Do Standardized Tests Measure Intelligence? On average each year, every school in the United States takes over 600 standardized tests. Students in grades three through twelve are taking up to 20 standardized tests each year. Many high school students take over 20 tests a year due to the SAT’s and ACT’s in addition to state mandated tests. However, 42 states have banned standardized tests for students in grades kindergarten through second grade because educators believe that children under the age of seven can not give an accurate measure of intelligence from a standardized test. In addition, the No Child Left Behind program was designed to help disadvantaged students perform on grade level therefore, these students will be able to perform
…show more content…
Education reporter Jay Mathews stated, “Teaching to the test simply means aligning classroom instruction and curriculum to standards; the practice is a good one that should be supported.”(Jerald). Many teachers have adopted this view too. The No Child Left Behind program, NCLB, started in 2002, and puts testings as a main priority. NCLB requires all states to set goals for a school's overall achievement as well as for each subgroup. These requirements are measured by the performance on each state’s standardized test. NCLB has changed what is being taught, what tests students are taking, the way teachers can teach, and how money is spent for …show more content…
Standardized tests can measure intelligence in specific subjects. James Popham gave the following example, “a 4th grade child is performing really well in language arts (94th percentile) and mathematics (89th percentile), but rather poorly in science (39th percentile) and social studies (26th percentile). Such information, because it illuminates a child's strengths and weaknesses, can be helpful not only in dealing with their child's teacher, but also in determining at-home assistance.”(Popham). Other disagree, and believe that standardized testing does not measure intelligence. Brennan Paiva Azevedo points out that students have been taught how to eliminate answers and get the answer correct without actually mastering the content. (Azevedo). This causes one to question if standardized tests measure intelligence.
Due to the intensity and the tendency to teach to standardized tests, teens become stressed, and the tests do not provide an accurate measure of intelligence. Standardized testing has been around for over a hundred years, and causes stress in teens.They do not give an accurate measure of intelligence, even though, they are the main focus in most classroom. Students take multiple standardized tests every year and overall
Education reporter Jay Mathews stated, “Teaching to the test simply means aligning classroom instruction and curriculum to standards; the practice is a good one that should be supported.”(Jerald). Many teachers have adopted this view too. The No Child Left Behind program, NCLB, started in 2002, and puts testings as a main priority. NCLB requires all states to set goals for a school's overall achievement as well as for each subgroup. These requirements are measured by the performance on each state’s standardized test. NCLB has changed what is being taught, what tests students are taking, the way teachers can teach, and how money is spent for …show more content…
Standardized tests can measure intelligence in specific subjects. James Popham gave the following example, “a 4th grade child is performing really well in language arts (94th percentile) and mathematics (89th percentile), but rather poorly in science (39th percentile) and social studies (26th percentile). Such information, because it illuminates a child's strengths and weaknesses, can be helpful not only in dealing with their child's teacher, but also in determining at-home assistance.”(Popham). Other disagree, and believe that standardized testing does not measure intelligence. Brennan Paiva Azevedo points out that students have been taught how to eliminate answers and get the answer correct without actually mastering the content. (Azevedo). This causes one to question if standardized tests measure intelligence.
Due to the intensity and the tendency to teach to standardized tests, teens become stressed, and the tests do not provide an accurate measure of intelligence. Standardized testing has been around for over a hundred years, and causes stress in teens.They do not give an accurate measure of intelligence, even though, they are the main focus in most classroom. Students take multiple standardized tests every year and overall