Essay about Schools Must Reduce Their Use of Standard Tests

I’m sure you have felt personally victimized by the law of No Child Left Behind and some sort of state-mandated standardized testing. Growing up in Pennsylvania, we had the PSSA’s, 4 Sights, and Keystone Exams. They always had felt trivial, but they did serve some purpose as far as immediate impact to our school days. The use of standardized testing as a quantitative tool of measuring student’s performance took off in 2002 with the passing of the No Child Left Behind Act (â€Å"Standardized Tests,†2003). Standardized testing was part of the initiative to become the highest academically ranked country in the world, surpassing the current highest ranked country of China. The ultimate goal of NCLB was to ensure that all students score a†¦show more content†¦Sometimes, teaching to the test may not be as terrible as we think. Having standardized testing focus on essential content and skills that student’s need to master to be prosperous in society is what should be the basis of NCLB. (â€Å"Standardized Tests,† 2003). The exams should also provide good insight as to what subjects schools need to focus more forms of remediation on to improve the education standards of students (â€Å"Standardized Tests,† 2003). Standardized testing also helps schools that desp erately need extra funding. When used for the RIGHT reasons, this extra funding gives tremendous advantage to the students in general; especially those who are economically disadvantaged. With all these controversies over NCLB and standardized testing, it makes you wonder how the most educated country in the world is able to successfully utilize standardized testing. I started researching China’s academic policies, and what I found was surprisingly normal. One of the most recent education reforms passed in China seems uncommonly liberal for such a conservative country. New rules such as no homework, reducing testing, and the prevention of expediting the process of learning seem so mind-bottling simple (Strauss, 2013). What makes them so much more academically prosperous than us? Personally, I think it has a lot to do with our mismatch of culture. In our every-man-for-himselfShow MoreRelatedCommon Core Ineffectiveness1022 Words   |  5 PagesThe Common Core State Standards (CCSS) was first implemented in 2010, nine years after I graduated from high school. Although I wasn’t personally affected by the new academic standards, it has a direct impact on the current and future generation of leaders, innovators, and world changers including my future children. The initial purpose of the Common Core Standards is to set high-quality learning goals designed to prepare students to be college and career ready. Given the current controversies surroundingRead MoreThe Harmful Effects of No Child Left Behind1420 Words   |  6 Pagespublic schools by introducing accountability. Supporters of the act claim that it will increase the performance of all school children by raising the standards and allowing parents greater freedom in choosing the school they want their child to attend. The act also puts in place a system of punishment for schools if their student body does not perform to the standards set down by the National government (NCLB act). As well as increasing standards, this act also encourages teachers to use a curriculumRead MoreCommon Core Should Be Enforced Across The United States1523 Words   |  7 Pagesidea, it is unnecessary , that America has done just fine without it. The Common Core is not working how it should and schools should go back to the way it was before. Many professors and researchers agree that the Common Core does not work and might even be hurting the youth of America. Parents who disagree with the Common Core have started pulling their children out of public school resulting in national education to be even less standardized, which is the opposite affect than what the Common CoreRead MoreInstructional Practices for Standards-Based Curriculum Essay1575 Words   |  7 PagesFOR STANDARDS-BASED Instructional Practices for Standards-Based Curriculum Brandi R. Woods Grand Canyon University EDA 561 - Curriculum Development for School Improvement October 24, 2010 Instructional Practices for Standards-Based Curriculum George W. Bush put into action the No Child Left Behind Act to ensure that all children were giving the right education and succeeding. With this, many states adopted a standard-based curriculum approach that required for all schools to haveRead MoreThe No Child Left Behind Act1124 Words   |  5 Pages(NCLB) was authorized by and signed into law in 2002. NCLB was a reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) of 1965. NCLB was meant to hold schools to higher standards, enforce accountability, and close achievement gaps that had existed in education since ESEA was enacted. Nevertheless, the rigorous standards and goals set forth under NCLB were never attained. ESEA Flexibility could be attained from the U.S. Department of Education starting in 2012. The accountability plansRead MoreEssay on Aca Task 302.2.3-01-081674 Words   |  7 Pages1. The most advantageous filing status for spouse A and spouse B to use is married filing jointly. 1. Spouse A and B may only choose from the married filing jointly or married filing separately statuses. Under married filing separately the spouses would start accruing taxes against their income sooner. For example under married filing separately a spouse would only be able to earn $8,925.00 of taxable income before they would be progressed to the next tier of the income tax bracket. Under marriedRead MoreImproving Student Performance While Addressing Student Learning Needs774 Words   |  4 Pagestalented students. It makes sometimes difficult for teachers to meet all students needs. Some of the students are learning quickly and some – need extra help and extra time. How can a teacher help students to reach the same academic goals and standards? Probably, data-driven instruction, an efficient approach when students’ performance data is used to improve their learning, might become the solution. March (2006) defines data-driven instructions as the systematic collection, analysis, and applicationRead MoreStandardized Tests With End Of Year Subject Tests1575 Words   |  7 Pagesmoment in the high school. She needed to walk around the stage to the flash of the cameras and the smiles of her family like her classmates. So she collected her proud family members form the Chicago and Washington to come to share in her joy. The problem is that she had not passed one of the four subject regions in the graduation test of the state, which students must pass to receive the regular diploma. She is not alone. Lots of the students failed during the graduation test across the state. (TorresRead MoreNo Child Left Behind Act Essay1646 Words   |  7 Pagesteachers were blamed for low test scores and failing schools. However, many did not taken into consideration overall what was needed in order for the teachers to successfully teach and for the children to retain information (United, 2010). This raises the issue of addressing budget concerns. Teachers were not given enough federal funds to obtain materials to successfully teach children. When there was not enough federal funds the amount of materials given to the schools was not acceptable, leavingRead MoreThe Importance of Driving Education1057 Words   |  4 Pagesfor all drivers before they get their driving license. Driving education is a course of study, as for high-school students, teaches the techniques of driving a vehicle, along with basic vehicle maintenance, safety precautions, and traffic regulations and laws. In Malaysia, all drivers need to pass two tests to get their driving license which are rules and regulation test as well as driving test. However, in a sign of the times, people changed, culture changed, and society changed. Nowadays, many teenagers