Flaws In Current Standardized Testing - 1147 Words

The use of standardized tests is not something new. Everyone should know about their importance and the emphasis put on them, along with the stress that follows. There are multiple choice tests, high-stakes tests, and the dreaded time-limited tests. It is true to say not all tests are created equal; however, every one of these tests has serious flaws. Standardized tests are unfair because they fail to measure students abilities, they cause an unnecessary amount of stress, and there are too many incentives to teach the test. Like Bert Lance one said, â€Å"If it ain’t broke don’t fix it.† This is the way many people feel about standardized testing. To them the tests appear to be a reliable and harmless way to measure students’†¦show more content†¦So much emphasis is placed on standardized testing, and whether students obtain all the information they need throughout their class to do well on a test is based upon the teacher. If a teacher lacks the power to successfully get their students to absorb their curriculum, then the students may fail to do well on their tests or in the class. If the students happen to do poorly on the standardized tests, there is no way of knowing why because they do not provide any feedback on how to perform better. This makes it hard for teachers to know how and where to improve. Test scores determine teacher evaluation and salary along with whether the school is doing well as a whole. Because of this, teachers have started planning their curriculum around state tests according to a study performed by the National Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards, and Student Testing (Evans). This is known as â€Å"teaching to the test, which means focusing on the content that will be on the test and using the format of the test as a foundation for the teacher’s curriculum. Doing this also narrows the curriculum, forcing teachers and students to concentrate on memorization of isolated facts inste ad of digesting them. Most of classroom time consists of either taking the tests or preparing for the tests, and this shuts out the possibility of learning anything new or significant. Whether aShow MoreRelatedAlfie Kohn Literature Review Essay1102 Words   |  5 Pagesshow adequate yearly progress (AYP). Alfie Kohn points out that, in some cases, our students have become victims of standardize testing. In his article, Standardized Testing and Its Victims (2000), he demonstrates how testing have become detrimental to our students instead of helping them. He outlines these detrimental issues with eight facts. Standardized testing has gotten out of control and has become more of a detriment to our students. Students are being forced to follow a curriculum thatRead MoreSecurity Proplanation And Enumeration Protocol : Security Content Automation Protocol971 Words   |  4 PagesSecurity content automation protocol or SCAP is a suite of specifications that regulates the method for communicating software flaw and security configuration information between machines and humans. [1] It provides automated and standardized approach for implementing baseline security configurations, checking that the patches for security vulnerabilities exist, monitoring the system security, checking if system is compromised and being able to establish the exact the posture of security for a systemRead MoreEssay about Schools Must Reduce Their Use of Standard Tests728 Words   |  3 PagesLeft Behind and some sort of state-mandated standardized testing. Growing up in Pennsylvania, we had the PSSA’s, 4 Sig hts, and Keystone Exams. They always had felt trivial, but they did serve some purpose as far as immediate impact to our school days. The use of standardized testing as a quantitative tool of measuring student’s performance took off in 2002 with the passing of the No Child Left Behind Act (â€Å"Standardized Tests,†2003). Standardized testing was part of the initiative to become the highestRead MoreStandardized Testing : A Positive Policy For Today s Students With A Massive Educational Impairment793 Words   |  4 Pagesto make our public schools once again the pride of our nation† (Ravitch 260). At this point in time, the testing process that most, if not, all schools have adopted is proving to be an impediment to our education system that many are not proud of. Students today are more focused on getting the grade rather than the knowledge and experience that is needed for their future. Standardized testing, in a nutshell, could be a positive policy for today’s students. The execution of these baseline tests areRead MoreReflection And Goal Setting Exercise1142 Words   |  5 PagesCall for Educated Action Dear Madam Secretary DeVos, After observing scenes at a Baltimore public school, it is clear that there are intense flaws with the current standards — annual standardized testing and the grading of schools and teachers based on test performance — of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) and the act must be recalled and revised at its current state. Despite the numerous issues in the aftermath of NCLB’s implementation, certain aspects of NCLB such as annual school reportings and studentRead MoreShould Students Be College Ready?1097 Words   |  5 Pagesinto law, requiring all states to test students in reading and in math in grades 3 through 8 and once in high school (Klein). This testing was designed to, as the act states, â€Å"leave no child behind.† However, because of this testing, many children are falling behind because of this very idea: standardized testing. For high school students specifically, standardized testing is the ultimate factor in whether the students are â€Å"college re ady† by the school’s terms or not. A test where bubbling A, B, C,Read MoreAmerica s Educational System Must Improve Nationally By Removing Standardized Testing1287 Words   |  6 Pageseducational system could improve nationally by removing standardized testing. American has recognized some of the flaws the education system has presented and chose to fix them; however, one of these problems has been standardized testing, which has not been identified nor changed. Standardized testing inflicts many problems to students that need to be fixed immediately. From inefficient teachers to poorer school systems, standardized testing needs to change because it deteriorates America’s educationRead MoreThe Texas Assessment Of Knowledge And Skills1612 Words   |  7 Pagesskills, known as TAKS is a standardized test used throughout the State of Texas to determine whether or not a child is prepared for the next grade level. The TAKS test was implemented in 2003 to replace th e â€Å"No child Left behind Act† The new addition to the test added science as well as social studies to the already existing math, reading and English. This test was design to obtain more information on where students currently resided in academics. Many have found flaw and criticized this test forRead MoreAmerican Education: The Afflicted System1210 Words   |  5 Pagesproblems with the education system. Some solutions had good intentions but were not implemented well. Other solutions had little to no benefits on the system. Education has taken the back seat and allowed standardized testing to drive. American education has become a deformed and twisted system with many flaws that are in desperate need of repair. The Beginnings of American Public Education Early British colonist established the first schools in America. The schools in the Northern states closely resembledRead MoreThe Unfairness Of Standardized Tests Essay1566 Words   |  7 PagesThe Unfairness of Standardized Tests The practice of standardized testing is one that is ancient, dating back to the practice of making government prospects to take examinations to test their knowledge in Confucian philosophy and poetry (Fletcher 2009). The idea of using standardized testing in colleges admissions came first from the introduction of the SAT in 1926, followed by The ACT created in 1959. Growing in popularity, both tests became accepted at many different universities across the nation