Standardized_Testing

Standardized Testing On January 8, 2002, President Bush signed into law the No Child Left Behind Act. This act was signed to redefine the government’s role in education; as well as the teachers and parents (US Department of Education, 2004). The main purpose of standardized testing is to determine the percentage of students that are knowledgeable and skilled in each of the three subject areas of reading, mathematics, and science. The results from these tests are to ensure the state’s requirement for adequate yearly progress has been met. It was designed to hold schools and teachers accountable, which has caused focusing a great deal of attention on the results of state standardized testing. Which is why standardized testing can have negative effects on both teachers and students because it can change the curriculum and learning style, cause unnecessary stress, and is unfair to certain students. Standardized testing can change the curriculum and learning style of how students are being taught. There are some who feel that a standardized test allows administrators, teachers, and parents the opportunity to view solid evidence of the students’ performance, which in return could determine what and how they teach. This is because of the NCLB, which has mandated the classroom curriculum to concentrate more on the main three subjects of reading, mathematics and science which is used to determine if the adequate yearly progress has been met (Department of Education, 2013). Since teachers are experiencing an incredible amount of pressure to raise test scores, it has caused them to remove material from their regular lesson plans that is not being tested in order to increase the amount of time they have to cover material that is on the test, which also can be identified as teaching to the test. According to the author James Popham (2009), “It is simply not possible for teachers to teach all of these curricular aims during a single school year—or rather, it’s not possible to teach them with the kind of rigor likely to foster deep and lasting learning” (p.56). When teachers have to narrow or limit the curriculum to align it with state standards, they take the chance of not preparing their students to the best of their ability. As a result, teaching to the test is the most common teaching method that is currently being used. Teaching to the test has become more common in order to focus more time on preparing students for standardized tests. A national study conducted in 2007 by the Center on Education Policy, found that 44% of schools had reduced the amount of time spent on science, social studies, and arts in order to focus more time on reading and math for standardized testing (Center on Education Policy, 2013). Since teaching to the test mainly focuses on reading, math, and science it does not leave much time being spent on social studies. Learning about social studies is how a student will understand the economy and what it is all about. It also focuses on the stock market and other cultures to give them a better understanding of the world in which we live in. The lessons in the classroom have been changed by teachers who prepare students for standardized testing by focusing on test taking skills, which is an approach that is sometimes referred to as drill and kill (National Education Association, 2004). Consequently, what is not tested is not taught. Standardized testing places each student on the same level and takes away from their creativity and critical thinking skills. Educationally speaking, there are numerous of ways to reach out to students because each child learns differently due to the different learning styles and techniques. There are several different learning styles; the most common are visual, auditory, and kinesthetic. Some students have a dominant style of learning, with far less use of other styles. While others may find that they use different styles in different circumstances of learning. There is no right or wrong style of learning, but that is what the end result is showing. The multiple choice format of standardized tests is an insufficient assessment tool because it encourages a way of thinking that there are only right or wrong answers” (Sacks, 1997). Students are learning every day that they do not have to think outside the box or to be creative because the test taking strategies they are taught will help them to be good at memorizing facts and how to eliminate wrong answers. Dennis Van Roekel, MA, President of the National Education Association, stated that “standardized tests have stunted the creativity and critical thinking skills of American public school children and has prevented teachers from reaching the full potential of their students due to the amount of time teachers are spending on teaching to the test” (National Education Association, 2011). Furthermore, teachers are using the amount of time spent in the classroom to prepare students for standardized tests. Many state and local school board officials are more focused on standardized testing to a point where teaching is used as a test preparation. The knowledge and skills that make up a good student require more than prepping for a multiple choice exam. Standardized testing only allows for the written retention of the material. It is not uncommon for teachers to spend months preparing students for standardized tests. By teaching to the test in order to prepare students, it takes away from further learning and is not teaching them how to handle or approach real-world situations. Although, test preparation is not a requirement for most states, teachers feel pressured to cover testing materials in advance because the scores of these tests have such a large impact on their school. Consequently, standardized testing causes unnecessary stress and pressure. Both teachers and students experience a tremendous amount of stress and pressure when preparing and taking standardized tests, particularly because of the federal No Child Left Behind law; which can influence the schools’ funding, and leadership. The scores from these tests have important consequences for students, teachers, and even schools. The stress begins when a school or teacher expresses how important these tests are to their future and to their school. This enormous amount of fear and anxiety can have a major effect of why some students do not perform well on tests. Due to such pressure, many students are seen vomiting, crying, and acting out during the test (Ashworth, 1990). The results of many of the standardized tests are used in a disciplinary form for both students and teachers. Students feel a large amount of pressure when taking standardized tests because the results can be used to determine if they pass or fail a grade; regardless of how well they perform throughout the school year. Studies have shown that when a student is held back, it lowers their confidence and self-esteem which causes them to lose interest in school and are more likely to drop out (Sacks, 1997). For a teacher, their job could be on the line because the results not only reflect their teaching abilities, but also how well or poorly their school is rated (National Education Association, 2011). Teachers feel fully responsible for how well students perform on these tests because they are used to reflect how well students are progressing in school and how much they understand. As for schools, each state is responsible for setting academic goals and developing its own assessments in order to measure their annual progress. The results from standardized tests are also graded on a scale of A-F just like students, for their overall performance (Department of Education, 2013). The adequate yearly progress, or AYP, is a tool schools use to determine where they need improvement and also where school funding is distributed. According to the Department of Education, “if a school does not meet their AYP two years in a row, they are identified as schools in need of improvement and are subject to immediate interventions by the State Education Agency in their state” (Department of Education, 2013). The government can close, reconstitute, or take control of schools that fail to meet their goal they have set. Additionally, standardized testing is an unfair and inaccurate form of judging a student’s intelligence. Standardized testing is unfair to certain students because every student learns and tests differently. Students, who do not score well on standardized tests, can in fact do well on regular academic school work. Students from lower-income, rural, or minority backgrounds are more likely to receive a poor education. There are several students who do not receive a fair opportunity to learn the material because they may attend a poorly funded school with large classroom sizes, too many teachers who do not have proper certifications, and inadequate amount of books, libraries, or computers (Merchant, 2004). Many solutions to a better education are not by an excess use of tests but on the appropriate funding and prioritization of the public education system. There are several schools that rank poorly not because of the lack of teaching, but it is due to the system that is in place of how these schools are being funded. Standardized testing can have negative effects on both teachers and students because it changes the curriculum and learning style, causes unnecessary stress, and are unfair to certain students. By changing the curriculum, teachers focus more on teaching to the test and preparing students on how to take the tests, than teaching a more regular curriculum which helps them gain knowledge that will be more useful for their future. The results of standardized tests cause a tremendous amount of stress because regardless of how well a student performs throughout the year, can determine if they pass or fail. Standardized tests are unfair because not every student has an equal opportunity to learn under a fair curriculum. References Ashworth, K. H. (1990, November). Standardized testing: A Defense. The Education Digest, 56(3), 40-40. Center on Education Policy. (2013). Retrieved from http://www.cep-dc.org Department of Education. (2013). Louisiana Believes. Retrieved from http://louisianabelieves.com Merchant, G. (2004, Apr). What is at Stake with High Stakes Testing' A Discussion of Issues and Research. Ohio Journal of Science, 104(2), 2-7. National Education Association. (2004, November). No subject left behind' Think again. Retrieved from http://www.neatoday.org National Education Association. (2011, January). NEA President Shares Thoughts on NCLB with Washington Post. Retrieved from http://www.neatoday.org Popham, W. J. (2009). Instruction That Measures Up: Successful Teaching in the Age of Accountability. Portland, OR: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development. Sacks, P. (1997, March). Standardized Testing. Change, 29(2), 24-31. US Department of Education. (2004, September). Retrieved from http://www2.edu.gov/nclb.accountability/ayp/testingforresults