1. The Pros and Cons of Standardized Tests
Michelle Rosales

2. Problem Statement
Standardized tests place enormous amount of pressure on teachers, this causes a “teach to the test” classroom setting.

3. What does teaching to the test do?
Test format is used for teaching
Narrows Curriculum
Isolated facts are memorized
Improves Test Taking Skills
What does teaching to the test do?

4. Research Purpose
“The purpose of this research is to understand why standardized testing makes lessons in the classroom unsuccessful.”

5. Significance of the Study
This research is important because standardized tests affect the lessons taught in the classroom. This research speaks for the teachers who teach to the test that require a passing of minimum skills and the students who have a minimum education because of this.
While not all classrooms depict this setting, some teacher do have the ability to raise the bar higher, and in doing so their students surpass any basic skills test. These teachers are scarce in the setting I have seen. This research is based on events that I have observed.

6. How do schools use standardized test?
Ability Grouping
Learning Disability Diagnoses
Retention Assessment
Control Curriculum Content and Teaching Methods

7. Some Positive Aspects Higher income and majority groups
Candidates for gifted and talented
College preparatory classes
Challenging curriculum
Helps teacher determine what to teach which helps manage time
Helps parents determine how their kids perform compared to students across the country

8. Some Negative Aspects Low Income and minority groups
high candidates for retention
given a “watered down” curriculum
pressure to raise scores
decrease time spent in recess which impact on children’s social, emotional, and academic well-being
stress on students can lead to negative health consequences as well as feelings of negativity

9. A Brief History
The earliest record of standardized testing comes from China.
Hopefuls for government jobs had to fill out examinations testing their knowledge of Confucian philosophy and poetry.
Standardized tests have been used to evaluate America's schools since 1965, when the U.S. Elementary and Secondary Education Act became law..

10. How else can we evaluate?
Good observational checklists used by trained teachers
Assessment based student performances on real learning tasks
Trained teams of judges can rate performance using “inter-rater reliability”

11. Do other countries evaluate their students?
The U.S. is the only economically advanced nation to rely heavily on multiple-choice tests.
Other nations use performance-based assessment where students are evaluated on the basis of real work such as essays, projects and activities.
Ironically, because these nations do not focus on teaching to multiple-choice tests, they even score higher than U.S. students on those kinds of tests.

12. Any solution in sight?
Learn all you can about the fundamentals of these types of tests.
Take into account the pros and cons that standardize testing can build.
Until the NCLB law is evaluated and changed the answer is not just quite yet.
No Child Left Behind Law, every student from third to eighth grade and one high school grade must take state tests. That is about 45 million tests to be graded annually.

13. Bibliography
Carter, C. (1999). The case against standardized test. Retrieved from file:///Users/user/Desktop/untitled%20folder/Research%208%20The%20Case%20Against%20Standardized%20Tests%20-%20Article%20by%20Chris%20Carter.webarchive
Fletcher, D. (2009, December 11). Standardized testing. Time, Retrieved fromfile:///Users/user/Desktop/untitled%20folder/%20Research%201%20A%20Brief%20History%20of%20Standardized%20Testing%20-%20TIME.webarchive
How standardized testing damages education . (2007, August 20). Retrieved from file:///Users/user/Desktop/untitled%20folder/Research%202%20How%20Standardized%20Testing%20Damages%20Education%20%7C%20FairTest.webarchive
Khon, A. (2000). Standardized testing and its victims. Retrieved from
Matthews, J. (2006). Just whose idea was all this testing?. The Washington Post, Retrieved from file:///Users/user/Desktop/untitled%20folder/Research%207%20Just%20Whose%20Idea%20Was%20All%20This%20Testing%3F%20-%20washingtonpost.com.webarchive

14. Bibliography cont.
Margie. (2009). Pros and cons of standardized testing. Retrieved from file:///Users/user/Desktop/untitled%20folder/Research%205%20A%20Look%20at%20the%20Pros%20and%20Cons%20of%20Standardized%20Testing.webarchive
Popham, W. (2005, March 5). Standardized test fails the exams. Retrieved from file:///Users/user/Desktop/untitled%20folder/Research%203%20Standardized%20Testing%20Fails%20the%20Exam%20%7C%20Edutopia.webarchive
Pros and cons of NCLB: what research says. (2006). Educational Research, 19(8), Retrieved from file:///Users/user/Desktop/untitled%20folder/Research%206%20Pros%20and%20cons%20of%20NCLB:%20What%20the%20research%20says.webarchive
Standardized tests under fire. (1999). CNN U.S., Retrieved from file:///Users/user/Desktop/untitled%20folder/Research%209%20Standardized%20tests%20under%20fire%20-%20CNN.webarchive
Wood, A. (2007, November 26). The great debate: does prepping for standardized tests pay off?. Retrieved from file:///Users/user/Desktop/untitled%20folder/Research%2010%20The%20Great%20Debate:%20Does%20prepping%20for%20standardized%20tests%20pay%20off%3F%20%7C%20ThreeSixty.webarchive