The Negative Impact Of Standardized Testing On College-Bound Students

The standardized tests not only affect the students, but everyone else that is involved. It affects students by causing them stress and if they are unprivileged they do not get the tutoring and help that the privileged ones do (Reddell). Privileged children can get tutors to help teach them more about a topic. The unprivileged kids can get free tutoring at school but some are too embarrassed or scared to go ask for help. A kid should not be embarrassed about asking for help on a subject they are having troubles in they should be able to go to any teacher and not have other students around them making fun just because they are getting help because they do not know something. These tests have caused so much stress on not just students but also the teachers (Reddell). Students get more stressed over these tests than teachers do. They know that they need to try their best and it puts a ton of weight on them. Even though they can retake the test that does not mean a senior can. If a senior is to take these tests and fail then they have to come back either for summer school or back for a whole other year. It is not fair to a senior if they fail the test and have to come the next year or even during the summer just because he did not pass. A test should not be the reason he does not get to go to college that year and has to

Additionally, standardized tests have the ability to make or break a student. Today, children are being failed, denied access to an advanced program or school, or even refused a high school diploma on the basis of a single standardized test (Sacks 3). Moreover, these tests can determine whether students will spend their summer vacation on the beach or sweating out summer school. Since standardized tests have a great deal of power, students are forced to prepare for them rather than learn valuable knowledge, simply for the sake that they can graduate or enter into the program or school of their choice.

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,

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.

Students are overwhelmed with school, work, extra-curricular activities, family, etc. Perhaps standardized tests are a major contributor to students’ stress. A standardized test is any test scored in a consistent manner and requires test-takers to answer identical questions. Among the most common include the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) and the American College Test (ACT). According to the article “Standardized Testing Has Negatively Impacted Public Schools” from Opposing Viewpoints in Context, the beginnings of standardized tests occurred during World War I when the American Psychological Association developed a “ground-administered test” to eliminate inefficient recruits (Solley 3). Today, standardized tests are necessary for college admission. Just last month, in March of 2016, College Board, the non-profit organization responsible for administering the SAT, altered the format of the test. It is now formatted more similar to the ACT and includes an optional essay reducing the score from 2400 to 1600. Many advocates argue standardized tests accurately measure academic intelligence and hold teachers and schools accountable. In today’s society, standardized tests have become the norm, and unfortunately, people overlook their negative effects despite research substantiating arguments about their disadvantages. Standardized tests are disadvantageous because they hinder education and contain bias.

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,

Furthermore, the strain from all of these standardized tests takes a physical and mental toll on students as well (NPR). I know from personal experience that all of the pressure from these tests can leave you feeling like you cannot escape, or like you are barely gasping for air. It’s like you cannot find a way out of this never-ending rut that seems to be getting deeper and deeper as you get older. And occasionally, with all of this chaos, it’s hard to focus on what truly matters. Students can get lost, and lose sight of what’s most important while trying to balance schoolwork, quizzes, and the additional STAAR test.

Standardized tests cause unnecessary stress on students because of pressure to do well on tests. Students who study too much or do not study enough can get stressed out. Not studying enough can make students feel unprepared and can cause anxiety. Studying too much can overwhelm a student of overload of information. In the article, “The Leading Source for Pros & Cons of Controversial Issues”, an education researcher Gregory J. Cizek, says “the brightest of students even get stressed.” If the smartest students in school get stressed, how can average students avoid stress? There is no way to avoid the stress that comes with these tests. It also states, “The Sacramento Bee reported that ‘test-related jitters, especially among young students, are so common that the Stanford-9 exam comes with instructions on what to do with a test booklet in case a student vomits on it.” The stress that comes with standardized tests is bad enough, but

Standardized testing has been an inevitable part of life for countless Americans, making them question the validity of their life choices since the third grade. When taking standardized tests, one encounters some obvious drawbacks. Any student who has been forced to take one of the hundreds that exist can recount the tales of stress and feelings of inadequacy that linger after every test taken.

Many students get test anxiety which affects their health and test scores (“Pros/Cons of Standardized testing”). As someone who has experienced standardized testing, I know students at my school who get very anxious about taking these tests and feel physically ill because of them. They end up with test scores that are lower than their class work and grades would predict. The scores only show what the student was able to do in that one point of time. (“Pros/Cons of Standardized testing”). One standardized test, the Stanford-9, has evidence of this anxiety among students ("Standardized Tests - ProCon.org."). The exam has directions for the teacher of what to do if a student vomits on the test due to extreme anxiety ("Standardized Tests - ProCon.org."). The makers of the test expect that some children will be so anxious they will throw up! You may wonder why students feel so much anxiety about taking standardized tests. The pressure from parents and teachers and community about the results of the test and how you will be judged based on those results is not a positive thing! Also, teachers and parents cannot help students improve for their next standardized test because they do not get to see the results of their last test until months or even a year later (Woesthoff Julie)! This builds anxiety about why are we doing this anyway? Plus, the results are not specific (Woesthoff Julie). Students are labeled using terms like basic, proficient, advanced, average, below average, below grade level or needs improvement. These terms are insulting to students who tried their best. They are embarrassing to good students who had anxiety or a bad day. They are also rude towards children with disabilities and English language learners who are working with modified teaching, but have to take the same tests as other

Standardized testing is a down fall to many students but also an opportunity for many others. Standardized testing has its pros and its cons. It can be the make it or break it factor into getting into colleges you are hoping to attend or the scholarships you want to earn. Some people may have their opinions about the test, whether they hate it or not but the fact is that it’s here to stay.

In the past years, standardized testing has been taken less seriously that is used to be. Because of this, people are starting to not look at the test scores. This has caused students to not care about the test scores. So, schools should not take standardized testing seriously, because they are not an effective way of assessing what students know and many kids get nervous while testing.

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,

Standardized tests do not even perform their job as well as they are supposed to. The reason why we have

Standardized testing can result in extreme stress in students and ultimately can lead to low scores in these tests. Some students are "terrible test takers" because they get anxious and can't attentively focus on tests. Despite the fact that the test should be standard and ought to give fair outcomes, the terrible test takers are at a major drawback as they have no other way to prove their knowledge except standardized tests. Desiree Bottigliero states that "test-related jitters among students are so common that the Stanford-9 exam comes with instructions on what to do with a test booklet in case a student vomits on it." While some students who don’t have test anxiety routinely, they feel tremendous strain to do their best when standardized tests like the SAT, the ACT, the GRE, the GMAT are compulsory for admissions and scholarships.