STANDARDIZED TESTING:

THE GOOD AND THE BAD

Amy Davies Nash- English 252

p to twice a year, students from the about age of eight

to eighteen years old pause their regular routine in the

classrooms and gather in quiet computer labs where
they are tested with the intent to calculate how much

they have learned in English, Reading, Mathematics, and possibly Science. They are tested to evaluate how much their teachers have taught
them, and are responsible for the amount of government assistance
that the entire school will receive from either the Federal or State gov-

ernment. There is a lot of pressure placed on these students and there

is much at stake as a result of these types of tests. We are all affected
by education, whether indirectly or directly, and have experienced the
process of standardized tests being administered in schools. The
standardized tests to which are made reference are not those collegeadmission tests that nearly all high school students take such as the
ACT and SAT tests, but the standardized tests that have been imple-

mented initially as a result of President Bushs No Child Left Behind mandate in the early 1990s. The tests have evolved from the
early days of fill-in-the-circle scantron tests to entirely electronic
tests. The one thing that has not changed is the emphasis that school
systems and our communities place on them. There are many opinions
to the way that success should be monitored and recorded. Right now
is the time to be aware and knowledgeable of the happenings of our

schools to form ones own educated opinion about standardized testing among our young children and know how it effects so many people. There are positive and negative effects and influences that standardized tests have on the community, on education as a whole, and on
1Standardized Testing: The Good and the Bad

We are all
effected by
education,
whether
indirectly or
directly, and
have experienced the
process of
standardized
testing administered in
schools.

the students. These effects mentioned here can only be accurately related to American students from elementary to high school-aged in an

People generally have the

need to count
and measure
things

effort to focus on as few variables as possible. Students are referred to

as a whole student body despite the factors of race, religion, culture,
or even demographics. It is imperative that everyone in society become educated on the methods of education in our own lives, in the

lives of our children, grandchildren, our neighbors, or in whatever

way one is connected to education.
The positive involvement of a community in the schools is a
much needed and valuable staple in the success of education. The interaction of parents, community leaders, and public servants in the
schools needs to be transparent, and standardized testing has been one
method of opening the doors of understanding and community in-

volvement. People generally have the need to count and measure

many people
view the data
as a direction
to which they
may find
someone else
to blame or
hold accountable for students who are
behind the rest
of their class.

things, such as measuring the probability of the stock market, measuring the caloric content in food, and measuring the pressure in the air.
In an effort to measure the knowledge that students have obtained,
standardized tests have been a constant or a standard in education.
Educators can, as accurately as possible, explain to parents what percentile their children are placed in as a result of the standardized tests.

When correctly administered and taken, these tests can calculate accurate data of the level of understanding each student has in each subject
area (Wasswemann). A negative outlook on these tests comes when
parents, lawmakers, and taxpayers have the idea that the administering
of standardized tests is a process in which they need no involvement.
Instead of looking at the data received from standardized tests as a
roadmap of what a student needs to succeed, many people view the
data as a direction to which they may find someone else to blame or
hold accountable for students who are behind the rest of their class
(Bily), rather than involving themselves in the formula. This negative

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act of blaming others can only discredit the actual purpose of standardized tests.
Teachers have been able to successfully achieve good representation of students ability by teaching the students a concept of a
lesson, or a required formula, or standard needed to complete the assignment correctly. A good teacher will always measure the level of

understanding of the concept, formula, or standard by testing their

knowledge. Practice is accompanied by critique from the teacher. Its
the feedback from the teacher that lets students know if theyre on the
right track to mastering the required skills (Bily). By taking standardized tests with as tight variables as humanly possible in the atmosphere and setting, teachers will be able to observe the truth about the
knowledge of their students. Having the kind of data that is recorded

in standardized test results can give teachers and all educators, who
are involved with each student, the satisfaction of not guessing or
talking in generalities anymore. They feel as if theyre starting to
crack the code (Bily). When testing environments are not consistent
with every other school that is also taking that test, its information is
not accurate to its full potential. Too often teachers will feel the high
pressure that is involved in the standardized tests and they may uncon-

sciously change their behavior causing the students to sense the nervousness in their teacher. Many nervous teaches have emphasized the
correct answers for their students and or offered a valuable reward for
completing the test above the proficient level (Bracey). When this
happens, it totally defeats the purpose of standardized testing and depreciates the value of active education. Educational rubrics for lessons, which have the goal to teach students a standard that they will
need to know for the standardized tests, are not given any elbow room
to be creative to each individuals understanding and perspective
(Farley). Because of the emphasis placed on standardized tests, school
curriculum has been narrowed and dumbed down . . . encouraged
3Standardized Testing: The Good and the Bad

A good teacher
will always
measure the
level of understanding of the
concept, formula, or standard by
testing their
knowledge

teaching to the test, and created demoralized teachers, disengaged stu-

Because of the
emphasis
placed on
standardized
tests, school
surriculum has
been
narrowed and
dumbed
down (Wall
Street Journal)

dents and rising minority dropouts (Wall Street Journal). When

teachers teach to the test theres really no learning going
on (Carlon). Spending so much time preparing for tests doesnt allow
for much time for individual exploration from the student (Doroull;
Zubtow).

Standardized tests and tests in general play a positive role in

the lives of students if administered and taken properly. Having students prepare for and take tests teaches them to be independent and
deep thinkers (Bily). Preparing for tests forces students to realize that
teachers are not their only source of knowledge, but teaches them that
they must gain the ability to locate the appropriate information and
then process and apply that information at the right time and in the

right way. Many state standards require higher-level thinking and reasoning skills (Bily). The process of taking tests in a controlled environment will only prepare them for further tests and expectations in
the schools of higher learning and in job situations where they will

Standardized
tests are
thought to only measure
and support
students
superficial
thinking (Kohn).

have to think for themselves. On another note, these standardized tests

teach students to be narrow-minded and only measures the amount of
factual knowledge (recall) and not aspects of thinking and learn-

ing (Bily). Standardized tests has been thought to have negatively

impacted students creativity (Anonymous) because of the rigidity of
the format. There are two ways that a student may participate in class:
actively or superficially. Being active involves participating in the
learning process by finding connections to other resources to solidify
understanding. A superficial student would be one who copies down
answers, guesses a lot, and skips the hard parts. Standardized tests
are thought to only measure and support students superficial thinking (Kohn). These tests encourage parrot learning or learning to
copy what one is expected to know. They are only able to retain what

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they have learned for a short period of time because they dont make
connections to what they already know and understand (Wassermann).
When administered correctly and in correspondence with the
state regulations, standardized test can positively impact students
learning; when administered improperly and inconsistently, standardized tests are harmful to the learning of students (Wright). Many peo-

ple will argue for the need and effectiveness of standardized tests.
There are many opinions about this topic, both positive and negative.
After all is read we should remember what Cynthia A. Bily said in
response to an argument for the need of standardized testing, Its like
saying, since standardized tests are not perfect, eliminate testing until
they are. We would be waiting a long time to test the students of
America if we waited until perfection especially since we are all im-

perfect. We do need to monitor progress, but the question is how. We

need to know what is and is not working and why. Who knows the
answers to solve all of the standardized testing problems? The intentions of the tests are good and once all peoples intentions match that
same honesty and enthusiasm, we will be able to effectively monitor
our students progression. Perhaps being aware of the negative and
positive impacts of standardized testing will make us fellow students,

parents, and teachers more sensitive to our own actions when interacting with the testing process.

5Standardized Testing: The Good and the Bad

The intentions
of the tests are
good and once
all peoples intentions match
that same honesty and enthusiasm, we
will be able to
effectively
monitor our
students progression.

Works Cited
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pan, 1990, Vol.71(9), pp.732-733[Peer Reviewed Journal]. Web. 22 November. 2014

Carlon Ami. Culture and Standardized Tests Native A merican issues and examples. Alexander
Street Press.; Microtraining Associates. North Amherst. 2005. Web. 22 November.
2014.
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Kohn, Alfie. Standardized testing and its victims. Education Week, Vol.20(4),
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The

Phi Delta Kappa International. Vol. 62, No. 9. Pp. 628-631. May, 1981. Web. 22 No-

vember. 2014.
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