What standardized tests really do to schools
As an eighth-grade student, I am on the brink of a grueling, three-week period of standardized testing featuring state and nationwide mandatory tests such as the CAASP, SBAC, STAR, MARS, Scholastic Reading Tests, Class Placement Tests and Learning Diagnostics.
I will be taking tests in 90-minute sessions, which changes the class schedules to accommodate enough time for each of my classes to complete the all of the tests I need. Therefore, even if I am not in a class for a subject that is taking a test, I will have either an extremely prolonged or a dramatically shortened class period. The point is that at every moment of every day, for seven hours a day for 15 days over the course of three weeks, someone at my school will be taking a test.
Even after all of the preparation, I was and still am a little unclear about why I have to take the tests. I have asked questions at school and gotten vague responses about “the state.” I had to hear the truth from others outside of school and, per my discoveries, I was surprised at how little the test actually has to do with my learning. The school gets ranked based on how well their students do on the standardized tests and their ranking affects how much funding the school gets from the state. I know that this is not 1+1=2, but it is still the general idea.
Therefore, what ends up happening is teachers actually teach their students how to take the test and not necessarily the curriculum the students are supposed to be learning. It is unclear whether the teachers are encouraged to teach the students the tips and tricks of how to get a good score on a standardized test rather than the educational curriculum that they should be teaching their students. I wonder if they just do it for the school’s benefit, by their own prerogative.
I am unsure why the purpose of the test is kept from me; it is as if I am expected to act like an adult, but get treated like a child. I am also unsure of why the officials in the district and in the state expect the students like me to take tests that a). make me nervous, b). put pressure on me, and c). push me to “try my hardest” without fully understanding why.
From April 5, 2015, to May 1, 2015, aside from a one-week vacation, I spent every day in class reviewing the English CAASPP practice test in preparation for the officially scheduled CAASPP test, to be taken during the testing period at Ralston Middle School.
The lesson on testing went over the two online practice tests for the CAASPP test on the California TAC official website in exquisite detail. I was taught how to use time efficiently, how to utilize the tools provided, how to understand methods for answering questions, what types of questions are on the actual test, how long should be taken to answer each type of question, and so on. I can see that perhaps these are useful skills to know for the future, for more important testing, but it certainly felt rushed, awkward and not necessarily helpful.
I’m sad to say that the official unit I missed that should have been taught at this time is journalism/speech. Instead of an in-depth version, I got a quick, shallow lesson based on the WikiHow instructions on writing an article, which was disappointing.
As of now, it is painfully clear that something needs to be done, plans need to be rethought and everyone needs to stop and think. I want all the players in the game to reevaluate what standardized testing really does to states, schools, and the minds of students.
I just want to know why we have to take these tests. But someone told us to be quiet because there’s no talking while testing is in session.
Talia Fine is an eighth-grader and student body president of Ralston Middle School. She lives in Belmont with her parents, sisters, and Lucy, her dog.
