Epistemology and Knowledge Essay

We have to provide multiple opportunities for students to grow and learn. We need to be a culturally diverse school district that accepts everyone and encourages a pluralistic culture. We need to work together with our

Albert Einstein once said, “Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid.” I’ve seen this today, where students are these fish, and these standardized tests that we take are the judges at how well we climb up the tree.

Epistemology or theory of knowledge is a branch of philosophy related to the scope and nature of knowledge. The subject focuses on examining the nature of knowledge, and how it relates to beliefs, justification, and truth. Epistemology contract with the means of production of knowledge, as well as skepticism about different knowledge claims. “Epistemology is the philosophical investigation into this question: What can we know? The question, at first, seems pretty simple: It seems pretty obvious that I know that 3+5+8, that the sun will rise tomorrow and that my chances of winning the lottery aren’t very good. I also know

standardized tests is that they lack a level of comprehension and are incapable of succeeding in the educational system. This belief is especially prevalent in regards to high stakes tests such as college entrance and high school graduation exams because the focus is on the test score. The perception is that these scores are the sole indicator of the student’s knowledge of a subject and their ability to succeed at a higher level of education. Therefore,

1). To support this claim he further states, “Research and experience show that standardized tests are generally good at measuring students’ knowledge, skills, and understanding because they are objective, fair, efficient, and comprehensive” (Par. 3). On the contrary, Harris, Harris, and Smith state that “Achievement is more than test scores but also includes class participation, students’ course-taking patterns, and teachers’ professional development patterns” (Par. 6) They also believe student achievement involves more than scores on standardized tests. In fact, these three authors see the usage of test scores to measure student achievement as a “Dangerous Illusion” (Par. 3). To support this claim the three authors list a variety of concepts which cannot be measured with standardized tests, such as creativity, critical thinking, curiosity, motivation, reliability, self-discipline, and leadership (Par. 8). They also explain how all of these qualities are considered valuable by our society (Par. 9). Walberg fires back by saying, “Responsible test-makers, . . . do not purport to cover all the material students are expected to learn” (Par. 14). He compares standardized tests to national surveys, in which a small number of the total population is interviewed to represent a societies values as a whole (Par. 14). To illustrate his point, Walberg uses the analogy of a “Three-Legged Stool.” The stool’s legs

The use of standardized testing to measure students’ knowledge is an inaccurate reflection of their capabilities. By being forced to take a test that does not effectively show their abilities, students become overstressed, and the tests themselves do not promote true academic achievement. Rather than learning about subjects in order to gain knowledge, students simply memorize facts and formulas to get a decent test score. Standardized tests are not an appropriate measure of student performance, only benefit certain groups of students, and do not prepare students for the real world.

Most of test is just going to tell what students know on paper, but scores do not show what can an individual apply the knowledge in the real world. For instance, a person who has practice and invested their time on something and apply it in the real world is the one who's going to do well when it comes to who is actually is smart the one who has practice or the one that took the test and did good but is going to do bad because of the person that did not apply outside than a

The LAUSD is the second largest in the nation with more than 640,000 students in kindergarten through 12th grade, covering over 900 schools, and 187 public charter schools. The LAUSD is committed to equity and access to excellent education and schools for all of its 640,000 students. To realize its mission, the LAUSD identified five strategies including the following: (1) Transform teaching and learning so that it can prepare all youth to graduate college and become workforce ready (2) Ensure there is an effective employee at every level of the organization focused on improving student outcomes (3) Provide a portfolio of high quality schools for youth, families, and communities (4) Ensure a safe, caring, and nurturing environment for all youth (5) Operate on an effective, efficient, and transparent organization in order to assure the public trust (‘District Strategies’, 2015). The LAUSD operates based on the following core beliefs: start with students; families are our partners; success is in the classroom; diversity is our strength; and effective teaching, leadership, and accountability are the keys to our success (‘LAUSD Core Beliefs’, 2015).

The use of standardized testing is on the rise, with the intent of comparing the knowledge levels of large amounts of students. But is it a true and fair indicator of students overall knowledge?some may argue that it is the least expensive and most convenient way to compare mass amounts of students b having everyone test on the same data at the same time and under the same circumstances. Many believe that students learn and even test take at varying levels and performance is not consistent on any given day. Meaning ,students may have the exact same knowledge base, but some students simply are better at test taking, whereas others do not perform well under pressure and this may potentially affect the test results.

One problem standardized testing imposes is that it cannot precisely measure a student’s amount of knowledge. With so many education systems and a number of teaching styles, there is no realistic way to cover the material every student has been learning. This leads to problems on the results of standardized tests. Swartz, of the National Center for Teaching Thinking said, “Most current U.S. standardized tests include only multiple-choice questions and provide no way for students to explain their thinking, So if a student answers (d) and that 's correct, it still raises the question, ‘Is he just guessing?’ And there 's no way to know,” (“Teaching Critical Thinking”). Standardized tests, especially multiple choice tests, are inefficient for measuring a student’s ability and knowledge. Clearly, multiple choice tests do not work. They cannot correctly determine how

Evaluating individual students through standardized tests is a poor means and should be replaced with performance-based assessments. An average student spends most of their early life inside a classroom, submitting to a sequence of tests and preparation for further exams to finally graduate and continue with further education, constantly struggling and striving for the highest marks. Through a strict series of standardized tests however, students instead form the idea that there is a single answer for all of the problems that face our world.  You are taught not to think logically or creatively at all, but to mindlessly memorize. As a student, you lose interest in the different disciplines you

Students shouldn’t be judged on a single test measuring their ability. There are many students who are smart in their individual class but when it comes to standardized testing they fall short of the expectations. Those are the people which standardized testing is unfair to. This specifically pertains to me, I do well on projects and assignments in class, but tests are a totally different story. I use direct inference to answer questions that don’t make sense to me.

Unfortunately in modern time, students are more concerned to pass a test, than actually learning the material. It’s inconsiderate for schools to feel that throwing test after test will predict and showcase a student’s intelligence. “Most current U.S. standardized tests include only multiple-choice questions and provide no way for students to explain their thinking, says Swartz, of the National Center for Teaching Thinking. “So if a student answers (d) and that's correct, it still raises the question, ‘Is he

Discuss epistemology and its relevance to intelligence analysis. Select at least two principal “ways of knowing,” and describe their respective characteristics/attributes, strengths, weaknesses, and potential for improving the quality of intelligence analysis.

or that death is not the end. There is no way to prove that this is