...Running head: STANDARDIZED TESTS ARE KILLING SOCIETY 1 Standardized Tests Are Killing Society Alyssa Masula Jonathan Alder High School STANDARDIZED TESTS ARE KILLING SOCIETY 2 ABSTRACT STANDARDIZED TESTS ARE KILLING SOCIETY Alyssa Masula This essay provides an exploration of the harm done to individuals and societies by standardized testing. In her studies, the author discovered mixed results, containing both support and rejection for her original hypothesis. She includes evidence to prove her point true. She provides information gathered from various sources including published works and studies by Peter Sacks, Nicholas Lemann, and Jacques Steinberg. As well as these, she has added the support of a political cartoon and an article from the distinguished newspaper “The Columbus Dispatch”. STANDARDIZED TESTS ARE KILLING SOCIETY 3 Standardized Tests Are Killing Society A student sits down at a desk and is given a #2 pencil, a test, and a time limit. Upon him rests the expectation that his future will will depend on the result of said test. Overwhelmed by the idea of failure and a consequential meaningless life, he cannot concentrate and has a panic attack. Too much pressure is placed on young people to succeed on tests that are supposed to be objective, yet in re...
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...Standardized Tests Sections I and II Sammy North DeVry University Standardized Tests Sections I and II Brittany, an honors student in Atlanta, Georgia, had worked hard her entire academic career to celebrate what would be her proudest moment in high school: commencement. She wanted to walk across the stage to the flash of cameras and the smiles of her family just like her classmates, and then journey off to a college in South Carolina where she had already been accepted. So she gathered her proud family members from Chicago and Washington, D.C., to come to share in her joy. Brittany watched as her classmates put on their caps and gowns and walked across the stage to receive their diplomas. But she did not, and instead waited all during the day to get a last-minute waiver signed. She continued to wait through the night, but it never came. She began to realize that if she graduated, it would not be quick or easy. Her problem was that she had not passed one of four subject areas in the state’s graduation test, which students must pass to earn a regular diploma. She is not alone. Thousands of students, such as Brittany, every year do not make it across the stage at graduation due to failing these state tests. And many of them, such as Brittany, were honors students who had fulfilled all the other requirements of graduation except this one (Torres, 2010). Stories such as this one are far too common and should not happen. We have the power to change the status quo, so that...
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...Standardized Testing Standardized testing has been a key part in education for awhile now, but how effective is it really? Does it truly grasp the students’ individualities to highlight their unique abilities? Of course it does not, how can it? If this is true, however, why are they still vital to earn a high school diploma? Education was once about the students, not about the score. It was about enjoying the time in the classroom, creating a desire to want to know more. Standardized tests have taken this away from classrooms, they have caused many pupils to not enjoy the material they are taught while also taking the individualism, the one on one individual experiences, out of the classrooms. Education is no longer about the individual student. It is about the student body, making everyone the same or “equal”. Education should be fun. It should make the student desire to learn more. Francine Prose discusses this in her essay, I Know Why the Caged Bird Cannot Read. She talks of how each September she is more and more depressed when she receives her sons’ reading lists for the upcoming school year. Not only have the books they are forced to read not the best choices, but the information from the books is forced down the student’s throats. Students are not given the opportunity to read the books and enjoy them. Upon receiving the their assignments, they are also given worksheets and other assignments,outlining the information and key points they are expected understand...
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...High School Students and Standardized College Placement Test (SAT) Kimmy Givins NorthCentral University Dr. Boysen-Rotelli 09/28/2014 Research Study Most university process for accepting new students depends on their scores on the standardized college placement test. More than 2000 colleges and universities uses high school students SAT test scores to determine eligibility of acceptance. Because most college and universities depends on SAT test scores, students with high scores are more likely to get accepted than student with lower test scores. Majority of colleges and university exempt students who meet grade-point averages or class ranking criteria while others require their SAT scores for placement purposes or to conduct a...
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...I. Standardized test give an unfair advantage to some groups, with the contrast only widening throughout the decades. A. The wealthier class are more prepared than the poor class. 1. Since the 1960s, the contrast of standardized test results between those with wealth and those in poverty have widened by 60%. 2. Students in wealthier environments have greater access to methods and classes that help them prepare specifically for standardized tests. B. Whites and Asians have an advantage over Latinos and African Americans. 1. Although the African American and Latino students make up about 70% of the total student body, they are consistent in scoring lower on standardized tests in New York. 2. Schools in Virginia require a smaller percent...
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...2. The argument’s conclusion is that standardized tests are against students who do not care about school. First, if the test is “standardized” how can it be “disadvantaging” students? There is a clear contradiction, according to the Merriam-Webster dictionary “standardized” means something that compare to a standard or that is equal. One of the premises in the video is that schools are only advantaging students that study, for example, a student that does not read through all a paper has 89% lower chance to answer correctly the question… This is weak, because they say “a new study found”, they don’t actually backup the study with sources or experts, which means that the premise is not well supported by a relevant figure of authority. Secondly, in the video they also say that the purpose of school is to prepare kids to the real world, but the real world people does not give a shit about school too… This second premise is also weak, because it is a fallacy that we call generalization. They say “people in the real world” we don’t know who, and they pretend to represents everyone in this world. One concrete contradicting fact is my father, he really cares about my grades and he always tells me how school is important in my life and how my life would be miserable without having acquired knowledge from school. Thirdly, they say that textbooks are only talking about motivated people like George Washington… In this premise they creates generalization again, because they say “Textbooks”...
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...Standardized tests have always been around, they are also a widely used form to test your ability and skills. “Standardized tests are any examination that’s administered and scored in a predetermined, standardized manner.” (W. James Popham) They have always been known to or at least thought to be effective and a great way to get the true results and measurements of your skills. There are two major types of standardized tests that are commonly used, those are the aptitude tests, and achievement tests. The aptitude test is used to predict how well students are likely to perform in some subsequent educational setting, some examples of this test are the SAT-I, SAT-II, and ACT. The achievement test evaluates a school’s effectiveness, and measures...
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...Have you ever wondered while waiting to receive or even while taking a standardized exam, whether this method accurately measures one’s abilities? Well, this thought has definitely crossed my mind several times while preparing for major nationalized exams. As a student myself, I wanted to investigate the reasoning, and most importantly, the effectiveness of using standardized tests on students as a whole. My position is not of an expert, but rather of a concerned student who has taken many examinations throughout primary as well as secondary grade education. Standardized tests are examinations administered to all students in a grade level in a predetermined, standard manner. Over the years, the different types of nationalized tests have grown...
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...Standardized Tests? You only have one day, it is now or never. Then again, there is way too much of what teachers and students call, “tests.”Students should not take standardized tests. One because it takes up too much time, another is because we could be learning so much more in the time given, finally because they can stress students. Approximately 1.6 percent of class time is spent standardized testing. Students should actually have the opportunity to learn something instead of doing the same thing over and over. Sure, some teachers will say that students should take their time, but some students will not take advantage of that opportunity and they will just sit there. So shouldn’t there be some sort of a limit? If we didn’t have standardized...
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...Running head: Standardized test, assessments, and portfolios for reading Standardized test, assessments, and portfolios for reading Students are constantly being “assessed” by their teachers. We examine their behavior patterns, learning styles, reading abilities, and even their happiness. The purpose of assessments is to educate the teacher on what our students know and how we can better serve them in learning the curriculum and more. State tests are administered yearly for students, and teachers give formative and summative assessments frequently in the classroom. There are benefits and downfalls to each type of assessment. Afflerbach (2005) discusses that the results from standardized reading assessments are “at best an approximation of the students’ actual achievement level” (p.158). Standardized test tell us if our student is above, at, or below proficient. They do not tell us what areas the student does well at or what skills they are lacking in. According to the work of Buly and Valencia (2002), “Students scoring below proficient on state assessments are usually placed in supplemental or remedial reading classes, which often focus on phonemic awareness and decoding skills at any grade level (Buly & Valencia, 2002). After being put in these “special help” reading classes, the student then goes back into content area classes (English, Math, Science) which all have difficult text where the student struggles with comprehension. The problem we are then...
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...has strived to be continually recognized as the best country in the world, they have fallen victim to the global pandemic known as standardized testing. Individuals, both young and old, are put under what is seemingly constant stress to make sure that they obtain passing scores. Oftentimes, these scores can be directly associated with one’s candidacy for crucial milestones such as career certification, college acceptance, educational placement, and, even in some cases, financial aid for post-secondary institutions. No matter where one turns in their lives, they are met with tests that supposedly “effectively” measure one’s competence in any given subject. In fact, in the United States alone, the PARCC tests are issued to...
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...Standardized Testing- How Beneficial is it? Student Name Toulmin Model Position Paper English Comp II – 112 Phaire Due Date – mm/dd/yy Word Count – nnn Outline Position Statement: Is ‘No Child Left Behind’ a valid method of assessing school, teacher and student performance? No, I do not think this act is a valid method to assess school, teacher and student performance. Rhetorical Context: This issue will address all the problems that are occurring because of the standardized testing which is taking place in all public schools. This issue is important to parents who have children going to public schools because it gives them an overview of what is wrong with this act. It is also important for the teachers and school administrators since they take some part in shaping the curriculum around standardized testing. Audience Analysis: The audience for this essay will be the parents because they are able to make changes to this act. Many parents may not understand the problems that this act is causing which can be quite harmful for their children. Many parents let the government make laws for the schools, because they think if the government is doing it, it must be right. Claim: The ‘No Child Left Behind’ act is not a valid method to assess school, teacher and student performance. Reasons: There are many reasons why ‘No Child Left Behind is not working. 1. The same tests are used for all students...
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...through eighth grade students become aware of spring with extra math and reading classes. These students take practice tests, learn about the proper amount of sleep, and breakfast one needs prior to taking the annual standardized achievement test. Once again it is time to test what children have learned this school year, so that state and federal government can decide if children, teachers, and schools measure up to government standards. While achievement and standardized test are meant to improve the quality of education by measuring the performance of students, teachers, and schools; they hinder our children’s education. “The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001, signed into law by (former) President Bush on January 8, 2002, is a reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, the central federal law in pre-collegiate education” (Education week, 2004, Para. 1). The NCLB was put into place to enhance the public education system in America. NCLB stipulates criteria to improve the performance of students, schools, and teachers by evaluation through annual achievement tests. Determined by the results of the standardized achievement tests, schools are rewarded money from the federal government to implement and improve their curriculum. While NCLB is essentially for every publicly educated child, this law targets student groups with low level test scores such as: minority, English language learning students, poverty stricken students, learning disabled, or any...
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...Standardized Testing; Worth it or Not? “When teachers talk about high school ‘standardized tests’ these days, they're not talking about the SAT. They mean federally mandated, timed, 'one set of multiple choice questions fits all' tests designed to measure students' performance in basic subjects like math and reading. Each state decides how to define educational proficiency, and tests use a minimum of three scores: Below Basic, Proficient, and Advanced” (Kumeh). These tests are put together not only to test the students comprehension in these subjects, but to also see if the teacher is meeting the specific objectives for each subject. States were not federally mandated to give their own standardized tests until 1994 when the Clinton administration changed the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965. In which, it stated that every state receiving federal money must test third through eighth grade students in math and reading yearly. However, when President George W. Bush passed the “No Child Left Behind Act” in 2001, it requires that not only do these schools need to test their students annually, but they must improve their scores from the previous year or government regulations will be put into place. “Testing has been a valuable part of the educational process since the days of Socrates. There is nothing new or scary about it. It lets teachers and parents know how kids are doing and lets students see the rewards of hard work” (Spellings). The US Board of Education is...
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...pros NCLB brings to the table, now lets dive into the cons. What are the negative affects? According to "Educational Research Newsletter And Webinars" (2006), " By imposing standards on students’ minds we are, in effect, depriving them of their fundamental intellectual freedom by applying one standard set of knowledge. Standardized tests oversimplify knowledge and do not test higher-order thinking skills. State standards are externally imposed on local teachers.” and “One-size-fits-all standards either dumb down instruction to the lowest common denominator or condemn low-ability students to frequent failure” (Standard-based assessments). The point this brings up is a strong one. How can the educational system except to successfully teach all students using the exact same model when it’s a well-known fact everyone has vastly different learning styles. Metaphorically, trying to shove the square through the circle whole is going to always lead to failure. The idea of having a set standard that all children should know is obviously very important, but setting down a specific guideline all kids are supposed to form to via an annual standardized test doesn’t work. The "Nclb Stories From The Front Lines" (N.D.) website was told by Silvia Ramos-Higueros from El Monte Elementary School Teachers Association “I start every day at school saddened that I have to spend the whole day of teaching pulling workbooks and assessing my students who are 6 year olds.” “No time for art, no...
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