The Pros And Cons Of Standardized Testing

Texas takes the STAAR, Alabama the ARMT, and Hawaii the HSA. Each state in the U.S. has a standardized test required of every student. From the ACT and SAT to the STAAR tests, standardized testing has become common practice for almost every student. The earliest records of standardized testing are when in China, anyone wanting to get a job in government had to fill out their knowledge of Confucian philosophy and poetry in examination. As more and more kids began to go to school during the Industrial Revolution, standardized testing spread as a way to quickly and easily test a large number of students. But not everyone agrees with the tests, stating that they are unreliable, and that the stakes are too high. Standardized tests cause immense amount of stress for not only students, but teachers as well. And the tests might not even be effective, causing more anxiety than it's worth.

Each year high school students from around the country take the SAT or ACT. The ACT and SAT are both standardized test used by colleges to determine the knowledge of a student and predict what their performance will be in their first year of college. An immense amount of pressure is put on student to receive certain scores in order to obtain scholarships and admission into college. Even just one point on a student’s score can determine if they will be accepted into their dream college. However, the results from standardized tests, such as the ACT and SAT, are often inaccurate. Because of this one’s knowledge and academic ability are misrepresented, and they are denied certain opportunities. Standardized tests such as the ACT and the SAT

One of the biggest topics in the educational world is standardized tests. All fifty states have their own standards following the common core curriculum. There are many positives and negatives that go with the standardized tests. A standardized test is any type of “examination that's administered and scored in a predetermined, standard manner” (Popham, 1999). These standardized tests are either aptitude tests or achievement tests. Schools use achievement tests to compare students.

Growing up in Chesapeake every student is forced to take a standardized test at the end of every class they take. Standardized testing has been a part of the educational system for so long that everyone is just accustomed to taking these tests or giving them out. Standardized testing does not just effect the students but it also effects the teachers. Chesapeake School Board should get rid of standardized testing in all grade levels because of different learning style, it limits the teachers to what they can teach and poor test scores.

Today, it can be observed that society has shifted education drastically from the time schools were constituted, to now. Throughout history, schools have gone from private, where only the elite can attend, to public schools where virtually anyone can attend. One of the factors that goes along with education is standardized testing. Frederick J. Kelly, father of the standardized test, once said, “These tests are too crude to be used, and should be abandoned.” Not only has this shift occurred within education itself, but it has occurred within the testing concepts found within standardized testing so much so that the founder of these tests has chosen to give up on it.

Colleges have long since used the SAT as a deciding factor of whether or not a student

Standardized tests were given to individuals hoping to acquire a position in the Chinese government during the 7th century, Medieval Knights hoping to be selected to defend their kingdom, and Army officer candidates during World War I. However, only recently have they been used to test the level of knowledge possessed by a student in the classroom. Laws are being introduced by government officials that are requiring schools to meet nearly unattainable standards. The required criterion is placing enormous pressure on school districts, administrators, and teachers. Standardized tests should no longer be used

OH NO! You have to take the standardized test today,and you are not prepared. Standardized tests have been a part of

Standardized tests set a standard for all students to be at the same level of intelligence and comprehension, whether it be Keystone exams, Scholastic Aptitude Tests (SAT), or the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale, America is obsessed with having their students reach a certain score or better. With the addition of high school exit exams, are we taking standardized testing too far? The argument that the Washington Post gives in one of its articles uses arguments such as the facts that come from these tests and what should be required of graduating high school.

whose purpose is to ensure fairness and accuracy in student test taking, said: "The widespread

The biased nature on these tests can also be seen to harm students of specific races and cultures. The Encyclopedia of Race and Racism reports that African- American and Latino students test scores suffer greatly due to the fact that they are less likely to attend schools where high level classes are offered. White students tend to score higher than minority students, this prevents the minority students from receiving the same educational opportunities that their white counterparts at a relative advantage have. Not only that, there is a great deal of cultural bias on standardized tests. Students deeply immersed in other cultures performance on this test could be negatively impacted due to insensitive material on the tests. In some states including

High-stakes standardized tests are tests that determine awards, punishments, compensations, and advancements for a school. These tests hold standards that students are expected to reach and that the teachers are expected to bring the students to reach. Emergent bilinguals are the students we refer to as English Language Learners in American Schools: students whose primary language may not be English. According to the book Educating Emergent Bilinguals, “It has been widely demonstrated that as a result of inadequate high-stakes tests, emergent bilinguals experience more remedial instruction, greater probability of assignment to lower curriculum tracks, higher drop out rates, poorer graduation rates, and disproportionate referrals to special education classes (103). All of these are negative results associated with high-stakes tests and emergent bilinguals.

Standardized tests have been part of American culture since the 1800s. Many disappointments in the education system have been blamed on the use of standardized tests. Standardized tests do not measure student achievement or ability.

Who pays for the standardize tests that just repeatedly test students over the same things? Is it the tax payers, schools, local, state, or are these tests government funded? Here are the exact words from an article from the eduFocus, “According to a study by Brown Center on Education Policy, a sufficient education isn’t the only thing that standardized tests are costing students, school districts, and tax payers. The study finds that 44 states spend upwards of a collective $1.7 billion on standardized testing each year of grades K through 12. The state of Pennsylvania alone spent over $58M on standardized testing, roughly $33 per student (assuming all students are tested every year).” (Strauss). Where else could that money go? It could make

To date, no compromise has been reached. People still have their own ways of looking at the issue. In my opinion, I believe and know that the negative influences students and American education receive provided by standardized testing far outweigh the benefits