NationStates Jolt Archive

About 2 weeks ago I finished my 10th grade terra nova testing - the biggest waste of time. As a result I wrote an opinion piece for my school paper about how standardized testing is ineffective. Your thoughts on standardized testing?

I completely agree with your statement. It is not well rounded enough to be effective. It does not test your overall knowledge only the knowledge they want you to know.

No, never!!!

(Firebombs the MCAS)

It is a complete waste of time, both for the student as well as the school system.

as a gr 12 student that has done gr. 3 testing, gr. 6 testing, and gr. 10 literacy tests, i agree they are a waste of time. They spend all that money makig these tests and distributing them. I know for the gr. 10 literacy tests if you can't read instructions properly you can't pass, they even created a course for the people that can't pass! MONEY!!! the money they are spending to see if students are "literate" could be used for more BOOKS so they can teach students to be literate then they would not need the pest, i mean test. I think they are a waste of time, although i'm not comlaining about the time I get off, as well as everyone but the gr. 10s, when the testing is taking place, but the test itself is a complete waste of time. I know people that don't follow instructions properly, and it's for that reason alone they can not pass. And if they can not pass, they can not graduate, and on ein particular is on gr. 12 this year and i believe he has yet to pass the stupid test and he couldn't get the course because it conflicted with his other courses.

I work with someone who took the literacy course simply because he moved to Ontario and didn't have to take the test where he lived before and he decided he didn't want to write it. The course gives you both a credit as well as passing the test without needing to take it. He is in this class and says even the name of the test is stupid. Literacy test. It implies if you don't pass you are illiterate. He also said the people in his class are literate, most of them are very good writers, they just can't follow intructions.

I finished my testing 2 days ago, it might help if they did stuff from this year not 2 years ago. :headbang: idots :headbang:

Fuck no, it isn't effective. It's lame and very condescending.

It helps you learn things. It's very effective.

I hate it, especcially in britian, from now on I have a important test ever year until I'm 18 at least, I've got my...GCSE's, AS, A2 to look forwards too, I've already done KS1 SATS KS2 SATS, 11+, and KS3 SATS.

Don't you just love the goverment?

Standardized testing is for the most part ineffective. As someone in a Teacher Education sequence at my university (being educated to educate I guess I could say), I have to take a series of standardized tests. The first of which was a 'Basic Skills' test, much similar to the ACT's (guess where I live), that I was required to pass in order to get anywhere. I did, but with 90 questions relating to reading passages, as in 'which mood is this verb in', the test was rather condescending, as Potaria stated. In the next couple years, I will have to take a Content-Area and Pedegogical Exam. The only advantage I can see to these to test is that they will prove to the State Board that I know what I am going to teach, as well as how I am going to teach it. I am not looking forward to them based on the Basic Skills test though.

Standardized tests don't prove a thing. Look at California's High School Exit Exam. When they first implemented it for my class' year, it was so easy that if you could pass an algebra 1 course and understand English with some level of competence you shouldn't have had any problem passing. And yet, lots of people across the state did! As an example of how easy it was to pass, one of my friends completely blew off one of the essays, basically said "Eff you!" for his response, and he still passed! I think that part of the problem surrounding standardized tests (here in California, at least) is that they make them with the thought that everyone who is in high school is going to go on to college, which is completely not true. There just isn't enough focus on trade and technical high schools here, at least in the area where I live.

yeah, those tests dont really cover things your really know......and the sad thing is now a days, all the teachers are teaching what is going to be on these tests, so, when kids take it they will do good and it will look good for the school, which in return means higher pay, cause the school gets more funding, the better kids do on these tests, but the stuff on the tests isnt the really important stuff, its just the basic things that you need to know, not the stuff in detail.

I've always felt that standardized testing is ineffective. They never tell you what you should do once you get your results and they never tell you what you should do. I think that if you make us take these expensive tests, that there should be a point to them. There should be something they are trying to accomplish. I've always flet that alot of the things they measure are indicative just in the classroom. For instance, whether or not a child's reading level is proficient or how well they can perform mathenatical formulas. There just seems a gap between what the testing is supposed to accomplish and what the teacher is supposed to accomplish. :confused: