MEASURING

TESTING ELICITS STRONG STUDENT OPINIONS ...

Number 2 pencil, a quiet room, a testing booklet, and your entire future laying out in front of you on a 3-page answer sheet. ACT and SAT, are simple standardized tests used for college entrance and scholarships. In American education systems, to be looked upon as an intelligent individual, students must post a high grade point average. Despite what kind of student someone is or the circumstances they live with, every child is required to take multiple-choice based tests, and this form of testing can be viewed as either fair or unfair.

No matter how these tests are thought of, these are the conditions every child must currently deal with, hindering the grades and opportunities of certain students. Although standardized testing is an efficient way of assessing student achievement across the country, the extent of standardized testing creates significant levels of stress and anxiety in the lives of many, overpowering and dictating their futures, time, and mental health. These tests are used to assess each student’s academic per- formance,implemented throughout almost all education systems. In other words, this form of testing is the doorway to success and ticket to future accomplishments.

This is an unfair measurement of success because not all learners are the same.

“I’ve never been good at standardized tests. They stress me out and give me anxiety on top of all the other studying I have to do,” junior Lauren Frumkin said.

Major universities use these test scores when finalizing acceptance decisions. Universities also base the largest academic scholarships off of tests such as the ACT or SAT. It is normalized in schools like BV West to have “perfect” ACT scores.

What students must know is that a score does not dictate their futures. In addition to or even in place of standardized testing there are multiple subjective criteria that could be considered as determinant of a student’s future success. These factors include work ethic, as well as involvement and motivation. grade point average is a better measure of success for some students who work extremely hard but can’t prove this to be true through their ability to take a test.