The Negative Impact of High Stakes Standardized Testing Essay -- Stand

Standardized examination is not a new concept it has been in use since the mid to late 1990s. However the high stakes focus on standardized testing is. The practices that accompany standardized testing bring forth long been in debate. Those in favor of standardized testing will argue that the testing creates a system that increases grades and accountability among teachers, students and school districts crosswise the country. On the other hand those that oppose standardized testing will argue the ill effects that standardized testing can have on students, teachers, and schools. in that respect are numerous ways in which standardized testing has gravely impacted education, some of which are high stress levels of students and teachers, the hindrance on educational instruction, high monetary costs of testing as well as inadvertent discrimination and bias. Senator Paul Wellstone of Minnesota stated Far from improving education, high-stakes testing marks a major retreat from fairness, f rom accuracy, from quality and from equity. High-stakes standardized testing greatly impacts the environment in which students learn. When such a huge emphasis is lay on these tests and scoring well on them, it often creates, in excess, unnecessary anxiety and stress. In Florida alone the number of different standardized tests given to students spanned across kindergarten through 12th grade has increased to over sixteen. Often students are faced with the harsh realization that not scoring well can look upon the difference from a pass and fail grade. That kind of pressure can lead to a complete shutdown of their learning. Although students are heavily impacted by the pressure and anxiety that accompanies standardized testing, they are not the only ones. Teachers not unli... ...Child Left Behind has laudable goals, but its too narrowly focused on just test scores, To just constantly boil everything down to standardized test scores doesnt tell the whole story. - Catherine SullivanWo rks CitedKohn, Alfie. Standardized Testing and Its Victims. culture Week. N.p., 27 Sept. 2000. Web. 15 Jan. 2015.Moon, Tonya R., Catherine M. Brighton, Jane M. Jarvis, and Catherine J. Hall. State Standardized Testing Programs Their Effects on Teachers and Students. The National Research Center on the Gifted and Talented. University of Connecticut, 2007. Web. 05 Feb. 2015.Steinberg, Jacques. NATIONS SCHOOLS STRUGGLING TO FIND rich PRINCIPALS. New York Times 03 Sept. 2000 n. pag. Web. 08 Feb. 2015.Strauss, Valerie. How Standardized Tests Are Affecting Public Schools. Washington Post 18 May 2012 n. pag. Print.