Standardized testing: an ongoing debate in the United States
Article Sidebar
Main Article Content
Abstract
This article discusses the ongoing debate surrounding standardized testing in the United States. The article presents arguments for and against standardized testing as a measure of intelligence and educational achievement. The article examines the number of mandated tests that U.S. students take each year and the accuracy and legitimacy of using standardized testing to measure cognitive growth. The article also explores alternative ways of measuring intelligence and potential and considers the impact of standardized testing on college admissions. Overall, the article argues that the current emphasis on standardized testing in the U.S. public education system may not be an accurate measure of cognitive growth and may not provide equal opportunities for all students to succeed.
Downloads
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).
- Student authors waive FERPA rights for only the publication of the author submitted works.
Specifically: Students of Indiana University East voluntarily agree to submit their own works to The Journal of Student Research at Indiana University East, with full understanding of FERPA rights and in recognition that for this one, specific instance they understand that The Journal of Student Research at Indiana University East is Public and Open Access. Additionally, the Journal is viewable via the Internet and searchable via Indiana University, Google, and Google-Scholar search engines.
References
References
Desilver, D. (2017, February 15). U.S. students’ academic achievement still lags that of their peers in many other countries. Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2017/02/15/u-s-students-internationally-math-science/
European Agency for Special Needs and Inclusive Education, 2020. European Agency Statistics on Inclusive Education: 2018 Dataset Cross-Country Report. (J. Ramberg, A. Lénárt, and A. Watkins, eds.). Odense, Denmark. https://www.europeanagency.org/resources/publications/european-agency-statistics-inclusive-education-2018-dataset-cross-country
Erickson, F., & Espinoza, M. L. (2021). The Anthropology of Learning: A continuing story. Anthropology & Education Quarterly, 52(2), 123–134. https://doi.org/10.1111/aeq.12379
Fehlbaum, L. V., Borbás, R., Paul, K., Eickhoff, S. B., & Raschle, N. M. (2021). Early and late neural correlates of mentalizing: ALE meta-analyses in adults, children, and adolescents. Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience, 52(2). https://doi.org/10.1093/scan/nsab105
Hancock, L. (2011, September). Why are Finland’s schools successful? Smithsonian. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/why-are-finlands-schools-successful-49859555/
Kubatzky, L., & Benner, M. (2023). Inclusive, Innovative Assessments for Students With Learning Disabilities. https://ncld.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/Inclusive_Innovative_Assessments_for_Students_With_Learning_Disabilities.NCLD_.Final_.pdf
Layton, L. (2015, October 24). A study says standardized testing is overwhelming the nation’s public schools. The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/study-says-standardized-testing-is-overwhelming-nations-public-schools/2015/10/24/8a22092c-79ae-11e5-a958-d889faf561dc_story.html
Naughton, J. (2022). Testocracy: The undemocratic system of standardized testing in the United States. Kansas Law Review, 31(2), 267–305. https://lawjournal.ku.edu/
Odell, S. (2022, October 18). What is the smartest age? TED. https://www.ted.com/talks/shannon_odell_what_s_the_smartest_age
OECD. (2019). PISA 2018 results (Volume I): What students know and can do. OECD Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1787/5f07c754-en
Sahlberg, P. (2021). Finnish Lessons 3.0: What can the world learn from educational change in Finland? Teachers College Press.