Standardized Testing Argumentative Essay
Standardized Tests Standardized tests are a heated debate in the country as of today. Many people believe that standardized tests do not truly show a student’s knowledge. Students are more focused on passing a test instead of actually learning the content. Not only do these tests hinder students, they also affect teachers as well. Standardized tests may seem good in theory, but in fact, they may be doing more harm than good.
The Importance of Standardized Tests To begin with, this whole phenomenon started in 2002 when the No Child Left Behind act was passed (Greatschools, 2014). This act states that schools must “test students annually in reading and math in grades 3 through 8 and at least once in grades 10 through 12. Students must also be tested in science in at least one grade in elementary, middle and high …show more content…
school” (Greatschools, 2014). These are a lot of tests a student must take, and it is also a lot of stress.
These standardized tests are also very stressful to the school because if their students do not meet their annual yearly progress (AYP), the school could face federal sanctions such as loss of funds, free tutoring, or total reconstruction of the school (Greatschools, 2014). While these tests give a perspective of where a student is at in their learning, it does not fully assess a student. Test scores are grouped together, so you cannot see an individual’s scores. If you do not know an individual’s scores, how will you know if they are making adequate progress? With the emphasis on standardized tests, it raises the probability of cheating or “teaching to the test” (Greatschools, 2014). The American Biology Teacher assesses standardized tests in California. He notes that the standardized tests are only used to evaluate the schools and not the students. If the students are not going to be graded on these tests, then why should they be motivated to try their best? (Stansfield, 2011, p. 392) Are standardized tests really that important? The Phi Delta Kappan magazine states that
standardized tests scores should not be a student’s main focus; they believe that a student’s main focus should be their future (Phi Delta Kappan, 2015, p. 3). Most Americans believe there is too much emphasis on standardized testing (p. 3). A poll was taken, and majority of Americans believe that financial support should be a school’s biggest concern (p. 3). An article in the magazine tells the story of a mother whose son suddenly stopped wanting to attend school. It stated
He went from being a child who looked forward to school in the morning and would return home talking about the projects and interesting things that went on in the classroom to a child who cried at night, had stomachaches, and begged to stay home in the morning. This behavior began abruptly in 3rd grade, two months before his first state assessment (p. 5).
This child is not the only one. Students are becoming scared of school due to the big emphasis on tests. There is such a big expectation for these students, and it puts a lot of stress on them. While these tests may seem important, they are only hindering students.
Fairness of Standardized Tests Furthermore, are these tests even fair to everyone? An article written by Russell Warne, Myeongsun Yoon, and Chris Price discusses the bias that comes along with standardized tests. There is a continued finding that addresses the bias in test scores between different racial and ethnic groups (Warne, Yoon, and Price, 2014, p. 571). The article states, “On many academic achievement and aptitude tests, Asian American students score higher than White students, who then in turn score higher than Hispanics and African American students” (p. 571). The cause of these major gaps are still unknown. One argued possibility is that the deficiencies in the test are the cause of the wide gap (p. 571). Another prediction is that the tests may be interpreted differently by different groups (p. 576). Also, some students may be better at taking tests than others. The author of Mother Jones gives an example with a young women named Kiana Hernandez. Hernandez states, “Once you throw out the word ‘test,’ I freeze … I get anxiety knowing that the tests count more than classwork or schoolwork. It’s a make or break land kind of thing” (Rizga, 2015, p. 38). The tests were being used mostly to evaluate the effectiveness of the teachers instead of the student’s knowledge (p. 38). Also, if a teacher is not teaching effectively, the student’s grades will suffer due to their lack of knowledge being taught to them. Randall Penfield discusses the negative effects retaining a student based on their test scores. Retaining a student can be even more detrimental to them. Penfield states that retention does not improve academic achievement, and it also increases drop-out rates (Penfield, 2010, p. 113). Penfield states:
Those children who are retained display a continuing deterioration in both achievement and intelligence through the sixth grade. It would appear that retention is largely a noxious educational policy. The data in this study and those reported previously in the literature suggest that when educators retain a child they frequently doom his educational career and, in the case of poverty child, they could thus possibly ruin his one major opportunity to change his life circumstances (p. 114)
Poor test scores should not determine whether a student should be retained; it should be a teacher’s decision to retain them based on their overall performance in the class.
The Importance of Standardized Tests To begin with, this whole phenomenon started in 2002 when the No Child Left Behind act was passed (Greatschools, 2014). This act states that schools must “test students annually in reading and math in grades 3 through 8 and at least once in grades 10 through 12. Students must also be tested in science in at least one grade in elementary, middle and high …show more content…
school” (Greatschools, 2014). These are a lot of tests a student must take, and it is also a lot of stress.
These standardized tests are also very stressful to the school because if their students do not meet their annual yearly progress (AYP), the school could face federal sanctions such as loss of funds, free tutoring, or total reconstruction of the school (Greatschools, 2014). While these tests give a perspective of where a student is at in their learning, it does not fully assess a student. Test scores are grouped together, so you cannot see an individual’s scores. If you do not know an individual’s scores, how will you know if they are making adequate progress? With the emphasis on standardized tests, it raises the probability of cheating or “teaching to the test” (Greatschools, 2014). The American Biology Teacher assesses standardized tests in California. He notes that the standardized tests are only used to evaluate the schools and not the students. If the students are not going to be graded on these tests, then why should they be motivated to try their best? (Stansfield, 2011, p. 392) Are standardized tests really that important? The Phi Delta Kappan magazine states that
standardized tests scores should not be a student’s main focus; they believe that a student’s main focus should be their future (Phi Delta Kappan, 2015, p. 3). Most Americans believe there is too much emphasis on standardized testing (p. 3). A poll was taken, and majority of Americans believe that financial support should be a school’s biggest concern (p. 3). An article in the magazine tells the story of a mother whose son suddenly stopped wanting to attend school. It stated
He went from being a child who looked forward to school in the morning and would return home talking about the projects and interesting things that went on in the classroom to a child who cried at night, had stomachaches, and begged to stay home in the morning. This behavior began abruptly in 3rd grade, two months before his first state assessment (p. 5).
This child is not the only one. Students are becoming scared of school due to the big emphasis on tests. There is such a big expectation for these students, and it puts a lot of stress on them. While these tests may seem important, they are only hindering students.
Fairness of Standardized Tests Furthermore, are these tests even fair to everyone? An article written by Russell Warne, Myeongsun Yoon, and Chris Price discusses the bias that comes along with standardized tests. There is a continued finding that addresses the bias in test scores between different racial and ethnic groups (Warne, Yoon, and Price, 2014, p. 571). The article states, “On many academic achievement and aptitude tests, Asian American students score higher than White students, who then in turn score higher than Hispanics and African American students” (p. 571). The cause of these major gaps are still unknown. One argued possibility is that the deficiencies in the test are the cause of the wide gap (p. 571). Another prediction is that the tests may be interpreted differently by different groups (p. 576). Also, some students may be better at taking tests than others. The author of Mother Jones gives an example with a young women named Kiana Hernandez. Hernandez states, “Once you throw out the word ‘test,’ I freeze … I get anxiety knowing that the tests count more than classwork or schoolwork. It’s a make or break land kind of thing” (Rizga, 2015, p. 38). The tests were being used mostly to evaluate the effectiveness of the teachers instead of the student’s knowledge (p. 38). Also, if a teacher is not teaching effectively, the student’s grades will suffer due to their lack of knowledge being taught to them. Randall Penfield discusses the negative effects retaining a student based on their test scores. Retaining a student can be even more detrimental to them. Penfield states that retention does not improve academic achievement, and it also increases drop-out rates (Penfield, 2010, p. 113). Penfield states:
Those children who are retained display a continuing deterioration in both achievement and intelligence through the sixth grade. It would appear that retention is largely a noxious educational policy. The data in this study and those reported previously in the literature suggest that when educators retain a child they frequently doom his educational career and, in the case of poverty child, they could thus possibly ruin his one major opportunity to change his life circumstances (p. 114)
Poor test scores should not determine whether a student should be retained; it should be a teacher’s decision to retain them based on their overall performance in the class.