Foundations and Assessment of Education/Edition 1/Foundations Table of Contents/Chapter 8/8.6.2

 The Standardized Test

and Future Teachers:

What We Need To Know

for the Classroom

  Objectives: 

Future teachers will be able to:

â¢Identify what a standardized test is and what subject areas it affects, as well as which institutions look at them.

â¢Identify the major arguments for standardized testing.

â¢Identify the major arguments against standardized testing.

â¢Create suggestions for activities that are creative to prepare for standardized tests.

  Letâs Figure Out What Weâre Dealing With First: 

In an age where results matter and statistics rule, we have the educational system at the center, building and emphasizing the role of these results on how schools are run. Ever since the beginning of universities in the Middle Ages, learning was an end unto itself. There was no standard, just a desire. But in the 21st century where learning isnât just a social standard but a governmental requirement, certain standards are needed in order to govern how well these specific schools are doing on achieving this goal. Thus, standardized tests were born.

Now, these tests shape the teaching of almost every subject, not just English and math, and itâs beginning to reach even into how we apply for college, who gets the most money for schooling, and how a subject is taught. Colleges look at these tests to accept studentsâ applications, considering their SAT or ACT scores. As well, schools look at these to see if a student should pass the class and move onto another grade. Teachers use these to improve their students learning for the next year, and the students use them to determine success of understanding the basic material.

These tests affect a lot of the curriculum of the schools in the US, and especially Virginia, as well as a number of other states with their own specific tests. âA standardized test is any examination that's administered and scored in a predetermined, standard mannerâ (Popham 1999). For instance, in the SOLâs, the student is assessed on whether they retained the content related to the subjects stated that they need to learn in the Standards of Learning. The VA Department of Education states that âthe Standards of Learning for Virginia Public Schools describe the commonwealth's expectations for student learning and achievement in grades K-12 in English, mathematics, science, history/social science, technology, the fine arts, foreign language, health and physical education, and driver educationâ (Standards of Learning Currently in Effect 2007).

  The Advocate's View: 

Uniformity of knowledge: The content of all standardized tests are precisely as they suggest: standard. SATâs, SOLâs and the like are used to measure the amount of standard knowledge a child has retained or can retain in the future. Therefore by including these tests, the state and federal governments are ensuring that a local school district and their teachers teach a wide variety of information that they deem necessary to know. The VA Department Of Education site states on SOLâs, âThese standards represent a broad consensus of what parents, classroom teachers, school administrators, academics, and business and community leaders believe schools should teach and students should learnâ (Standards of Learning Currently in Effect 2007). The government can be assured that all children in the range of these tests are learning the same things, regardless of socioeconomic status or whether itâs an urban or rural school. As well, they are assured that itâs a broad education regulated by the government, but not made by the government. A teacherâs methods are refined: When the students get their results back, so do the teachers. Most states have a minimum pass rate on these specific tests for school accreditation, including VA. This means that the results of the tests are important to both the school (with all its members) and the parents, who may choose to make an out-of-district transfer for a child given that their school is non-accredited. To improve scores, these results are posted, and therefore the teacher is shown where their students fall in accordance to their peers across the school, district, and usually state. We, as teachers, can use these results to know where we need to improve the teaching of our students, especially for the next year. It also shows the schools where to improve, as well as able to inform where and which students need more assistance (Herman and Golan, 1990).

  The Critics View: 

Teaching to the test:

The bulk of critics of standardized testing believe that it forces teachers to teach to the test, therefore losing a teacher's creative license to teach their own way. These critics also state that children are inadequately prepared for the real world, as most students are made to memorize the minimum to pass the test (Fairtest, 2007). Usually it can be said that this kind of teaching focuses on the bottom level of Benjamin Bloomâs Cognitive Taxonomy theory: knowledge. Although in some instances, itâs also focused on comprehension, especially in English and often in math and science.

This effect on the cuuriculum is showcased in Virginia high schools mostly during the month of April, where most core classes (History, Science, Math and 11th grade English) are using review booklets, games, essays and practice exams to review the information taught throughout the year so the student can have the information fresh in their minds for the exam. This often results in a loss of overall information being able to be taught in most levels, as the end of the semester is the only part left to cover the last chapters of the book, due to the placement of the test. The student is often limited on modern topics to discuss in subjects such as history and science. Generally, the instruction can either be limited, or become busywork after these tests are done.

 An Individual Standard: 

As Marion Brady states, âThe short answer is that for many people, the main purpose of educating isn't to improve students' thinking skills but to âcover the materialâ in math, science, language arts, social studies, and other school subjects. Covering the material is, of course, importantâ¦ Covering the material makes good sense, then, in terms of contributing to social stability and transmitting useful, important insights. The problem lies in assuming that these are the main purposes of educationâ (Brady 2008). In many rural areas and urban areas, there are many different opportunities that children can experience in learning, such as farms, museums, etc., that standardized education does not specify learning about. For example, in a city such as Norfolk, field trips are able to be taken to a local beach to learn about the SOL that states: âStandard BIO.9 b, c - The student will investigate and understand dynamic equilibria within populations, communities, and ecosystems. Key concepts include b) nutrient cycling and energy flow through ecosystems; and c) succession patterns in ecosystems.â (VA Board of Education, 2003)

In this, the child can learn firsthand the animalâs ecosystem and food web, and construct it themselves. This will teach them not only knowledge, but critical thinking, application, and a number of other key skills needed other than just the absorption of knowledge.

The key to this concept of an individual standard is to take the already existing concepts presented in the SOLâs and apply them to real life application in and outside of the classroom, so that not only can a child retain the information needed for the necessary test, but to also enjoy learning and develop their mental skills.

  My perspective: 

When I began this paper, I admit I was quite bias. I did not like standardized testing at all. I felt it took away from the teaching time at the end of the year, and that my creative efforts in my future classroom would be diminished. But as I thought of the actual reasons behind my reasoning, I realized that these reasons could be reconciled even in my own classroom by my teaching methods. I plan to take this into the class as a reality and use the tests to access knowledge and comprehension, but luckily due to my subject area (English), I will only have one year of students that are taking the test. I want to take the world into my class, and use practical teaching tools to help my students. Hopefully I will get the chance to use this new viewpoint to add a positive attitude to the testing reality.

  References: 

(2007). Standards of Learning Currently in Effect. Retrieved September 23, 2008, from Virginia Department Of Education Web site: http://www.doe.virginia.gov/VDOE/Superintendent/Sols/home.shtml

Brady, Marion (February 2008). Cover the materialâor teach students to think?. Educational Leadership, 65, Retrieved Sept 23, 2008, from http://www.ascd.org/portal/site/ascd/template.MAXIMIZE/menuitem.459dee008f99653fb85516f762108a0c/?javax.portlet.tpst=d5b9c0fa1a493266805516f762108a0c_ws_MX&javax.portlet.prp_d5b9c0fa1a493266805516f762108a0c_journaltypeheaderimage=%2FASCD%2Fimages%2Fmultifiles%2Fpublications%2Felmast.gif&javax.portlet.prp_d5b9c0fa1a493266805516f762108a0c_viewID=article_view&javax.portlet.prp_d5b9c0fa1a493266805516f762108a0c_journalmoid=3709213f53be7110VgnVCM1000003d01a8c0RCRD&javax.portlet.prp_d5b9c0fa1a493266805516f762108a0c_articlemoid=24c9213f53be7110VgnVCM1000003d01a8c0RCRD&javax.portlet.prp_d5b9c0fa1a493266805516f762108a0c_journalTypePersonalization=ASCD_EL&javax.portlet.begCacheTok=token&javax.portlet.endCacheTok=token

Fairtest, ( 2007 Dec 17). What's wrong With standardized tests?. Retrieved September 23, 2008, from The National Center for Fair and Open Testing Web site: http://www.fairtest.org/whats-wrong-standardized-tests

Herman, Joan L.; Golan, Shari (1990). Effects of standardized testing on teachers and learning—another look.. Resources in Education, 27, Retrieved Sept 23, 2008, from http://www.eric.ed.gov/ERICDocs/data/ericdocs2sql/content_storage_01/0000019b/80/23/be/63.pdf

Popham, W. James (March 1999). Why standardized tests don't measure educational quality. Educational Leadership, 56, Retrieved Sept 23, 2008, from http://www.ascd.org/portal/site/ascd/template.MAXIMIZE/menuitem.459dee008f99653fb85516f762108a0c/?javax.portlet.tpst=d5b9c0fa1a493266805516f762108a0c_ws_MX&javax.portlet.prp_d5b9c0fa1a493266805516f762108a0c_journaltypeheaderimage=%2FASCD%2Fimages%2Fmultifiles%2Fpublications%2Felmast.gif&javax.portlet.prp_d5b9c0fa1a493266805516f762108a0c_viewID=article_view&javax.portlet.prp_d5b9c0fa1a493266805516f762108a0c_journalmoid=c01ad6e9c5eaff00VgnVCM1000003d01a8c0RCRD&javax.portlet.prp_d5b9c0fa1a493266805516f762108a0c_articlemoid=c63ad6e9c5eaff00VgnVCM1000003d01a8c0RCRD&javax.portlet.prp_d5b9c0fa1a493266805516f762108a0c_journalTypePersonalization=ASCD_EL&javax.portlet.begCacheTok=token&javax.portlet.endCacheTok=token

VA Board of Education, (2003). Science standards of learning curriculum framework. Retrieved September 23, 2008, from Virginia Board of Education Web site: http://www.doe.virginia.gov/VDOE/Instruction/Science/ScienceCF-BIO.pdf

 ''' Did you get it? '''

1. Which of the following is the official definition of a standardized test? a)a test given by the state to measure aptitude in an area   b)a test in which students take at the end of a unit/year c)a test that helps you get into college and/or pass to the next grade   d)a test that's administered and scored in a predetermined, standard manner 2. Which of the following is a standardized test according to itâs official definition? a)AP tests   b)SAT and SOL c)SOL   d)All of the above 3. Mr. Jones is teaching an 11th grade US history class. The month is April, and he is preparing the students for the SOLâs. Which of the following activities would he most likely not use due to his subject matter to help them prepare for the test? a)Essays   b)Jeopardy game c)Pretest booklet   d)Practice tests 4. Which of the SOLâs in the following science subjects would most likely NOT test comprehension as well as knowledge? a)Biology   b)Chemistry c)Environmental Science   d)Physics

ANSWERS: 1=D 2=D 3=A 4=C