The SAT. The PSAT. The ACT. These are just a few standardized test that many students will need to take in high school. But students have been taking standardized tests long before they get to these in the later education. The average student in the United States takes one hundred and twelve mandated standardized tests between their pre- kindergarten classes and their senior year of high school, according to a study done by the Council of Great City Schools. In almost all of the countries that outperform the United States on international exams, their students are only tested three times between their first and last years of schooling. So the question is, are standardized test actually improving the education system in the United States? If not, why are children spending hours preparing for and taking meaningless exams when they could actually be learning new material?
After passing the No Child Left Behind Act in 2002, the United States went from number eighteen in the world to thirty one a few years later in math on the Programme for International Student Assessment. There was a drop similar to that in science and no improvement in reading. According to the National Research Council, there is no evidence, despite decades of programs, that test based incentive programs improve education and consistently generate positive achievement effects.
“Teaching to the test” is becoming an extremely common practice in schools. Children are being drilled and drilled on exactly what they will need to know for the tests. This method is replacing actual learning resulting from good teaching practice. Children are only learning correct answers, not actual material knowledge. Some experts argue that there are positives to “teaching to the test.” This practice focuses on essential skills and critical content, eliminating activities that would otherwise be wasting time not producing gains in learning. The overuse of mandated standardized tests leads to a decline in the teaching of higher order thinking and complex assignments. The actual amount of high cognitive content in the curriculum is diminished.
Curriculum is narrowed drastically by mandated standardized tests. The Center on Education Policy reported that 44% of school districts decreased the amount of time students spend learning about social studies, science, and the arts by about one hundred and forty five minutes each week. This is done in an effort to increase math and reading scores on the standardized tests. 75% of social studies teachers said that the reason for a decrease in the teaching and discussion of current events is due to standardized testing.
Some refute the claim that standardized test narrow the curriculum by simply saying that the exams focus on the important skills students need. However, often precious instruction time is spent practicing for tests. To avoid being shut down, some schools in New York City added two and a half hour test prep sessions every day, in addition to test practice during vacations. If schools’ test scores take a sharp decrease, they often become consumed with test prep as opposed to teaching the children material which can be used to do well on future tests.
Not only do standardized tests cause teachers to stress, but they cause severe stress in the students, who are the ones who actually have to take these exams. Due to the sheer number of major tests that students take and prepare for, students often become anxious. Even the brightest students get anxiety about the tests, and it is not uncommon for children to cry or even vomit. Many of the standardized tests have instructions included on what to do with the exam if a student vomits.
On the other end of the spectrum, often times older students in the upper grades put little effort into the mandated standardized test. They know that the scores do not affect their grades, so they care very little on how well they perform. Some students don’t even look at the test questions, and just create pictures or designs on their scantrons.
Mandated Standardized testing is a topic that has many layers and is quite expansive. There are many accounts on the pressures and practices of this kind of testing, and there are varying results on its effectiveness.