Preview

High-Stakes Testing Case Study

Better Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1660 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
High-Stakes Testing Case Study
Using high-stakes testing is a great way to hold the school, the district, and the educators accountable for how the students do. This is because the district, school, and educators can compare how their school is doing compared to another school. “If standardized test scores are constantly low for one school district, this shows a problem at a higher level. This means that the students are not being taught subjects in a way that is helping them retain information” (Lombardo, 2015). If this is the case then the educators need to change their methods of teaching to better help their students learn. They will need to establish new and more effective methods for teaching their students. As educators, you should want your scores to be closely equivalent to other school districts. Since everyone is learning the same information, the scores should be somewhat similar. “It allows for students from different schools and different states to be compared based on their performance on a standardized test” (Lombardo, 2015). So not only can you compare test scores within the state, you can also compare it to different states. High-stakes testing is the only way to compare …show more content…
My mind bounces around on whether I should agree with it or disagree. There are several reasons why I should agree with high-stakes testing. A couple of these reasons being that it can help educators make lessons for their students since all students learn different, and that parents are able to see the scores. Another reason being that all students are judge on the same material and graded by a computer. Having the test graded by computer takes away bias. However, the cons show me why I should not agree with it. Some of these reasons being that it removes creativity from the classroom, it causes anxiety, it does not show growth of the students overtime, and it does not take external factors into

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Powerful Essays

    Do you hate staring at a computer/ piece of paper for more than two hours and answering questions? I am sure most people would answer “no”, and that is why standardized testing puts more harm than good in today’s world. Standardized testing causes a lot more problems than usual. It used to be a part of life, but now it’s causing kids not to go to college, and it’s causing kids to have a level of stress that shouldn’t even be allowed. People all over are stating that they give a false overview of who the student actually is, and in the end, these tests won’t get you anywhere in life. It’s important to many people including students who are taking the tests, teachers who are preparing the students for these tests, and of course the parents who have to deal with all the complaints from their child about these tests. This is a pretty important issue today, because so much is riding on these tests. If you do poorly you won’t get accepted to the university you want, or your teacher could get fired because of your performance. Although some people think standardized testing is just a part of life and it teaches students that it’s not okay to fail, these tests give a false interpretation of who the student actually is. One score does not tell you if that person is an outstanding individual or not. These scores might help you get into a better university, but when it comes to a career later on down the road, employers don’t look at what you got on your SAT, they look to see if you are best fit for the job, and whether you are a hard worker and would bring the company many positives, and I think colleges should focus on that same idea.…

    • 2569 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Since the early 60’s varying attempts have been made to improve the education system of America. After the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) law was passed in 2002, all students in public schools started to get tested and the results were used to measure the success of the school and district. “High-stakes testing, by its very definition, is the most extreme form of testing, for it results in the most direct, far-reaching set of consequences for the test taker. Thus, high-stakes testing bears great significance for human achievements, individual lives and educational practices alike ” (Ydesen, p, 98, 2014). A state-wide or national standardized test is usually used for this form of testing. Today the main purpose for high-stakes testing is to evaluate the schools, teachers, and students and to hold them accountable for the education being provided and learned. Over 25 states use the results of these tests to make decisions regarding the education system. If the results are found to be positive and/or showing improvements the schools are rewarded financially, but if the results are negative, showing a lack of improvement, the schools could be closed down. (Ydeses, 2014)…

    • 710 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Standardized testing has been a heavily debated topic for many years because it is not evident if testing is more beneficial or detrimental for children or schools. There are many pros and cons associated with the use of standardized testing. Most educators agree that there needs to be a method of accountability for schools and school districts. However, the question remains, are students tested too much? Additionally, to what extent can a standardize test assess students achievement? Some states use alternative methods of assessment. President Obama pledged to reduce the amount of standardized testing in our schools mainly because it is clear that standardized testing has not improved student achievement in the United States. Standardized…

    • 272 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    These test only show the students’ performance the day of the test and not the overall growth of the student over the year. The standardized test does a disservice to both the teacher who worked hard to help their students grow and the student who worked extremely hard over the course of the year and improved tremendously, but failed to pass the test. Many people would argue that teacher and student performance should be evaluated on growth over the year instead of one single test. Many of these students are smart and understand the content, but it does not show on the test. Also many students develop test anxiety which causes stress on the students which leads to negativity directed at school and learning in general. In a picture the teacher says “For a fair selection everybody has to take the same exam: Please climb that tree”. The students he is talking to are a money penguin, elephant, fish, seal, and a dog. Based on these animals only the money will be able to pass the test. This is how the government see all the students, they believe all students are the same when they are actually…

    • 1488 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    First, the APA states that measuring what and how well students learn is an important building block in the process of strengthening and improving our nation's schools. Secondly, test results provide teachers with information on how individual students may be performing and provide feedback. Lastly, high stakes testing provides accountability, and therefore can help identify weaknesses and correct…

    • 1121 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    If we make learning meaningful and align it with the standards, then the tests would not be the horrific nightmare they are for some children. Children have breakdowns about not doing well on the high-stakes tests. Students should not feel this way in school. The classroom should be a comfortable place where learning grows, not a drill practice on facts for a federal…

    • 448 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    High-stakes standardized testing continues to be a controversial topic in the field of education. Parents dispute that the high-stakes Common Core aligned assessments place unnecessary stress onto their children and convert classrooms from learning environments to test prep institutions. Teacher unions have a tendency to support the Common Core standardized curriculum, however, they disagree with required high-stakes assessments, particularly when they are utilized to assess educators (Singer, 2015).…

    • 226 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    High- Stake tests, depending on how they are made, can either a positive and negative effect on a child’s education. They are tests that make important decision about students, teachers, schools, and districts and their purpose is accountability. There has been debates on if the high- stakes tests in America are having a negative effect on their children. These tests have been around for a long time and have served as a great way to measure students' knowledge and growth as a whole. Based on some studies, it is clear that the high- stake test should be revised and changed to better evaluate students and teachers' performance.…

    • 1572 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Most students don’t really want to take state tests, but they have no choice. These tests, such as AIR, determine if students graduate. While what will determine if a kid graduates is the big question mostly asked, the tests determine if kids graduate because there is not enough time in the school year to teach all of the curriculum, it is not helping the kids with learning disabilities, and the tests do not line up with the standards. I believe that’s not fair for all of the kids who actually do really bad on test but may be an all around good kid. Freshmen year I did not try and i’m guessing others didn’t try either. Plus, standardized tests don’t help the kids with a slower learning disability or a kid who doesn’t understand how…

    • 649 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    From showing where students, teachers, and even schools need to improve to providing stress to the students and teachers. Standardized tests do many great things for the students by allowing them to compare themselves to others and see areas needing improvement. Teachers can realize what needs a little more focus on the next year and what they taught well. Schools can realize what they may need to improve on as well. Overall, standardized tests bring very good things to students, teachers, and schools, and should be taken by everyone for their own…

    • 781 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Texas Education says, “If schools did not show sufficient "Adequate Yearly Progress" (AYP), they faced sanctions and the possibility of being taken over by the state or closed” ( Student Testing and Accountability ). If schools do not achieve the standards the government wants the state will take the school over and will either run the school or even close the school. The tests are other material may not show all the children's progress but the state's only care about the grades and will try and take over or possibly close school and make many people relocate. In a similar token, Texas educations states, “By the time she resigned her post in Oct. 2010, she had fired 600 teachers and dozens of principals, closed 23 schools” ( Student Testing and Accountability). The state had fired 600 teachers, dozens of principals and closed down 23 schools. The state had decided it was necessary to close schools and fire large amounts of people just because their standardized test scores were not high enough for their expertise.Procon.org claims, “These assessments carry important consequences for students, teachers and schools: low scores can prevent a student from progressing to the next grade level or lead to teacher firings and school closures” ( Background of the Issues-Standardized Testing ). The standardized tests have a major impact on students and teachers. The tests affect the students since if they don't pass they can be prevented from moving to the next grade and then this transfers over to the teachers who may be fired or demoted because of the grades. Standardized tests can affect individual's future life. Many students who fail a state or final exam makes them extremely discouraged and may affect the way they carry themselves into the next school years. Also, the teachers are affected since if they are fired there may not be any other jobs for them in their area and they may have to relocate and change…

    • 667 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Standardized testing is not the best way to measure how well a teacher teaches or how much a student has learned. Schools throughout the United States put their main focus on standardized tests; these examinations put too much stress on the teachers and students and cause traumatizing events.…

    • 861 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    An American educator who was examining the British educational system once asked a headmaster why so little standardized testing took place in British schools. "My dear fellow," came the reply, "In Britain we are of the belief that, when a child is hungry, he should be fed, not weighed" (Bowers 1). Even though this quote can be construed as being comical and light-hearted, the anecdote suggests the obvious question: "Why do we do so much standardized testing in the United States?" Standardized testing places incredible amounts of stress on teachers and school administrators, as well as the students taking the tests who are afraid that if they don't pass this exam, they might not be able to graduate. Standardized testing does not take in to…

    • 1374 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Better Essays

    High Stakes Testing

    • 1109 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Even though students taking high stakes tests are suppose to be educational for the student’s future education. It is only going to impact the students negatively. There is always going to be different points of views when it comes to high-stakes testing. The students are being taught to the test and not encouraged to use their critical thinking skills. Standardized test should be alleviated and allow teachers to teach.…

    • 1109 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    In English III AP I not only learned the art of rhetoric, literary elements, and poetic structure, I was also taught that I am unique and that I learn differently than others. I learned if I want something then work for it because nothing in life is given to you. I also learned that everyone is important no matter how different they are.. Throughout the course we read and analysed many literary works, but the works that relate the most to me are: I hear america singing, maks, and the crucible.…

    • 531 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays