Over the past couple of days, I have defined standardized tests. I have also listed the factors that are argued for and against standardized testing. I am now a kindergarten teacher and I do not have to deal with standardized testing on the same level as third through eighth grades. My class participates in Dibels testing, which is individually given more often in shorter intervals. However, I taught eighth grade for four years and participated in standardized testing each year. I feel that standardized testing in my district affects the students’ individual academics very little. The test results are not … Continue reading →

My past two articles have discussed the factors against standardized testing. While it may seem that there are many cons to standardized testing, there are also pros. If standardized testing were all cons, I would hope that it would not still be around. Many agree that some type of assessment is needed to measure if children are learning the required material. This assessment is not just to test what a child has learned but more what a teacher has taught. It would be very easy to come in and ‘play’ with the students all day. Knowing that there will be … Continue reading →

Yesterday, I defined standardized tests and began detailing why some believe that standardized tests are not fair. Today, I would like to continue the discussion by adding even more factors that do not support standardized testing. Some believe that the tests are unreliable due to score variations. A reliable test will produce the same results each time the test is taken. However, standardized tests must factor in a “measurement error”. The results may be different each time the test is taken due to the child’s ability to focus because of mental and emotional factors. Therefore, a child may be able … Continue reading →

In my last article, I discussed the standardized testing that my district just completed. I also discussed how some research suggests that standardized tests are not fair. Other research places great value in standardized tests’ results. In this article, I would like to look at the first opinion of the tests. Why do some say that that standardized tests are not worth the paper it takes to publish them? One argument against standardized tests is that they assume all children have had the same experiences. While most children in a class can relate to the same type of living, this … Continue reading →

Last week my district participated in the annual state assessment testing. This time of year is always stressful for teachers. We begin having meetings about what we should or should not do during the testing. There are rules for basically any occurrences that could happen. The state has a procedure for everything from students who come in late to students who throw-up on their test. Yes! I actually had this to happen one year. We had to place the test inside a Ziploc bag and return it to ensure that we did not keep the test to use as a … Continue reading →