Standardized Testing Argumentative Analysis

My heart pounded. My knees shook. I feared the other twenty students sitting around me could hear my heart leaping out of my chest as I read each question on the SAT. When I looked around the room, I realized they all had the same look of terror on their faces as I did. This test determined the rest of our futures; whether we’d get into the college of our dreams or not. These tests, which provide the proctors with instructions for students who vomit on their tests, cause severe stress on young children, even those who do not attend high school yet. In lieu of the overwhelming stress caused by these tests, students should not be required to take standardized tests. Is it true standardized tests don’t correctly show a student’s knowledge? Is it true most schools allocate more than a quarter of the year’s instruction on test preparation? Is it true students are not learning from taking tests? Yes, all of these are true, yet the average student takes 113 required tests between prekindergarten and twelfth grade. A report conducted by the National Research Council shows there is no evidence that test-based programs work effectively. In addition, these tests fail to properly exhibit a student’s knowledge. No test exists to show a student’s creativity, self-discipline, leadership, and knowledge beyond algebra and grammar. Excessive test taking only teaches children how to pass a test and fails to prepare them for the real world tasks that await them. Standardized tests also affect teachers because of the pressure they feel to “teach the test”, which in turn causes the actual amount of high-cognitive content in the curriculum to decrease. Teachers also feel the stress of these tests as their performances are based on their student’s ability to test. As a result, some teachers resorted to altering test answers in order to boost their students’ scores. Removing the requirement of standardized testing is fair to all concerned. …show more content…
Students will certainly agree; they would no longer have to sit through dreadful hours of test taking. One study showed that the average eleventh grader spent 27 days of the year testing. By removing testing, the amount of stress and anxiety felt by students would significantly decrease. Due to testing, students may look at themselves as failures as early as kindergarten. Financially, this decision would appeal to both parents and taxpayers. Just in the state of Texas, 88 million dollars were spent on these tests in 2012. In addition, doing away with standardized tests would give non-English speakers and special education students fair chances at success and post-secondary education. Eliminating standardized tests will build goodwill and better friendships. Without these tests, a wider range of students may obtain a better education. With more students attending college, our society will become more educated and capable to …show more content…
Students are being put through long hours of coloring in circles and racking their brain for memorized answers. These tests make many students dread going to school. If you ask a group of students why they hate school, they would tell you because they’re not actually learning anything, just memorizing the necessities for a good test score. If teachers didn’t have to worry about the tests, they would actually be able to teach the students. The amount of students who like school would increase because they would be learning material necessary to their future careers and