Return to Homepage

Standardized Testing

Why should something be done?

The proposed solution/alternative

Conclusion

Works Cited

I propose that the Federal Government should decrease the emphasis of standardized testing in public schools. While these tests were created to "help" kids not harm them, they have taken a turn for the worst. When Benet created standardized tests he simply intended them to be used as a tool in evaluating which students needed more help in the classroom. However, today we use these tests to determine who will advance and who will be left behind in the classroom. This is not exactly Benet’s original intention.

One way that standardized tests prove to be a detriment is simply the method itself. Not all children learn the same way therefore testing them all the same isn’t an accurate measure of a student’s individual achievements. Also, standardized test results are distorted in many ways. A student may simply "guess" the right answer or on the other hand, know the right answer but can’t explain themselves using multiple-choice. We all know from experience that there is more than one way to arrive at the correct answer in any situation. The results may also be distorted due to an error on behalf of the test manufacturer or scoring company. Another reason that standardized tests are an inaccurate means of evaluation is because they cannot measure characteristics that are important to a successful citizen. Creativity, imagination, judgment and reasoning are all qualities that are vital to a child’s future that cannot be measured by a multiple-choice test.

As I mentioned earlier the method itself is not an accurate way of evaluating a student’s knowledge because the test does not give children the opportunity to reason why an answer is right or wrong. Roger Farr, a professor at Indiana University, stated, "I don’t think there’s any way to build a multiple-choice question that allows students to show what they can do with what they know"-a statement all the more remarkable given that Farr personally helped write a number of standardized tests (Kohn, 2000).

Another issue associated with standardized tests is the vagueness of the test questions. The following example, noted by Bracey (2002), was originally a letter, from a concerned parent, to the Times of London. This question, which was asked on a school entrance exam, "Which is the odd one out among cricket, football, billiards, and hockey?" is both vague and lacks the opportunity to reason. An inquiring parent posed this question to others and received different answers with different reasons every time. The parent reasoned that the answer was billiards because it is the only one played indoors. A colleague said football because it is the only one in which the ball is not struck with an implement. A neighbor said cricket because in all other games the object is to put the ball into a net and the nine-year-old child said with confidence, "hockey, because it is the only one that is a girl’s game". Now the question remains, which one is the "right" answer since they all have good reasoning? Another concern that this parent raised was "how questions of this sort prove anything". I think the parent raises two good points; how can you decide which one is the "right" or "best" answer and what is this question trying to "test"? This example certainly reinforces one of the many reasons why standardized testing isn’t a good means of evaluation for children.

Beyond the test questions, the results of standardized tests are often distorted. Saying that a test, written imperfectly by humans, is an accurate measure of determining those students who are talented and gifted from those who aren’t is an argument of ignorance. The figures from standardized tests may be distorted by test anxiety, "guessing" the right or wrong answers, or simply an error made by the scorer. In one instance as noted by The New York Times (2001, May 21), a student who kept average grades failed a standardized test by one point. The child’s father, also a lawyer, demanded to see the test, student’s answer sheet, and the key used to score the student’s answer sheet. After being denied several times he threatened to file a lawsuit and was finally granted the opportunity to view all the documents he had asked for. In this case the child’s father found that six of the sixty-eight questions were keyed wrong. This human error left 47,000 students in Minnesota with below average scores, which in turn left many high school seniors unable to graduate. This is only one of the many grading mistakes that happen every year by scoring companies. The particular error mentioned above, in the Minnesota case, was made by NCS Pearson, the nation’s biggest test scoring company. However, beyond the Minnesota case the New York Times article, Right Answer, Wrong Score, also noted that

The last reason that standardized tests are an inaccurate measure of the performance of children is because they cannot measure qualities that are vital to students later in their adult life. I feel an educator by the name of Bill Ayers said it best by stating the following about standardized tests:

 The Solution/Alternative

I propose a policy called SUCCESS that each and every school should incorporate into its curriculum. SUCCESS will make a solid change in public schools, as we know them today. This program will put less emphasis on standardized testing in public schools while implementing other ways that more accurately "test" children’s knowledge and skills. SUCCESS will help students make critical decisions that better resemble decisions that they will make in real life situations. SUCCESS will use "performance assessments" that will evaluate each individual’s decisions and skills as related to predetermined projects. Performance Assessments, as noted by Alfie Kohn (2000), "are opportunities for students to demonstrate their proficiency by actually doing something: designing, conducting and explaining the results of an experiment, speaking a foreign language, writing a play, and so on". The student’s "grade" for each assessment will not be "standardized", meaning that each student will be graded against himself or herself not against a "right answer". Many students given the same situation will go about presenting it in different ways. This is simply a characteristic of individuality, which is not capable of being "standardized".    

While I feel that standardized tests are not all bad, I do feel that using them as the sole means of evaluating student’s academic achievements does not give all students the same opportunity to express their knowledge and skills of a particular subject. Children learn in different ways and at different speeds, therefore testing them all the same does not give each student a fair chance. Also, standardized tests cannot measure some of the most important qualities to humans, especially in this fast-paced, ever-changing, environment. In order to get ahead and be successful you must be a logical yet quick-thinker. You must also be creative and use your imagination to come up with reasonable results or suggestions. Also, using two completely different means of evaluation in the classroom gives students a better chance to prove what know and apply it to situations at hand. In a sense, the standardized test could be the "prove what you know" part of this, while the SUCCESS program would enable student’s to "apply it to situations" by doing the activity, as Kohn suggested. SUCCESS gives students the opportunity to reason, which is really the way we, as humans, survive. SUCCESS also measures individuality. Individuality is such a unique characteristic to each and every person and I feel that it should be capitalized on more than it is today. Let’s reinforce to our children how important they are to our future by testing their knowledge and skills using methods that will Leave No Child Behind!

Works Cited

Kohn, A. (2000). The case against standardized testing: Raising the
    scores, ruining the schools. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

McNeil, L. M. (2000). Contradictions of reform: The educational
    costs of standardized testing. New York: Routledge.

Elford, G. W. (2002). Beyond standardized testing. Lanham, MD:
    Scarecrow Press, Inc.

Bracey, G. W. (2002). Put to the test: An educator's and consumer's
    guide to standardized testing (rev. ed.). Bloomington, IN:
    Center for Professional Development and Services.

Henriques, D. & Steinberg, J. (2001, May 21). Right answer, wrong
    score:Test flaws take toll. Retrieved February 23, 2004 from
    New York Times, None of the above: the test industry's failures
    Web site:
    http://www.nytimes.com/learning/general/specials/testing/20EXAM.html

Return to Homepage