Monday, July 27, 2009

High-stakes assessments


The question of whether high-stakes assessments improve learning in schools is a controversial issue that is seen in schools today. Many teachers in school districts feel that they spend more time testing their students than instructing them. Should high-stakes assessments determine if students can progress to the next grade if the student has passed every test given by the teacher? When standard tests are given in each grade and the students perform poorly on the test the teachers and the administrators are the ones that are blamed. Therefore, the teachers that work in schools with high-stakes assessments are encouraged to focus their learning activities in the classroom on what the students will be tested on the standard tests. I feel that if students can pass the tests that they are given by their teachers in their schools to move on the next grade or graduate from college is the standard that schools should enforce. I do not feel that one test can decide this capability of learning that a student has. I agree with Ken Jones when he argues in the issue Do High-Stakes Assessments Improve Learning, “the current accountability approach, relying on the use of high-stakes tests mandated from above, is detrimental to local school improvement and erodes democratic principles” (Noll, J.W., 15th ed., pp. 132-133). I also feel that when schools use high-stakes test that it takes away from what students would normally learn in a certain class because the teachers are focusing on what the high-stakes test require the student to learn.
According to American Education, “both teachers and administrators are motivated to ensure that classroom instruction complies to academic standards and provides students with the specific knowledge and skills required by the tests” (Spring J., 2008, p. 219). Although high-stakes tests are a driving force in the schools systems I feel that they are limiting the amount of information that students should be learning in the classroom. Funding in schools is another issue that is associated with high-stakes assessments. According to last weeks debate, “if schools do not comply with standardized testing, they lose funds. Teachers and Principals gets bonuses for improved scores.” The amount of financial aid and federal powers over local schools does not match up. The money that is invested in education needs to be more effective. I feel that high-stakes testing puts to much pressure on students because they are threatened with the consequences of failure with just one test to determine this. Not only does it put an immense amount of stress on the students it also puts stress on the teachers because the majority of the time they are blamed if the students do not pass the tests. Therefore, high-stakes assessments are not an effective way of teaching.

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