Standardized Testing

Introduction

High-stakes standardized testing was a much publicized issue in the United States during the end of the twentieth century and into the first decade of the twenty-first century. Originally established to provide accountability and ensure the educational system was responsive to every child regardless of socioeconomic, race, gender, or ethnic representation, questions have now arisen concerning the effects and value of standardized tests and the consequences of focusing on test scores for the educational system and individual students. Many states attached a broad range of consequences for students, teachers, and schools based on standardized test scores. Students unable to score at benchmark levels might be retained, which had a direct correlation to dropout rates. Teachers might be required to teach a curriculum based on the scope of the test, which reduced the curriculum. Schools failing to attain the benchmark for percentage of passing students could be penalized monetarily, reorganized, or closed. As, standardized testing has permeated the educational environment throughout the United States, this study sought to collect student responses that described individual, personal perceptions concerning standardized assessment. The responses created an account that contributed to understanding student experiences and the effects of standardized testing on these students. Therefore, all the issues related to the argument that whether emphasis should be given to standardized testing in schools will be discussed in detail.

Discussion

The effect of the current high-stakes testing atmosphere on children in the United States was the basis of the focus for this study. Current scholarly literature contained limited reports concerning the effects of high-stakes tests on students, and the studies that were available were generally specific to a specialized group, such as inner city, African American, or low economic student populations. The researchers known as Baker, O'Neil, and Linn in 1993 reported less than 5% of the articles about high-stakes testing programs found in literature were research based. The studies that do employ research rather than theory were generally based on teacher opinions and report. This study questioned the effects of the current high-stakes testing on students in non-public school, a specialized group that had not been previously examined. The nature and meaning of the test experience reported by the actual participants were important as they varied from the opinions expressed by the test administrators. Some studies that did elicit student response were used as a guide for this research. This literature review began with a description of the problem by describing the use of standardized testing in the United States educational system, and then reviewed various themes related to this study, such as standardized testing, high-stakes testing, the theoretical basis of learning, the emotional component of learning, and neuro imaging pictures showing the cognitive process (Applefield, 84).

The researcher known as McNeil in 2000 reported on the costs of standardized tests in Contradictions of School Reform based on observations in magnet schools in Houston, Texas after educational reforms in the 1980s. Her observations were of a decline in the quality of what is taught and ...