Standardized Testing: A Case Study

Standardized testing is known to improve students’ education, but is it really needed in school? Standardized testing determines whether a student is prepared for the next grade based on their test scores. While some students do great on their test others struggle a lot. Not all students are good test takers; majority of the students do good in school but struggle when it comes down to testing. While many agree that standardized testing helps improve students education, it shouldn’t be necessary in school because one test score shouldn’t determine a student’s readiness or academic level.

Standardized testing in the United States started in the mid- 1800’s (Standardized Tests - ProCon.org). This kind of testing was originally created to measure students’ performance and progress in school (Standardized Tests - ProCon.org). In recent years, the public school system has relied heavily on the information this test provides, in doing so creating controversy. Other than being a student myself, and participating in multiple standardized exams such as, CSAP, ACT, and SAT, I do not have much background knowledge on this debate. The debate over standardized testing has raised this inquiry question: What are the effects of standardized testing on the United States public education system?

What is standardized testing? Standardized testing is a test which is given to students to evaluate the knowledge which they know. Testing can be in all subjects and topics in education. In Minnesota there is the MCA ( Minnesota Common Assessment). The MCA can be taken from elementary to high school, and the students are tested on subjects they have learned from the past. In Minnesota the MCA is a test which the government requires students to take. On a national level there is the ACT and SAT. These are usually taken as entrance exams to colleges and universities. ACT and SAT are two different types of test they have differ in grading systems and some colleges take both or one of the two. Why are standardized test given? The test are given so people in charge can evaluate the performance of the student and school; also gage the knowledge of the student. But standardized test like the ACT can not be an effective way to improve instruction and performance because it is a competency focused test. The reason why standardized test are competence: They test students on how well they can eliminate the incorrect answers to find the correct one. This is an inefficient way because what if the test taker crosses out the wrong answer, this forces the taker to choose between two wrong answers. There's needs to be tested efficiently and accurately gage their knowledge.

Alarming is an understatement when it comes to the anxiety and stress standardized testing brings. Students are told how vital these tests can be to college acceptance, class placement, and school ranking, so it is no surprise that they lead students to become stressed out and anxious about taking the assessments. According to education researcher Gregory J. Cizek, "illustrating how testing... produces gripping anxiety in even the brightest students, and makes young children vomit or cry, or both" (2). The affect standardized testing has on students is unacceptable, no students should be anxious and uneasy about going to school due to a test. To continue, the Sacramento Bee reported that "test-related jitters, especially among young students,

Thoughts about the ACT or SAT give most students sleepless nights. Well, it is an important test but getting overwhelmed by it is not going to help. These few fun facts about the ACT/SAT are just what you need when you are looking for a short, refreshing distraction from the intense studying. The ACT/SAT should be the main factor in college acceptance because it gives minorities an equal chance of admission, it provides a standard for all students of all high school backgrounds to achieve, and test you on the basic skills you need to know after leaving high school anyway.

Standardized testing is used to tell students level in certain areas of academics; however, it is actually a waste of time and money.

As a result of his delay in speech and language skills, Joshua will receive Speech therapy as one of his early childhood intervention services. Joshua is 3.8 years old performing at 3.1 years old. In addition, Joshua’s expressive language skills are at a 2.9-year level. Joshua exhibits difficulty with age appropriate concepts, expressive and receptive language skills, vocabulary and maintaining focus. Furthermore, Joshua’s speech intelligibility is poor to fair, which negatively impacts his social language skills especially in a large group setting. According to the Speech and Language Chart (2nd Ed.) children from 2 ½ -3 years old should have speech intelligibility of approximately 80%. Joshua speech is judged to be more than 33% delayed.

It's 8 A.M. on a Saturday, and masses of students around the United States wake up and head to their testing sites in order to take the SAT. This is a common occurrence that happens multiple times a year, but it raises the question as to how seriously should society take these tests and other standardized testing, such as the Regents examinations in New York State. The answer to this is obvious, clearly these exams, and all standardized tests, must be taken seriously, due to the fact they provide vital information for colleges such as which students are the best, they provide ample data for high schools and state governments to prove that the academic standards are being upheld, and they also provide useful information to various institutions

M., & Barton, K. (2003). Assessing Students With Disabilities: Issues and Evidence. Los Angeles: The Regents of the University of California. Retrieved from http://cse.ucla.edu/products/reports/TR587.pdf

Standardized testing has been around for centuries. It has been a part of America’s education since mid 1800’s. Ever since the No Child Left Behind Act in 2002, tests are now required and mandated in every state. But has their use improved America’s education?

How I feel about standardized tests is that they get me really stressed out and they are scary. I believe i'm a a bad test taker because when someone hands me a test I forget everything I learned over the year and just freak out and stare at the paper. Yes, I believe ever since Kindergarten iv'e been like this. Fun fact is that when I was taking my STAR test in second grade I peed myself thinking I was going to fail but it was a practice STAR test, I was bullied ever since. I prepare for a standardized test by going over what I learned at midnight, that way I don't freak out and stress or sometimes eating makes me feel more confident about myself. I believe that when they give you gum before taking the test helps, because it distracts you of

I definitely agree with Judge Jerry Baxter’s decision to incarcerate the teachers accused of cheating on standardized testing. Nine out of ten teachers who were brought before Judge Baxter were sentenced anywhere between one and seven years in jail. These, so called, “educators” were accused of giving students answers and erasing and changing answers on tests after they were turned in. Overall, the behavior of these teachers showed poor moral conduct and most likely ended up “ruining” their students education.

Standardized Testing is one of the many issues currently plaguing the education community. Testing is a very touchy and controversial topic in the politics of education, particularly in the United States. There are many varying opinions debating on the successes and failures in the process of testing today. The controversies over standardized testing in the United State, and specifically New Jersey, stem from the testing process and the creation of these tests. Some claim that standardized tests are culturally biased, which is a disadvantage to minority students. These tests also are very costly, and affect the education budget. The tests also pose a large time commitment, with preparation for the tests, as well as the time allotted to take the tests themselves. Preparations for the tests can also have issues, with some educators teaching toward the test, to ensure a higher success rate for the students. The grading and processing of these tests also comes into question, because the tests might not be an accurate measure of student achievement. Standardized testing is a very controversial topic because of the extremely high stakes. The successes or failures of students on these tests affect the students and the schools. With the new obsession with high performance rates, standardized testing has become more high stakes.

In conclusion the school counselor plays many roles in testing and assessment of students. They can administer the test, share the results of the test etc. Standardized testing are now of a norm in today's schools. Children start testing as young as four years of age. The NCLB act was put in place so that the school could be accountable for a student passing or failing. Standardized testing is a way for the school to see where the students academic levels are. There are benefits and repercussion for the school depending on how well the students did on the test. School counselors do not like to make a major decision about a student's education based off of one test. The like to look at the students projects, work assignments, and class performance

Standardized testing has been a large part of school systems across America; nearly every school has state and national required tests for all of the students. The results from these standardized tests are meant to be based on the curriculum the students should be learning in the classroom. Standardized testing became common when the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, or better known as the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), was passed in 2002. Ever since the act was passed, there have been two major viewpoints on it; some view standardized tests as an asset, while others do not.