In an article by College Professor Raymond Gerson titled “Is Standardized Testing Overvalued?” Gerson demands that elementary, middle and high schools in the U.S. reevaluate how much importance teachers put into standardized testing because they are ultimately not preparing students to be “critical and creative thinkers.”
Gerson explains that “there is nothing wrong with some standardized testing.” However, he describes how teachers spend most of their time teaching for one standardized test and are missing the concept of helping students to apply that knowledge to every day work and life problems. I strongly agree with Gerson on this concept because sometimes we spend all our time in class focusing on one big test that does very little for our education in the long run.
These standardized scores are used to determine student success and also if a school gets a passing or failing grade. This puts lots of pressure on not only students, but also the teachers and school districts. I don’t think having standardized testing is an efficient way to evaluate students because having a good education “cannot be measured only by standardized test scores.
Standardized testing is not allowing teachers to simply just teach, but instead they’re being forced to spend most of their time doing basic skills and drilling students to prepare for a standardized test. Being drilled or forced to memorize certain material for a specific test is less motivating for a student and does not encourage them to take that “crammed” information on with them throughout their life.
Many students, including me, can relate to the pressure and stress that one feels throughout the school year preparing for a standardized test. I think that we should decrease the importance in these tests and it will increase the amount of well educated students.
The emphasis schools are putting on standardized testing should definitely be reconsidered and reevaluated because it could overall be affecting the success students are having with their education and learning strategies.
Gerson explains that “there is nothing wrong with some standardized testing.” However, he describes how teachers spend most of their time teaching for one standardized test and are missing the concept of helping students to apply that knowledge to every day work and life problems. I strongly agree with Gerson on this concept because sometimes we spend all our time in class focusing on one big test that does very little for our education in the long run.
These standardized scores are used to determine student success and also if a school gets a passing or failing grade. This puts lots of pressure on not only students, but also the teachers and school districts. I don’t think having standardized testing is an efficient way to evaluate students because having a good education “cannot be measured only by standardized test scores.
Standardized testing is not allowing teachers to simply just teach, but instead they’re being forced to spend most of their time doing basic skills and drilling students to prepare for a standardized test. Being drilled or forced to memorize certain material for a specific test is less motivating for a student and does not encourage them to take that “crammed” information on with them throughout their life.
Many students, including me, can relate to the pressure and stress that one feels throughout the school year preparing for a standardized test. I think that we should decrease the importance in these tests and it will increase the amount of well educated students.
The emphasis schools are putting on standardized testing should definitely be reconsidered and reevaluated because it could overall be affecting the success students are having with their education and learning strategies.
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