This week is ISASP week which means lots of testing. High school students in general don’t like these tests, and they can cause lots of stress and mental problems. But the real question is do these tests that we take every spring even affect us? Do we, as the students, really need to take these tests to see how well we are learning?
Both sides of this argument for and against standardized testing have lots to say. First let's look at for standardized testing. Lots of people say that standardized testing helps students and teachers. This can help teachers by telling them what they need to do better next year for teaching. With students, this can tell them what classes they might have struggled in. Another way they could help students is they can see how they learn the best and from whom. Students can see where their strengths and weaknesses are in school and how to work with and around those to excel in academics.
But on the other hand, these tests that take at least an hour or more for most students and can cause lots of stress and might not even give adequate data. When taking these tests, students can possibly get anxious or stressed because they put a lot of pressure on themselves to do well. They can have test anxiety and this can make the data skewed, which would mean that there is no point in even taking them. Because we aren’t given good data this would mean that every year they aren’t teaching the right things to students.
In my opinion we should have some sort of testing but not standardized tests. I believe that they don’t do much for our education and there are other ways that students can get adequate data to better their learning experience. Such as: giving sample questions, this way students don’t have to take hour long tests. This would give better results and data for the states to teach us better. Another way could be just looking at students grades throughout the year.
Questions:
Do you think that these tests help us learn better?
Would you rather take sample tests or standardized test?
Do you think that your ISASP score reflects how well you are learning?
https://standardizedtests.procon.org/
https://www.usnews.com/education/k12/articles/opting-out-of-standardized-testing-what-to-know
Replies
Great, timely topic choice and well done overall Emercyn!
I do not think that these tests are helpful at all for highschool students. I think they waste a whole week of school, because some people don't have any tests on some days, so they pretty much just go to school to sit in a bunch of studyhalls.
I don't think that they help us learn better, I think that it helps to track our progress and to compare us to our peers at academic levels. Our isasp tests defiantly reflect how well we are learning. If they didn't there would be no point in taking them.
In my personal opinion, I believe that standardized testing serves little to no benefit to the students which take said tests. I understand why we take these test, and that it is supposed to inform administration and the state of how we are learning, but I just do not think that it accurately displays our learning.
No, I do not think that the standardized tests benfit our learning, and no I don't believe that the score reflects how well I am learning. Sometimes the test includes stuff we haven't learned yet, so I don't think it is an accurate representation of our learning.
I do not enjoy the standardized test. I think they take too long and interrupt our regular learning schedule. I believe that these tests could provide good information to the schools and states. However, I believe that these test take to long to be used for good.
I think that they interupt our learning schedule too. In the time it took most people to take 4 tests with the exception of sophmores taking 5 we took out a whole week of learning. But if you keep learning while these tests are happening it can just add to the stress of them.
I do not think these standardized test benefit our learning. I do not think that ISASP majorly show how well we are learning. This is because some people do not take test well, and the test sometimes include things that we will learn later in the year.
I don't believe they benefit our learning either. There are other ways that the school can get information on how well we are learning. Maybe by just looking at grades and students who put the work in but still aren't doing good. Look at them to see how students are learning.
I think that standardized tests are pointless and serve no purpose. I think that we should just get rid of these tests. We don't get our test scores back for months on end which is ridiculous. I think that our ISASP score does not reflect our learning at all. We should just skip ISASP.