Standardized Testing Case Study Essay

Currently, standardized tests do not improve the education of students in America. Standardized testing is not an accurate measure of student’s knowledge because they are designed to test an extremely broad amount of students who do not have the same educational background. This makes it incredibly difficult to test students across the world on the same level and expect their scores to reflect their education. Standardized testing, by definition, is any test containing the same questions that is administered to a vast group of people for the purpose of comparing different student’s test scores. This issue is important because it affects the entire academic community, positively and negatively. Therefore, all teachers, students, school staff, and test administrators have some involvement with standardized testing. The vast majority of people in America have taken a standardized test sometime in their life, which makes these tests vital in the

The fact that African American students lag several years behind their White peers in math and reading continues to be a persistent problem in America’s public schools – a critical issue that should not be ignored in any meaningful discourse on community, literacy and public schools. The wide body of relevant research reveals many causal factors and correlates including race, socioeconomic standing, social class, teacher competence and perceptions, quality of schools, etc. It is also generally acknowledged that there is a direct, positive correlation between greater parental involvement and student academic achievement. The particular focus of this paper is on the question of to what extent parental involvement – or lack thereof- influences the academic performance of African American students. I will argue that African American student underachievement is, to a significant degree, likely to be attributable to lack of active parental guidance and involvement. The variety of factors that impact parental involvement, particularly that of parents of non-dominant backgrounds, will be examined in order to demonstrate the need for schools and teachers to diversify the approach generally taken to collaborating with parents, such that it becomes a more meaningful, inclusive and relevant process for these parents. In closing, I will draw on an interview conducted with the parents of an

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.

African American students account for the larger majority of minorities in public schools in the United States. Most areas in the northern part of the United states and coastal areas are ethnically diverse. However, down south this is not the case. Students of color will experience a harder time in the education system. African American students meet the obstacle of educators who will not want them to succeed based on a preconceived thought. In fact, Caucasian teachers make up for 85% of all

I approached OTR, Mary Rooney, the day before my last day of observation and informed her if it would be ok to interview one of the Occupational Therapists for an assignment I have to do for my intro to Occupational Therapy class. Mary informed me she would be ok with an interview and if I can interview her today on her break time. I explained that I was not prepared and if it would be ok to interview her tomorrow on my last day of observation. She agreed and said tomorrow on her lunch break would be fine. On that same night I typed up the questions I was going to ask Mary on a word document. I had about eleven questions and had enough spaces in between each questions to write her answers down. I looked over my questions a couple of times to make sure there where appropriate for Mary.

Martin J., W. (2014). Standardized Testing, Stereotypes, and High-Performing African American Elementary School Students retrieved from

Most parents of black students do not regularly attend teacher/ parent conferences. These conferences are held usually between the sixth and eight week of school and during these meetings parents get a chance to voice any concerns they might have as well as the teachers suggestions. (Cushman 11). One might ask how can a parent send their child to school without ever meeting the teacher? There are several problems associated with black parents and the school system which I discuss in depth later in the paper. Parents just do not place enough emphasis on their child 's education and in turn the child doesn 't either. There is no way that a child could fail if their parents are in continuous communication with his teacher, yes, during these times there is simply not enough hours in the day but if a parent does not care about their child 's future how can expect anyone else to?” Black children are falling farther behind and are victims of an educational system that is failing them.” ( Muhammad 2). If parents do not realize that a teacher alone can not defeat this task alone, that it takes a village to raise a family its sad to say that

The purposes of standardized tests are to instruct decision making, establish program eligibility, evaluate course goals, evaluate program goals, and examine external curriculum. When a teacher gives and assesses a standardized test, they gain information about their students that helps them realize what concepts they have learned according to the agenda for the subject at hand. If the assessment is performed in a sensible amount of time and given according to the directions, this purpose should be fulfilled; however, it is a common belief that standardized tests do not work well in establishing where a student stands in a specific curriculum. The test uses a general curriculum that is the basis for the tests

I started the interview with straightforward questions. I asked her about her health and I asked her about her pain. She is currently taking a medication that is controlling her diabetes. Since she has been diagnosed with diabetes for more than ten years, I wanted to know more. I asked if she remembers why or how did she develop type 2 diabetes. During that time, Maria was under a lot of pressure. Her mother and her sister had recently died and her husband was making less than $70 per week. She was constantly worried that her life was falling apart. When I asked her about pain, my grandma told me she has chest pain. Due to her pain, she recently found out that she is diagnosed with

Upon the premise of further exploration, Mari Ann Roberts found a definition of what is meant to care for underachieving African American male students. Roberts surveyed eight African American teachers to attain their point of view of what it meant to care for their students which included informing them about how to survive in the racism of the United States of America that they will and are exposed to (Roberts 456). The discussion of political clarity was addressed by several teachers to help students understand “the importance of education and emphasized that they believed, for Black people, academic achievement would eventually equal equality” (Roberts 458).

A free public education is a right for every child in the United States of America, but not all schools are equipped to meet the needs of their diverse population. Therefore, success rates and academic achievement vary to a great extent. There are many unique gender and racial problems African American male students face and special attention needs to be given in order to close the achievement gap. Some of the societal and educational challenges faced include negative racial stereotypes, low income households, and institutional racism. However, educators play an import role in reducing those challenges through connecting their curriculum to African American culture and reducing their subconscious biases. There are many educational reforms that need to be implemented to create a more inclusive environment that fosters growth, learning, and success.

The questions that will be asked are all open-ended and will assist in determining why some African American females don’t fare as well as other ethnicities academically in the public school system. The questions will be rephrased with probes and pauses, depending on how much information is received from the participant. More questions will be added as I proceed through the research process and gather more information from the participant. The focus will be on African American females, and each question that is asked will be recorded and examined in their own words from their perspective. At the end of the study, I will conduct a formal analysis and construction of meaningful findings.

A very current and ongoing important issue happening within the education system is standardized testing. A standardized test is any examination that's administered and scored in a calculated, standard manner. There are two major kinds of standardized tests: aptitude tests and achievement tests. Standardized aptitude tests predict how well students might perform in some subsequent educational setting. The most common examples are the SAT’s and the ACT’s. The SAT and the ACT attempt to estimate how well high school students will perform in college. But standardized test scores are what citizens and school board members rely on when they evaluate a school's effectiveness. Nationally, five such tests are in use: California Achievement Tests,

Project STAR began in the fall of 1985 with the random pairing of over 6,000 kindergarten students and 325 teachers being assigned to one of the three types of required classes.

The case study subjects were specifically chosen for their differing backgrounds. One subject was an African American female in her early 40’s that was educated in a segregated school system. The other, a young African American male in his mid-20’s, taught in the same urban school system in which he was educated. Clark indicated during the interview that African