tests can be used to help a teacher assess a student’s strengths and weaknesses in a

“High school grades reflect years of effort and are more reliable assessment of college potential than test scores.” Historians detected that standardized testing started back in the seventh-century in China. The government of China began to organize written exams to select people for the civil service. Also many educators try to make sure that they are following the right requirements but some of them don’t and do all sorts of stuff with the results. Many individuals would say that standardized testing is a helpful way of learning from what the student knows and doesn’t, but the consequences that teachers found out of the standardized tests are making the students have a decrease in critical thinking.

Students shouldn’t be measured by what they get on standardized test since it doesn’t show other things that the students are good at. The author wrote, “ Contrary to popular assumptions about standardized testing, the tests do a poor job of measuring student achievement. They fail to measure such important attributes as creativity and critical thinking skills.” (Opposing viewpoints in Context pg.1) The author’s main argument is that standardized tests do not show the other skill that students, schools or programs have that isn’t shown just through a test. That Standardized testing doesn’t effectively measure the achievement of students. In his or her article, the author puts what achievement is but what is based on standardized test and not other things. A lot of attributes are not measured from the standardized tests. There are some places that have rewards for “shallow thinking” (Opposing viewpoints Pg.3)

Since 1805 public schools have been the backbone of many Americans and their strive for an education. On top of this, public schools, according to the Huffington Post, equate to 91% or 50.7 million of those attending pre-Kindergarten through the 12th grade. But, with other school types such as year-round attending over 2 million students, the question begs, “Which school type provides their students with the best education”?

According to (Speilman, R) standardized test has been argued by many theorist that they are useful and can measure a person’s ability to perform. Therefore, strengths of having a standardized test would service as a guide to determine how knowledgeable individuals are academically. For example, Johnnie a first grader can read on a fourth grade level demonstrates higher intellect for his age. Moreover, this example strengthen the argument that standardized test offers information for advance students. (Speilman, R) Whereas, on the other hand standardized test has limitations due to environment is not considered as an integrity part in the creation of standardized test. For example, poor children may have never had the opportunity to learn the

“If the material in the tests is anticipated and becomes the basis for study, then the results tell us only about the level of prep work and nothing else” (Tanner 4). The results no longer offer valuable insight into students’ academic lives, they merely display how well teachers prepared them for the test.

Nichols et al. cites that the problem of using standardized assessment in higher education is deeper than the few benefits that come with it. Institutional effectiveness has continued to be measured by inputs mostly in terms of financial resources, and the academic qualifications of students before they are enrolled into the institutions of higher learning. Once the students qualify to join these institutions, they are exposed to a series of standardized tests which are used to measure their academic outcomes (30). One evident fact however is the fact that standardized tests cannot be used to quantify student outcomes. When it comes to measuring essential qualities such as creativity, intellectual integrity, personal self-delivery, tolerance, wisdom, refinement of taste and conduct, and psychological well-being, then standardized tests almost prove useless in the realms of higher education.

Over the years the educational system has faced various controversial issues, but the most recent one making a negative impact on students, is standardized testing. Standardized testing is a type of testing used to evaluate students academic abilities . It is a way to measure if standards are being met but does not provide a variation in the type of administration based on the students needs (Sacks, 2000). In other words, all children are provided these test to track their learning progress based on their grade level. Some believe this is the best way to measure students knowledge, others believe it is doing more harm than good, and I believe it is an unrealistic form of an academic evaluation. Throughout this piece, I will evaluate the

Standardized tests are part of every student’s life but not for a good reason. These tests haunt students in their sleep and give them a nightmare. To understand what I am writing just study your kid on the week of standardized tests. One can see the fear, anxiety and helpless in their eyes. Standardized testing has become an important part of our modern education. There is not an American student who doesn’t sit down these test many times a year in their educational journey. These tested are heavily monitored, they are supposed to measure students’ knowledge and performance. However, there are may problems with standardized tests, including bais, anxiety and not inclusive. Nevertheless, how effective are these tests? Do they really measure knowledge? Many scholars have talked about the role of standardized tests in students performance. The answer is no. Standardized tests do not measure student 's education or knowledge. The topic of standardized testing is complex in that it provokes a system that has been established for a long time and that is used by every college and school in United States. Many people believe that standardized tests are biased and aren’t inclusive while others argue that they are effective in testing student’s knowledge. This topic also proposes a big change to our educational system.