Some students who get lower test scores are excluded from valuable opportunities. Standardized tests damage mainstream social institutions in three ways. They encourage test-takers--that is to say, most people--to cultivate a narrow form of intelligence. They relegate many people whose intelligence is not narrow to low-level jobs. And they contribute to the slow decline of the societies that rely on testing to select undergraduates, lawyers, firefighters, and police. This decline has been especially perceptible in sectors such as education and law, where narrow intelligence is a serious handicap (Professor Subotnik, 1). It could also harm society by fomenting class division and resentment, and by placing poorly trained people in positions for which they are ill prepared. Scientists know that intelligence includes more than the narrow range of abilities that paper-and-pencil tests measure. Not only is discrimination a problem but teachers put too much emphasis on these …show more content…
It should require a performance that will still have currency after formal schooling ends. The concept is new only in some of the more academic subjects. Physical education, art, music, and many vocational programs have a lengthy tradition of assessing authentic work samples. One reason to teach children arithmetic is so that they can carry out transactions with money in stores, banks, etc, But arithmetic tests are seldom designed to simulate either the stimuli or the responses involved in making change for a purchase of $2.89 out of a $5 bill (Tanner, 2). You may make a simple mistake on a test even though when you are in the real life situation you might be able to do it with your eyes closed. Authentic assessment practices, permit the educator not only a richer evaluation of students and their capabilities, but they also support and transform the processes of teaching and learning (Sheppard, 3). In making overall assessments about individuals accomplishments, it is necessary to consider not just one performance (even if it is judged by multiple criteria), but a variety of performances over time. Traditional testing, especially standardized testing, minimizes reliability problems by limiting the human element in assessment. One need not be