Critical Thinking Paper: Standardized Testing

Olivia Gonzalez
May 10th, 2015
Blue Group
CAP 9

Federal

and

State

standardized

tests

are

not

accurate

measurements of students educational potential and are detrimental

to the teaching profession. Because the tests are not reflection of
student learning, poorer schools do not have the resources to do well,
and teachers focus on teaching a test they do not write, but upon
which their performance may be evaluated, the Federal and State
governments must discontinue standardized testing and explore better
options to improve the learning experience.

Currently, standardized

testing is being used as a way to measure the success of schools,

teachers, and students, but these numbers do not actually mean
anything.

The obsession with standardized testing began with the passage

of the No Child Left Behind Act in 2001. The stated purpose of the act
is to ensure that all children have a fair, equal, and significant
opportunity to obtain a high-quality education and reach, at a
minimum, proficiency on challenging State academic achievement
standards and State academic assessments (No Child Left Behind
Act, Section 1001). The No Child Left Behind Act also addresses the
implementation of State and Federal testing. It states that State
assessments, such as the MSA, and Federal tests, such as the National
Assessment

of

Educational

Progress,

are

used

to

improve

accountability and teaching, and to ensure that students, particularly

the

disadvantaged,

are

meeting

the

academic

achievement

standards. The act requires annual testing in reading and math in

grades 3-8, as well as testing in additional subjects for grades 9-12 (No
Child Left Behind Act).

Poorer schools do not have the resources to do well on

standardized tests. According to the No Child Left Behind Act,
standardized testing is a solution to closing the achievement gap with
the disadvantaged in particular. If the previous statement is true,
then why do schools with less money and higher immigrant
populations do worse on these tests? Take for example Philadelphias
public school system where students are extremely poor; 79% are
eligible for free and reduced meals. Fewer than half of the students in
Philadelphias public school system score a proficient on their State
test (Pennsylvania System of School Assessment or PSSA).

The two

factors are in fact linked. According to an article in The Atlantic, all of

this has to do with the economics of testing. Across the nation,
standardized tests come from one of three companies: CTB McGraw
Hill, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, or Pearson. These corporations write
the tests, grade the tests, and publish the books that students use to
prepare for the tests (Meredith Broussard, theatlantic.com). Schools
that do not have as much money cannot afford textbooks, which can
cost up to $70.00 per book, and are crucial to successful scores since

they contain some of the material covered on the tests.

Students who do not speak English as their first language are

also at a disadvantage. The tests are written in English, and often use
terms that one would not know if he or she were not a native English
speaker. Take, for example, a math question involving the expression
round-trip. Students who are fluent in English -- and have enough
money to take a vacation -- will obviously know what the term means,
but a student who does not have those same advantages, will not
understand the question. In addition, many young children taking
these tests do not know how to read, or do not have the vocabulary to
take these tests. Peggy Robertson, a former teacher says, we know
developmentally some kids might not learn to read until the second
grade Under Common Core, if youre not reading at a particular level
in kindergarten, youre already being told youre a failure. When you
place these artificial standards on children and force them to comply to
it, you set them up to hate learning and to hate reading" (Allie Bidwell,
usnews.com).

Standardized testing forces teachers to give up valuable learning

time to review for and to give tests that they themselves have not
written. Not only does this require the teachers to teach the test, but
it also puts the focus of school on standardized testing, rather than

learning. This means that students will learn the information, take the
test, and then a week or so later, forget all about what they just
learned because there is a new topic on which they have to focus. Also,
standardized testing is interfering with the learning process, causing
students to forget everything from their regular courses by the time
they have to take their final exam.

Standardized tests also take away teachers flexibility to teach,

because they have to teach the Common Core curriculum, which
supposedly matches these tests. However, one of the things these
tests are testing is the teacher. How is it fair for these tests to be a
reflection of teaching ability if teachers are all forced to teach the
curriculum the same exact way? A poll done in October 2014 by
PDK/Gallup showed that 69% of public school parents were opposed to
the use of student test results as an evaluation of teachers. When
asked what helps students get good jobs, only 22% of public school
parents said that high performance on standardized tests was
important, whereas 87% said that real world skills such as teamwork,
dependability, and persistence were more important (pdkpoll.pdkintl.org).

Those in favor of standardized testing argue that the tests are

necessary to have a strong, functioning education system. However,
that cannot be true, since Finland, the country with the most successful

education system in the world, does not have standardized tests. In

fact, the US policy of spending billions of dollars on testing is frowned
upon. Pasi Sahlberg, a former physics and math teacher in Finland
says, We prepare children to learn how to learn, not how to take a
test (Lynell Hancock, Smithsonian Magazine). Finnish students also
spend less time at school than American students, receive less
homework, and are not required to go to school until the age of 7.
Clearly, the American culture of standardized testing is hardly
necessary, and may even be harmful to the way students learn. Finland
has higher high school graduation rates, a higher percentage of
students get a college degree, and the poverty rates are lower. All of
this can be attributed to a strong, standardized test-free, education
system.

To solve the problem of standardized tests, State and Federal

governments must discontinue them. Instead, the governments should
focus on making sure that students are learning. Teaching should
become a more prestigious job, and just like in Finland, every student
should be able to get the same level of education, no matter his or her
socio-economic status. Class sizes should be reduced, so that the
teacher can have a more personal relationship with each student, and
so that the teacher can cater to their learning styles. There should be
more focus on making sure that teachers are educated and have a

required advanced degree. In addition, the money saved from cutting

out standardized testing can be used to pay teachers a higher salary.

Standardized tests, mandated in the United States at the Federal

and State level, are not only inaccurate measurements of intelligence,
but also a burden to teachers. Standardized testing began with the No
Child Left Behind Act as an attempt to close the achievement gap and
ensure that everyone receives an equal education. However, these
tests

are

having

an opposite

effect that actually widens

the

achievement gap, and makes it so that students at schools that are

struggling financially are getting lower test scores. Taking and teaching
for standardized tests takes away from valuable learning time, as well
as interfering with the teachers ability to teach. Nonetheless, teachers
are being evaluated on how well their students do on tests that are not
written by them, and that sometimes do not even match the
curriculum. Finally, the tests are not an accurate measurement of
intelligence because people learn in different ways and because the
country with the worlds best education system, Finland, does not have
standardized testing.

Works Cited
6

The Atlantic. theatlantic.com. Web. 15 Mar. 2015.

<http://www.theatlantic.com/features/archive/2014/07/why-poor-schools-cantwin-at-standardized-testing/374287/>.
Bidwell, Allie. "Opt-Out Movement About More Than Tests, Advocates Say."
usnews.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Mar. 2015.
<http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2015/03/10/as-students-opt-out-ofcommon-core-exams-some-say-movement-is-not-about-testing>.
<http://www.districtadministration.com/article/dilemma-standardized-testing-andachievement-gap>.
Hancock, Lynnell. "Why Are Finland's Schools Succesful?" Smithsonian: n. pag.
http://www.smithsonianmag.com. Web. 15 Mar. 2015.
<http://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/why-are-finlands-schoolssuccessful-49859555/?no-ist>.
United States. Cong. House. No Child Left Behind Act. H. 1. Washington: GPO, n.d.
Print.

Annotated Bibliography

The Atlantic. theatlantic.com. Web. 15 Mar. 2015.

<http://www.theatlantic.com/features/archive/2014/07/why-poor-schoolscant-win-at-standardized-testing/374287/>.
This source had a lot of useful information in regard to minority students, or
students living in poverty. The example of the Philadelphia schools was also
something that I used in my paper to support my point.
Bidwell, Allie. "Opt-Out Movement About More Than Tests, Advocates Say."
usnews.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Mar. 2015.
<http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2015/03/10/as-students-opt-out-ofcommon-core-exams-some-say-movement-is-not-about-testing>. This source
mentions some of the difficulties for younger children, such as the inability to
read, that cause a major setback when they take these tests. The article also has
many quotes from teachers, that are beneficial to my paragraph about the effect of
testing on teachers.
directadministration.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Mar. 2015.
<http://www.districtadministration.com/article/dilemma-standardizedtesting-and-achievement-gap>.
This source was helpful when I was writing my thesis and I was trying to decide if I
should focus on the achievement gap or not. Even though I didn't use the
achievement gap very much in my paper, this source was useful in giving some

alternative approaches to measuring the achievement gap, other than standardized

testing.
Hancock, Lynnell. "Why Are Finland's Schools Succesful?" Smithsonian: n. pag.
http://www.smithsonianmag.com. Web. 15 Mar. 2015.
<http://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/why-are-finlands-schoolssuccessful-49859555/?no-ist>.
This source taught me a lot about how the Finnish school system functions and
how it differs from the American system. It also contained many quotes from
teachers, several of which I included in my paper.
"No Child Left Behind (ESEA)." www2.ed.gov. Department of Education, n.d. Web.
30 Mar. 2015. <http://www2.ed.gov/nclb/landing.jhtml>.
This source was extremely important because it helped explain the No Child Left Behind
Act. The source is also reliable since it comes from the department of education
official website.
PDK/Gallup Poll October 2014. N.p.: n.p., n.d. http://pdkpoll.pdkintl.org. Web. 30
Mar. 2015. <http://pdkpoll.pdkintl.org/october/#1>.
This poll provides statistics on the public's view towards teacher evaluation through
standardized tests, as well as the importance of these tests towards a successful
life. This is important for my paper because it gives numerical proof to the point
that I am trying to make.
Pellissier, Hank. "The Finnish Miracle." greatschools.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Mar.
2015. <http://www.greatschools.org/students/2453-finland-education.gs>.

This source gave me much more insight into the Finnish school system, and how
American teachers admire the system. It also taught me more about Finnish
customs and culture.

"Pros and Cons of Standardized Testing." worklife.columbia.edu. N.p., n.d. Web. 15

Mar. 2015.
<http://worklife.columbia.edu/files_worklife/public/Pros_and_Cons_of_Stan
dardized_Testing_1.pdf>.
This source was very detailed, and helped me to pick arguments when I was writing my
thesis. It will also be useful next year because it has both pros and cons.
United States. Cong. House. No Child Left Behind Act. H. 1. Washington: GPO, n.d.
Print. This source is crucial to my paper, since the No Child Left Behind Act
plays a major role in the obsession with standardized testing. The act requires
annual tests in English and Math, and the implementation of state and federal
tests. This source will also be useful next year in my argument pro standardized
testing.

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