Are Standardized State Tests Beneficial to Students - Essay Example

With regards to the objectives of learning, state tests are not beneficial to students, teachers, and parents. In fact, they create unnecessary pressure on the three stakeholders, diluting their very essence. Firstly, the stakes of state tests are too high. Secondly, the test results cannot accurately measure learning. Thirdly, teachers are molded into ‘teaching the tests’ rather than concepts. Lastly, the anxiety associated with tests impedes learning and leads to cheating and result manipulation. Therefore, this paper will discuss why state tests are not beneficial to stakeholders in education—students, teachers, and parents.

To begin with, the stakes of the tests are too high and teachers are adapted into ‘teaching tests’ rather than concepts. Traditionally, test scores influence how much funds a school would receive from the government. Low test scores would make the school run the risk of its operations being taken over by the government; therefore, little room for independent decision-making (Texas Business Leadership Council). Such pressure on state officials, parents, teachers, and students creates a very poor environment for learning. Additionally, Teachers plan their curriculum around tests. Additionally, teachers teach test-taking skills and how to pass exams. Consequently, teachers lose the creativity and dynamism that makes learning enjoyable (The National Center for Fair and Open Testing). Concepts and hands-on skills require a greater challenge and are more rewarding than the ability to pass a multiple-choice test.

Secondly, test scores are not an accurate measure of learning. In a 2013 speech, the secretary of education, Arne Duncan opines that state assessments in various subjects often fail to capture the student’s ability of what they know and can do (Evans ). Besides, all the stakeholders in education know that there is so much more to education than the ability to sit down and answer a few multiple-choice questions. Standardized state tests do not create room for students to express themselves (Evans ).

Lastly, the anxiety associated with tests impedes that learning process and encourages cheating and result manipulation. In order to move to the next grade, students have to pass standardized tests. The anxiety that this breeds can be so paralyzing that students forget concepts they had memorized. The pressure impedes the assessment of the very objective the test is meant to evaluate. Additionally, High stakes on performance push administrators to cheat and manipulate test scores (The National Center for Fair and Open Testing). Read More