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Sheryl Anderson Megan Keaton ENG 112-15 2 May 2013

Argumentative Paper According to late education researcher Gerald W. Bracey, PhD, qualities that standardized tests cannot measure include "creativity, critical thinking, resilience, motivation, persistence, curiosity, endurance, reliability, enthusiasm, empathy, self-discipline, leadership, courage, compassion, resourcefulness, sense of wonder, honesty, integrity." (ProCon.org) This quote is talking about all the skills testing is not teaching are students. This leaves us to wonder what exactly our kids are being taught, if not any of these skills. Standardized testing is being over used and because of that it is inhibiting their chances of success. It is important to students and the future success of our country, that our children are able to be successful adults and have knowledge of important skills like the ones listed above. Assuming that students futures are important to the nation then this topic should be taken seriously. In this paper I will disprove many authors opinion that standardized testing is an efficient and reliable way to test students and prepare them for their futures. And present a variety of reasons that show why there should be a better way to test students. Standardized testing is the main focus of classes; students are prepared to pasts the tests. Oliver Harte, a fifteen year old high school student, explains what he feels testing is teaching him and his peers, It's 9:30 p.m. I have two tests tomorrow: one in Math and one in World History. I have already spent some time studying for one test, but now it's time to move on to the next

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subject -- the definition of cramming. The next day will arrive; I will get to my classes and do fairly well on the tests. I manage to get by in high school. This is the average for the majority of high school students. This is a problem, not only are kids not learning information that will help them in their futures, they are not even retaining the information that they are being taught. A fifteen year old in high school realizes that he is not being taught necessary skills, and he knows the root of that problem is the focus on standardized testing. Not only will students benefit from the decrease in standardized testing, but the nation as a hole may benefit as well. If students are capable of being more globally competitive and aware, then our nation can profit. If students are taught how to be culturally aware and be able to solve problems with people from other countries; then the US will better be able to compete with other countries that are already efficient in doing this. If we continue to teach students how to take a test, well then that is all they will be able to do. According to two Stanford University researchers Finland used no external standardized tests used to rank students or schools and instead used assessments that encourage students to be active learners who can find, analyze, and use information to solve problems in novel situations. Because of Finlands method a assessing their students they were at the top of PISA (Program for International Student Assessment) national rankings (ProCon.org). If the US could use some of the same methods to teach students, then our nation as a whole could excel over other countries like Finland. The final exam at the end of the year has become the primary focus for every classroom. An article by Kenneth Jost who is a Harvard graduate who has worked the CQ researcher since 1991; speaks about the No Child Left Behind Act, which was passed by Bush to improve students performance and hold school districts responsible for success. The passing of this act led to the increase in testing. He talks about the concern that with an increase in testing, that our

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teachers may begin teaching to test. In order to insure that students produce good grades on these tests, teachers prepare students for certain question types. In affect students do not learn how to be critical thinkers when it comes to solving a problem. Instead they memorize the information that the government has decide is important, and are not taught other critical skills. They are deciding what to teach not based on what will most benefit their students, but will best keep their schools from losing funding. Some say that standardized testing is necessary so that the government, school districts, and teachers can see the progress that students are making throughout the school year. A well esteemed professor of the name Walberg states in his article about the pros of standardized testing; that if standardized testing is misused then of course they might be defective. But then goes on to say when they are used correctly they can tell a great deal about a schools program. Walberg states, Educators can better help students when they know how a students objective performance compares with others. It helps both educators and students if students discover their strengths and weaknesses. He believes that standardized testing tells a great deal about a students progress in school, and that tests are graded in a way that tells educators correct results. Another point that professor Herbert Walberg thinks is important is that since testing is going to be used in a variety of ways after high school like in college admissions, or occupational licensing; it is important that K-12 students learn how to properly study for and take tests. While this is true, testing skills are not the only thing students need to be successful adults. Like the ability to be able to work in cooperation with others, to solve problems that do not involve filling in letter A, B, C, or D. Walberg is suggesting that over use of standardized testing is okay simply because it may be a part of students futures. What would be an even better way to test students

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ability and understanding for a job would be giving them real life projects that make them work as a group to solve a conflict. According to the experiences of a journalist named Todd Farley, the way standardized testing is grading students is in fact defective. In his book, Making the Grades: My Misadventures in the Standardized Testing Industry, he states that, Fifteen years of scoring standardized tests has completely convinced me as much: that the business Ive worked in is less a precise tool to assess students exact abilities than just a lucrative means to make indefinite and indistinct generalizations about them.(241) Walbergs point that it is useful for educators to have information about their students becomes invalid because of lack of accuracy in grading. Todd worked as a test grader in multiple businesses; where he met a variety of people involved with grading tests. In his books he explains how the way that they judged a students answer was so vague that there was no way of actually grading tests in manner that was standardized. And with the increase in testing in 2001 when the NCLBA was passed, the demand from graders no matter their qualifications has gone up. So if these tests really can predict a students academic progress, and the efficiency of a schools program; then the way they are being graded is completely ruining the results that are produced. Ultimately, the whole reason for having standardized testing is so that students can be measured in a standardized and equal manner, and with the current grading system that becomes impossible. The nation as a whole should make it a point to get rid of standardized testing. They are inaccurate forms of judgment of our students. By doing this we can improve students success and our nations productivity. There are already some students, like Oliver Harte who want this change to happen. What we can do now is try to start having schools have teachers judge how well students understand topics. With project based exams, that make students come together to

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solve a real world problem using the concepts they learned in class. For example, if students are taking a science class they may be asked to figure out a way to reduce the waste in the school, or find a way to recycle some goods. By doing this students are solving problems that will actually make a difference in their worlds. It will teach them how to solve problems that may come their way. We should start in schools like Oliver Hartes, he has already started the word about standardized testing by talking to his teachers and the school board, from which he got no reply. Standardized testing should be taking out of curriculums all together. Eventually maybe the state itself will opt for a new way a testing students ability. Then the nation as a whole will see how students benefit, and make changes in the government. Maybe they will start by getting rid of the No Child Left Behind Act.

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Works Cited Farley, Todd. Making the Grades: My Misadventures in the Standardized Testing Industry. Sausalito, CA: PoliPointPress, 2009. Print. Harte, Oliver. "Does the High School Curriculum in the U.S. Actually Prepare Students for the Real World?" The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 02 Feb. 2013. Web. 04 Apr. 2013 Jost, Kenneth. "Testing in Schools." CQ Researcher 20 Apr. 2001: 321-44. Web. 27 Mar. 2013. ProCon.org. "Standardized Tests ProCon.org" ProCon.org. 22 Mar. 2013. Web. 27 Mar. 2013. <http://standardizedtests.procon.org/>. Walberg, Herbert J. "Standardized Tests Effectively Measure Student Achievement." Standardized Testing. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2012. At Issue. Rpt. from "Stop the War Against Standardized Tests." Defining Ideas: A Hoover Institution Journal (20 May 2011). Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 28 Mar. 2013.