Our Practitioner Article :: Essays Papers

Our Practitioner Article There is always some bandwagon that education seems to jump onto. Unfortunately, sometimes when the majority is in support of the same system, there is a loss of objectivity. They are unable to see both the good and the bad because they are anxious to have developed the "perfect" system. You don’t have to be an educator, but simply a citizen who reads the newspaper or watches the news, to realize that the newest bandwagon is high-stakes testing. In fact those who are parents or have some involvement in a child’s life are most likely seeing the change occurring in the school they are involved with. Some people may argue that testing has always been done. So what is different now? The difference is that now testing (in the form of "high-stakes" testing) is leaving dangerous aftereffects. The end result that may come leaves one even more wary. So, what exactly is high-stakes testing? Is there an exact definition? Personally we believe that one may describe what high-stakes testing is. But, it is more important and more effective to emphasize the unfair strategies high-stakes testing utilizes as well as the disturbing effects it is causing. High-stakes testing is an assessment of students, which carries serious consequences for students or educators. If the student passes, they proceed. If they do not pass, they must repeat the level they are currently at. Why do some people think high-stakes testing is the answer? What are the effects of high-stakes testing? Are there alternatives to high-stakes testing? Fortunately, these are some of the questions we have addressed in this article. High-stakes testing has been implemented in order to "raise the bar for all students and add accountability for academic performance" (Tennessee Department of Education). Many states implement the tests so that they can gather information about student achievement over time. Policy makers have good intentions in that they believe that these tests will improve education. The major goal and hope is that setting high standards of achievement will inspire greater effort on the part of students, teachers, and educational administrators (AERA position statement). As stated previously, many policy makers have good intentions when they implement high-stakes testing. We are not pointing fingers at who is bad and who is good. We are simply pointing out the fact that perhaps the policy makers and society as a whole need to reevaluate what we want from our education system.