Performance Or Portfolio-Based Assessments

Imagine being a young teen, scared and nervous thinking this test is going to shape your future. Then, all of sudden there it is right in front of you. You knew all the answers because you spent hours studying, but for some reason your mind just cannot seem to access the information. Then you think maybe it is the stress . For me, this was my experience during the SAT just a few short years ago. This test began to make me question whether the SAT was an accurate measure of my knowledge. In that moment, I arrived at the question How accurate is Standardized testing within the United States education system?
This is not as simple as yes or no; this issue is much more complex because educators must consider many factors, such as curriculum
standards and a leveled field for everyone to be equally graded on. Other questions educators may have are what will use to instead of standardized test? how will you measure a student's academic success or even predict their success in the future? if you are not going to use these tests. This is definitely an issue because this is currently being used in school systems across the nation and many students may have felt how I did when I first took the test. I suffer from test anxiety and so do other students which can sometimes hinder my academic success because of my nervousness surrounding the test. The case could also be made that some kids get to these type of tests and excel or just simply guess there way through the whole test and come out with a better score than they truly deserve. Then, there are other cases where kids, whom do not suffer from anxiety, are able to work really hard and do well on these tests. So as you can see there are both pros and cons and many factors to consider with this type of testing.
A “standardized test is any form of test that requires all test takers to answer the same questions, or a selection of questions from common bank of questions, in the same way, and that (2) is scored in a “standard” or consistent manner. which makes it possible to compare the relative performance of individual students or groups of students”(“ Standardized Tests”) .These tests were first used in WWI to test which soldier would make good officer material. Standardized test were also developed in the early 1900’s for school also. They were used to tests the effectiveness of schools to see how schools and their students were doing.(“ Testing in American Schools: Asking the Right Questions”104) These same types of test like the SAT, ACT, and HSA are currently being taken by high school students who are preparing for college, so that the college has a way to compare students. The results from these tests determine which colleges students apply and where they are accepted. For high school juniors and seniors the importance of these tests cannot be overlooked.
In the academic article written by Stuart S. Yeh he argues standardized tests allow teachers to focus in on specific areas of study and gives teachers guidelines when teaching. This also allows students to do better in school because it narrows the curriculum and allows them one area to focus . In the article, Yeh goes on to say that by having standardized testing, teachers are able to see which area students require improvement in and which areas students are excelling in. According to Yeh, if we didn't have standardized testing there would be no way to really measure if everyone was learning the same information nationwide. Also there would be no way test the effectiveness of teachers across the United states.(3) So standardized testing allows for focus within the classroom and a set of guidelines. A benefit of standardized testing is it allows for teachers and other staff members to measure a student's progress.

Even though there are people who support standardized testing, there are others who who argue standardized testing is inaccurate. which would present a flaw within the education system. According to author Thomas Armstrong who works in the field of helping students with special needs, says “Standardized tests create stress. Some kids do well with a certain level of stress.Other students fold. So, again, there isn’t a level playing field. Brain research suggests that too much stress is psychologically and physically harmful. And when stress becomes overwhelming the brain shifts to a “fight or Flight” response, where it is impossible to engage in the higher-order thinking processes...” The levels of stress that standardized tests cause will have an impact on the overall score. Not only would stress affect their score but also their health. But then others may also wonder how do you help those children who struggle with tests overcome their stress? or even how do you tests them at all if there always going to struggle with the test anxiety itself? Is it fair to tests students who may have that fight or flight reaction to stress?

We definitely should have a way to monitor students but at the same time we would not want to put that much stress upon students who are already going through a stressful time as it is. But, the question still remains Should we have standardized tests within the United states education system? Both arguments agree on the fact that there should be a way to monitor a student's progress within the classroom, but they differ in opinion on how that should be done. One believes through the testing while the other believes through alternate routes. Now you may be wondering well are there any solutions that could satisfy both arguments?
Expert Anya Kamenetz has an abundance of alternate solutions to this problem such as sampling,stealth assessment, multiple measures, social and emotional skills survey, game-based assessment, inspections, and performance or portfolio based-assessments. The method I find particularly useful is her idea of Performance or Portfolio based assessment. This allows teachers to monitor students progress over a extended time period so they are truly able to get a well rounded understanding of the students real comprehension of the content. This is done by looking at various assignments, projects, reports, papers and group presentations.(Kamentez, Anya. "What Schools Could Use Instead Of Standardized Tests." ) This would meet some of the concerns made by both arguments because you would still be able to measure a student's comprehension of the overall content being taught by teachers, while also not having to put them through the stress of standardized testing. This then begs the question that if we have the perfect solution why not hold the education system responsible to implement this solution? Some may argue that we cannot implement these solution because of things such as they are not efficient enough for colleges to measure. Another argument may be that teachers across the nation may have different assignments they give students so how do we ensure everyone is learning the same material? But these are all arguments that could be resolved through educators uniting to ensure students receive a quality education that is the same one every other student their age is receiving. Since educators are the ones in charge of children's education they should be responsible for implementing these alternate solutions. These solutions will ensure children all across the nation have the same chance at applying to each college with confidence that their work is a reflection of their
knowledge.