Why Standardized Tests Are Unfair

Every individual that has attended high school or undergone the college process can recall taking grueling, tiresome standardized tests, such as the ACT and SAT. It is no secret that if you want to get into a reputable university, it is essential that you take either one of these standardized tests. However, they have fueled debate about their effectiveness in showing a student’s potential as well as how ethical they are in child development. Some argue that standardized tests as they are known today in the education system are a “convoluted and inconsistent system of control” constructed to coerce children to act accordingly with normative adult expectations of behavior (Reeves 230). On the other hand, proponents of standardized tests assert their importance because they help education leaders see what effect schools are having on students and they help students pinpoint areas for improvement. Additionally, there are critics that fall into the middle of debate, that believe that standardized testing can be useful to students, if it is looked at through the right lens. It is no secret that there are flaws in our education system, one of which is the way that standardized tests are designed. While these tests can be very helpful, they negatively impact child development and promote the idea that the more successful a student is the more value they hold. Lastly, standardized tests do not assess all of the qualities that are an important measure of achievement. There are certain drawbacks that exist with the way standardized tests are utilized today.

Standardized testing negatively impacts child development because they are a system of control. They tell children how to act and what is expected of them to be a functioning member of society, without leaving much room for children to develop their own idea of what it means. Teachers tell their students that in order for them to be successful they must achieve a certain grade. Anything lower, and students are not showing the skills to survive and thrive in the real world. The idea that an “A” can only be good and a “B” can only be bad is a main reason for child distress, continued by the adults who created the system in the first place. As it is asserted in Keith David’s book, Insurrection: A Teacher Revolution in Defense of Children, our grade-based assessment culture is parallel in many ways to “original sin”. The original sin is the Christian belief that everyone is born with a built-in urge to go against moral code and disobey God. Ultimately, the message that is sent to children through testing is that they are innate failures and need to right themselves into success. The concept of standardized testing has no “consideration whatsoever for the naturalness, appropriateness, or healthfulness of that process” for each child or their “autonomy, identity, or self-determination” (Reeves 232). Through the use of these tests, the mental well-being of students is damaged by forcing them to conform to one standard system. Furthermore, a child’s learning has everything to do with social, emotional, and psychological development. But where does this all come from? According to Mark J. Garrison, in his book, A Measure of Failure: The Political Origins of Standardized Testing, before the system of standardized testing in public schools, they were used to serve the interests of the governing class by attaching a performance based value to people, upholding inequality in American society. If adults want children to adapt into functioning members of society in a way that is uniquely natural and appropriate for them, standardized testing will have to change to be more inclusive. Moreover, standardized tests are damaging to child development and the development of society because they teach children that the world was designed to be unfair and have inequality. While tests have changed overtime, the purpose behind the creation of standardized testing was in order to control which children were able to excel. Standardized testing perpetuates a system that favors children who are able to secure the resources necessary to succeed in school.

Standardized tests are utilized to rank human worth, which in turn supports inequality in society. Students come from all different educational backgrounds, yet they are still required to take the same standardized tests, such as the SAT and ACT. This is proven in the theory of “natural aristocracy” which states that the system of “ranking human worth” through performance in “academic contests” is associated with “privilege, status, and power” (Garrison 12). “Higher ranks are associated with” a higher “intellectual and emotional development”, which is inherently unfair (Garrison 12). This theory of “natural aristocracy” states that the linkage to social structure is the argument of social value, showing that through our standardized testing system we are demonstrating that the world is dictated by a hierarchical society. Furthermore, this instills the earlier idea that children are innate failures that have to prove themselves to be successful or valuable.

In addition, standardized tests are flawed because they do not adequately measure achievement. The fact of the matter is that measurement of student achievement is far too complex for the social science methods presently available. As mentioned in The Myths of Standardized Tests: What They Don’t Tell You What You Think They Do, there are several qualities that often do not get measured through standardized tests, such as creativity, leadership, empathy, and persistence. The following are all important qualities many employers are looking for in employees. According to the National Association of Colleges and Employers’ (NACE) 2016 Job Outlook survey, “more than 80 percent of responding employers said they look for evidence of leadership skills […], verbal communication skills, and a strong work ethic” in potential employees. All of the following are qualities that go unassessed on standardized tests such as the SAT and ACT. If school is designed to prepare students for their future, then why do standardized tests not include any measure of the skills employers are looking for? Even if the skills assessed through standardized tests are measured accurately, these skills are not always necessary. Even if the skills that tests are assessing do accurately reflect the abilities of a student, these skills may have no application to what they need to know when they enter the workforce. Further, ignoring attributes, such as the ones previously mentioned, that standardized tests can not properly assess, inadvertently create incentives for students to become superficial thinkers — “to seek the quick, easy, and obvious answer” (Harris, Smith 36). The information provided by tests scores is very limited, and, consequently, inferences about what test scores mean must be carefully drawn.

Standardized tests are not a fair assessment of student achievement. Children are being manipulated and lied to by the idea that success is easily attainable through an outdated system of measuring worth. Instead, children are taught that there is one path, one way of doing things, that requires analyzing through particular lenses. As a result, this system of education affects the physiological development of children, and ultimately, harms them. For many students, school has become the source of their stress and insecurities, as a result of the pressure to do well on standardized tests. If schools want to create an environment that feels positive and welcoming to students, they will have to find a way to change the way standardized tests are conducted to be more open to the skills and circumstances of the students.