is the us obsessed with testing
TRANSCRIPT
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Running Head: TESTING OBSESSION?
Is there a Testing Obsession in US Public Schools?
J. Autumn Barker
Strayer University
Education 510
Dr. Brand
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Standardized tests are tests given to students that are administered, scored, and
interpreted in a methodical and systematic way. Because many students sit for these
tests, a normative reference group can be created allowing for comparisons between
classrooms, schools, and regions (Arrington, 2008). With the passage of No Child Left
Behind, testing has taken on a more serious roll. Now identified as high-stakes testing,
these standardized tests have severe consequences should schools not pass at the states
assigned level. The school districts pass some of this pressure onto teachers and students
by requiring passage of tests to determine if students could be retained, to set the
curriculum standards, and in some cases, to determine if students would be granted high
school diplomas (Myers, 2008).
The No Child Left Behind policy mandates that each student be assessed in math
and English/reading in third through fifth grades, once in grades six through nine, and
then once more in grades ten through twelve. The act goes on to require that each state
set rigorous academic standards. The state sets the level at which they see fit and then
evaluate each schools annual yearly progress against the set levels. No Child Left
Behind expects that all students will be proficient by 2014. If schools do not meet the
prescribed level, meaning they have not met the annual yearly progress standard,
sanctions and penalties are imposed. Should this happen year after year, the penalties
become stiffer and harsher. Sanctions can include that students can leave the school,
teachers and staff can be removed, and schools can have their federal funding pulled and
ultimately be closed down (Myers, 2008).
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This sort of testing has lead to teachers doing everything humanly possible to
prepare their students for the tests. Because in some cases, teachers pay or job depends
on test scores, even more pressure is put on the instructors. Stress like this can lead to
teachers forgoing any skills or topics that will not be covered on the tests. This can also
lead to programs such as band, art, and even social studies being cut because these
subjects are not emphasized on the tests. Teachers can also start to teach the test, cutting
life skills and enrichment activities out of the classroom. Classroom assessments also
begin to look like the standardized tests, assessing the students the same ways as the state
evaluation do. This cuts creativity and critical thinking to a minimum (Myers, 2008).
The undue pressure takes a toll on instructors and students. Teachers leave the
education field, burned out from the continuous testing. Students also suffer. With one
test discounting an entire years worth of work or in the case of senior exit exams, many
years of work, students are experiencing test anxiety and decreases in their levels of
motivation. Myers (2008) states that a students attitude toward assessment plays a
considerable role in testing performance. Because many districts and teachers take a do-
or-die outlook on testing, anxiety levels have skyrocketed, leading to lower student
performance and poor test scores. High-stakes testing also decreases student motivation
levels and can also increase dropout rates (Amrein & Berliner, 2003). Many assume that
the rewards and consequences assigned with the high-stakes tests motivate those who are
unmotivated. However, this has the opposite effect. Students become more unmotivated
and ultimately are less likely to critically think about subjects. When the tests have such
huge meaning, teachers are less likely to encourage student exploration on the topics in
class. This stops students from becoming lifelong learners and can estrange students
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from their own learning. When asked about testing, students draw a dim picture of their
feelings. They see them selves and their peers as anxious, angry, bored, pessimistic, and
withdrawn (Amrein & Berliner, 2003). Is this the way as educators, as policy makers, as
parents, we wish to have our students feel about learning, testing, and assessment?
Clearly the obsession over one test score has gone overboard. There must be a better
way.
With students quoted as saying Im so sick of caring about those tests,
undoubtedly there is a problem. Robert Sternberg, dean of Tufts Universitys School of
Arts and Sciences agrees. The problem is not the tests themselves. They are assigned a
value way beyond what they actually have. It has become more like a cult (Strauss,
2006). The question lies in how this problem is combated. Without a doubt, the high-
stakes testing policies are to blame for reducing motivation to learn, driving both teachers
and student from schools, and leading to all-in-all, less educated people. There are better
predictors of student achievement than one test score. Though testing costs less and
makes teachers and students appear busy, it will not better educate students (Amrein &
Berliner, 2003). RAND Corporation was used to account for differences in achievement
scores on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) test. When RAND
held constant family income and education level, there were four consistent and powerful
predictors of NAEP achievement state spending per student, pre-kindergarten
participation, class size, and the teacher feeling as if they had all the necessary resources
to do their jobs (Sacks, 2000). With information of this nature, it is undoubtedly time to
abandon the high-stakes testing. Rather than punishing schools, teachers, and students
when poor performance occurs, more formative testing should be done. This type of
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testing could result in more appropriate reforms, fiscally, intellectually, and socially,
making much more of a positive difference to those schools (Amrein & Berliner, 2003).
The pressure and stress put on the teachers and students with high-stakes testing is
unfair. The obsession of the USs educational system and government officials who
continue to press for only test scores and the high-stakes assigned to the tests are only
harming the students. When looking more clearly at the test results, giving support to
students, teachers, and schools is the only way this obsession can be reversed and a
healthier relationship between students and testing can be created.
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References
Amrein, A.L. and Berliner, D.C. (2003). The Effects of High-Stakes Testing on Student
Motivation and Learning.Educational Leadership, Feb. 2003, pp. 32 38.
Arms, E. (n.d.) What Every Parent Should Know About Standardized Testing.
Retrieved June 13, 2009, from http://family.go.com/parenting/pkg-
learning/article-205674-what-every-parent-should-know-about-standardized-
testing-t/.
Arrington, E. (2008). Testing and Evaluation. Research Starters: Academic Topic
Overviews. Retrieved June 13, 2009, from EBSCO Research Starters database.
Austin, A. (2008). American High School Students Dont Know Who Hitler Was.
Retrieved June 13, 2009, from http://www.buzzle.com/articles/american-high-
school-students-dont-know-who-hitler-was.html.
Cooper, G. (2007). Definition of Assessment. Retrieved June 13, 2009, from
http://tep.uoregon.edu/workshops/teachertraining/learnercentered/assessing/defini
tion.html.
Myers, S. (2008). High-Stakes Testing. Research Starters: Academic Topic Overviews.
Retrieved June 13, 2009, from EBSCO Research Starters database.
Sacks, P. (2000). High-Stakes Tests are Leaving Schools and Students Consumed by a
Cult of Measurement. The School Administrator, Dec. 2000, nn pp.
Strauss, V. (2006). The Rise of Testing Culture. The Washington Post, A09. Retrieved
June 13, 2009, from http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-
dyn/content/article/2006/10/09/AR2006100900925.html.
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