By: Avery Oquinn
Many colleges have recently decided to go “test blind” meaning, students are not required to submit any standardized test scores. There are several variations of this admissions policy. Some colleges may exempt applicants who have scored above a certain grade point average, others make submitting test scores optional. But why? It has been brought to people's attention that standardized tests like SAT and ACT are not accurate representation of the type a student a person is. While that is true Samantha Clarke, at Hillgrove said, “standardized tests make an equal way of comparing student's applications instead of looking at GPA’s because different schools and teachers all have different ways of grading.” Another student at Hillgrove, who would like to remain anonymous, said “Standardized tests only determine which students are good at taking tests, they offer no meaningful measure of progress, and have not improved student performance.” By these examples you can imagine the discrepancy over colleges going test blind.
Many people say standardized testing provides an accurate measurement of student performance and teacher effectiveness. Others say such a one-size-fits-all approach to assessing academic achievement can be inflexible or even biased. When Adrianna gill was asked her opinion on standardized test, she responded “different factors can affect students' scores, such as students home life's, socioeconomic status, and other personal factors but standardized tests don't allow personal factors to be taken into consideration.” Students from middle to upper class backgrounds are proven to do better on these tests because they have access to tutoring and extra resources that less fortunate students cannot afford or get access to. Even though they do not get equal chances going into the test they still take the same test as all their peers and are expected to do just as good as them. Standardized test score being what gets you into college or not, could be damaging. Standardized tests scores are not predictors of future success.
Compared to regular tests taken in classes, standardized tests contain material from the entire course, and cause students to get overwhelmed with reviewing concepts educated to them throughout the year. This overwhelming amount of information on one test can cause students to get “test stress”. Test stress is a feeling of agitation and distress associated with test taking, which impacts your ability to study or perform on the test. Some anxiety is natural and helps to keep you mentally and physically alert, but too much may cause physical distress, emotional upset, and concentration difficulties. When we asked Hillgrove students about the stress they feel while taking tests, one student said, “I stress before the test about cramming everything I have learned in an entire year into one test and while I take the test, I overthink my answers and end up doing poorly.” Standardized tests are indicators of who is a good test taker vs who is not. People disagree with one test having such a significant impact on their future.
Another argument about standardized tests is they diminish creative thinking in students and teachers. Teachers are being told what to teach and at what time. Leaving little room for fun, interesting ways to teach. Adrianna gill said, “Focusing on certain content and skills, standardized testing can stop teachers from wasting time on doing activities that do not produce needed knowledge and motivate students to excel.” which may work for some students, but others need to be engaged. Taking away students' creativity in the process will not help them succeed in the future.
Standardized tests have many pros and cons to taking them. They could be beneficial in the way students learn and teach students good studying habits, but they can also be unfair and not accurate representations of the student's smarts. Some think the pros outweigh the cons and vice versa. So, what do you think? Should students take mandatory standardized test or not?
Many colleges have recently decided to go “test blind” meaning, students are not required to submit any standardized test scores. There are several variations of this admissions policy. Some colleges may exempt applicants who have scored above a certain grade point average, others make submitting test scores optional. But why? It has been brought to people's attention that standardized tests like SAT and ACT are not accurate representation of the type a student a person is. While that is true Samantha Clarke, at Hillgrove said, “standardized tests make an equal way of comparing student's applications instead of looking at GPA’s because different schools and teachers all have different ways of grading.” Another student at Hillgrove, who would like to remain anonymous, said “Standardized tests only determine which students are good at taking tests, they offer no meaningful measure of progress, and have not improved student performance.” By these examples you can imagine the discrepancy over colleges going test blind.
Many people say standardized testing provides an accurate measurement of student performance and teacher effectiveness. Others say such a one-size-fits-all approach to assessing academic achievement can be inflexible or even biased. When Adrianna gill was asked her opinion on standardized test, she responded “different factors can affect students' scores, such as students home life's, socioeconomic status, and other personal factors but standardized tests don't allow personal factors to be taken into consideration.” Students from middle to upper class backgrounds are proven to do better on these tests because they have access to tutoring and extra resources that less fortunate students cannot afford or get access to. Even though they do not get equal chances going into the test they still take the same test as all their peers and are expected to do just as good as them. Standardized test score being what gets you into college or not, could be damaging. Standardized tests scores are not predictors of future success.
Compared to regular tests taken in classes, standardized tests contain material from the entire course, and cause students to get overwhelmed with reviewing concepts educated to them throughout the year. This overwhelming amount of information on one test can cause students to get “test stress”. Test stress is a feeling of agitation and distress associated with test taking, which impacts your ability to study or perform on the test. Some anxiety is natural and helps to keep you mentally and physically alert, but too much may cause physical distress, emotional upset, and concentration difficulties. When we asked Hillgrove students about the stress they feel while taking tests, one student said, “I stress before the test about cramming everything I have learned in an entire year into one test and while I take the test, I overthink my answers and end up doing poorly.” Standardized tests are indicators of who is a good test taker vs who is not. People disagree with one test having such a significant impact on their future.
Another argument about standardized tests is they diminish creative thinking in students and teachers. Teachers are being told what to teach and at what time. Leaving little room for fun, interesting ways to teach. Adrianna gill said, “Focusing on certain content and skills, standardized testing can stop teachers from wasting time on doing activities that do not produce needed knowledge and motivate students to excel.” which may work for some students, but others need to be engaged. Taking away students' creativity in the process will not help them succeed in the future.
Standardized tests have many pros and cons to taking them. They could be beneficial in the way students learn and teach students good studying habits, but they can also be unfair and not accurate representations of the student's smarts. Some think the pros outweigh the cons and vice versa. So, what do you think? Should students take mandatory standardized test or not?
