Standardized Testing

4 Pages 911 Words

Controversy involving education and national standardized testing has always sparked controversies. Does a simple test, which holds such a great deal of significance on a child’s future, sufficient enough? These tests are supposed to be a basis for what all students should know to continue their educations. Education has become a very important subject in political campaigns. With education among the electorate’s top priorities, the phrase “higher standards” has become ubiquitous in political campaigns across the country. (Gary Orfield).
Many politicians have stressed that all children can learn at high levels, where many liberal and civil rights advocates are too concerned about lowering the standards for these tests. Unfortunately, this movement has all to frequently been reduced to a single policy: high stakes testing. (Orfield). These tests are responsible for grade promotion, jobs for graduate students, and even promotions for teachers. President Clinton recommended in his state of the Union address that all students are supplied with materials that help them with these tests. This caused some controversy because people believed that with these materials, it undermined teachers, discriminated against minorities, and affected the teacher student relationship. I agree that students should be able to receive manuals to increase their chances on these tests, but I also feel that if a student knows what is going to be on the test it can hinder his ability to truly learn in those areas.
A type of test that has negative feedback is high-stakes tests. The implications of these arguments were serious enough to lead the Civil Rights Project at Harvard University to commission a series of studies on the educational and social impact of high-stakes testing. High-stakes tests attached to grade promotion and high school graduation lead to increased dropout rates. (Orfield). I think if too much emphasis is placed on specif...