Essay on Standardized Testing in Schools

Standardized testing has become a part of schooling that’s dreaded. Standardized testing in American schools has birthed many programs that have placed an importance around the idea that testing is good such as the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. Although over the years the importance of testing and the way it is incorporated in schooling has increased immensely and so has the stakes, not only for the teachers that are providing these tests but also for the students who are taking them. Testing has gotten so immensely important in education that all states in America have a state test in order to measure how much the students are learning. The argument about testing is one half believes that most of the standardized testing do not accurately measure a students intelligence, actually a lot of educators argue that testing does not even measure comprehension or intelligence in the first place but rather just shows the students memorization skills. The other half believes that testing just needs a few improvements and it does measure students' intelligence and it actually helps them in going to college. The real answer is that testing is not the best way to solve the many problems in American education today because testing does not create equal educational opportunities for all students and testing doesn't help the students or the teachers in any way.

Standardized testing in american schools today does not create fair or equal educational opportunities for all students. Kevin Welner wrote “No Child Left Behind failed. Thirteen years on, an entire generation of students has been schooled under test-based accountability policies, and we have clear evidence that this approach was not a smart way to enhance educational opportunities in less advantaged communities. In fact, the evidence shows it has done more harm than good, with test scores being pursued at the expense of deeper, broader learning” in article titled The Testing Regime in U.S. Schools Isn’t Working. This quote written by Kevin Welner shows how just because we prioritize testing in poorer communities it in no way means that it is all of a sudden going to create better and equal educational opportunities. It instead proves the point that these testings are just doing way more harm than they are trying to do good by just simply pusing “great tests scores” at the expense of each student's individual learning. Kevin Welner also continued to say “Simple logic tells us that if schools shift substantial time and energy toward reading and math, students should learn substantially more in those two subjects. But even that hasn’t happened. At best, some research suggests a small upward trend in reading and math scores subsequent to the N.C.L.B. reforms; other research suggests no uptick at all. These results fall far short of the promises that N.C.L.B.’s advocates made to the American people. After 13 years of pouring time, energy and money into an obsessive focus on testing in reading and math, we have little or no improvement to show for it”. This further proves the claim that testing is doing more harm than good, by just focusing on certain subjects purely to improve test scores in that specific subject. It's hurting the student abilities in all the other subjects they are taking, testing isn't helping its just creating opportunity gaps  

Standardized testing does not in any way help students close opportunity gaps; it in fact helps widen that gap. In an article written by Kevin Welner called  Parents Are Opting-Out of Testing for a Reason he states “Closing those gaps is possible, but not if we cut corners and costs, simply hoping that the free market or test-based pressures will drive substantial school improvement” this quote here just shows how by trying to close these opportunity gaps with testing we cutting corners and sacrificing each student's education an instead of helping them it's just hurting them even more and widening that gap. Kevin Welner also states “These gaps can only be closed if we focus on learning opportunities, through policies like high-quality preschool and social services. Testing children can be helpful, but tests don’t teach, and knowing about a problem is only a small step toward addressing that problem”. What's being emphasized here is that by improving education standards and investing in deeper learning we actually help students in closing the opportunity gap not by rushing quick fixes such as standardized testing, and just because we know what the problem is doesn't mean we can fix the problem and properly address it.  

The other half to this argument is that testing is great and it helps create equal opportunities for all students, and that it also helps teachers to know whether or not their student is dropping back. Patricia Levesque stated in one of her articles “Many focus on tests as an overriding negative in all this when in fact they complement both our agendas, which are not mutually exclusive. Tests let us know kids aren’t falling through the cracks, adults are doing their jobs and reforms are working. Otherwise we spend and guess”. This here is completely wrong in many ways let's start with the first part of this statement “Many focus on tests as an overriding negative in all this when in fact they complement both our agendas” testing isn't viewed as the only negative there are many other problems within our education system some are just more prominent than others like standardized testing, Testing does not help both sides agenda because it is hurting students harshly like I demonstrated with my first two quotes (see on page #3). Now let's focus on the second and final part of her statement, “tests let us know kids aren’t falling through the cracks, adults are doing their jobs and reforms are working. Otherwise we spend and guess”. Testing does not let us know if our students are falling through the cracks because testing for one does not even properly evaluate a students intelligence; it instead evaluates one's memorization skills. Testing also does not let us know whether or not a teacher is properly doing their jobs because no matter how hard or deeply a teacher can try to teach there are some students who simply just can't understand that subject the teacher is trying to teach. Although some arguments can be made supporting testing in our education it's hardly enough to make a conversation. 

The real answer to this two sided argument is that testing is not the best way to solve all of the major issues within the American education system today. For one, testing does not create equal educational opportunities for all students, neither does testing help each student. Time and time again it's been proven that testing hurts the student abilities in all the other subjects they are taking by our attempts to focus on one specific subject to improve testing scores in that area. Testing is not viewed as this only negative that just completely annihilates all other problems within our education system, there are many other problems some are just more prominent than others like standardized testing, testing instead of its original intent of trying to create equal educational opportunities and closing the opportunity gaps in our education system its hurting our students abilities to truly learn because testing is a quick conner cutted fix and because of this it is widening the opportunity gap even more.