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I think I just realized something...what is the motivation to even pass a standardized test?
I have actually had many parents of my students tell me..
OH I don't really care how my child does on "THAT TEST". "THAT TEST" is only for the schools to get money...that score doesn't count toward anything...
You know what...they are 100% right! What is the motivation to pass that test for the student? I don't actually see one. The scores do not count toward a final grade, they don't really see the scores for a year after...I mean really...no wonder the kids don't do well...why should they even care?
I think I just realized something...what is the motivation to even pass a standardized test?
I have actually had many parents of my students tell me..
OH I don't really care how my child does on "THAT TEST". "THAT TEST" is only for the schools to get money...that score doesn't count toward anything...
You know what...they are 100% right! What is the motivation to pass that test for the student? I don't actually see one. The scores do not count toward a final grade, they don't really see the scores for a year after...I mean really...no wonder the kids don't do well...why should they even care?
This seems rather short-sighted. The obvious reason as to why you as the test taker should care is because they will dictate to a significant degree what college or university you'll be able to attend in the future. The people who do well on the test have, all else being equal, a better chance to attend top schools and put themselves onto lucrative career paths; the people who do poorly can go to community college or skip college altogether. Depending on your future goals, isn't that enough reason for you to care?
OKAY ambient fair enough only I work in K-6 and these kids have no reason to care about that. They (teachers) don't report these "TEST" on report cards, nor do parents recieve the results (unless they ask) furthermore, we do not even put the scores into their FILE.
Well I'd like to think that there was a minimum level that everyone was functioning at and I don't know how you can see that without some kind of standard test.
I think I just realized something...what is the motivation to even pass a standardized test?
I have actually had many parents of my students tell me..
OH I don't really care how my child does on "THAT TEST". "THAT TEST" is only for the schools to get money...that score doesn't count toward anything...
You know what...they are 100% right! What is the motivation to pass that test for the student? I don't actually see one. The scores do not count toward a final grade, they don't really see the scores for a year after...I mean really...no wonder the kids don't do well...why should they even care?
I agree. We need to attach passing the grade to passing the test. And we really NEED to do this to get rid of the floating standard and social promotion.
We see issues during the MME and Work Keys tests. The school is judged on a combination of the ACT, MME and Work Keys. Only the ACT matters to the kids. We have to try and motivate them to try their best on the other two when they really don't care to take them. It's common for kids to say "This test doesn't matter" regarding the MME and Work Keys. There has to be some motivation for taking these tests. They care only about the test that matters for getting into college and then they only care about the range of their score. A few care about doing their best but for many, good enough is good enough. Hence the tests are not a fair measure of school performance.
Well I'd like to think that there was a minimum level that everyone was functioning at and I don't know how you can see that without some kind of standard test.
It's not the test that's the problem. It's the fact there's nothing in it for the student to do well on the test.
Imagine if you were asked to take a test for your company. No matter how well you do on the test, you have the same job you had before and the same pay you had before but he company will be judged in a negative or positive light depending on how well its employees do on the test. Your score won't even be published with your name on it. What is your motivation to do well on the test? To even make sure you got a good night's sleep before the test? I've seen kids just bubble down the page on the two tests that count for the school and not for them and then put their heads down and take a nap. All the school can do is make them take the test. We can't make them try.
OKAY ambient fair enough only I work in K-6 and these kids have no reason to care about that. They (teachers) don't report these "TEST" on report cards, nor do parents recieve the results (unless they ask) furthermore, we do not even put the scores into their FILE.
In my state, ALL standardized test results are recorded in students' files. At the high school level students don't receive credit for a class unless they pass the accompanying end-of-course exam, and that affects their ability to graduate.
I agree with the OP. There are many more cons than pros for the use of standardized tests, especially at the K-6 level. It seems that they only provide statistical data for governmental agencies who have no contact with students but want some kind of assurance/proof that schools/teachers are doing their jobs; as if a test were really an accurate indicator of a teacher's--or a student's--performance.. Many times, it's simply to cover the as-es of higher ups who--heaven forbid--would otherwise have to actually step foot in a school to see how things are going.
Moreover, as the OP stated, the data is irrelevant at that level: it doesn't matter re: college nor does it predict success at the secondary/ high school level. It just seems to consume precious time and money.
One of the other things that I wanted to add. I am a parent of kids in FL where the state tests are overly emphasized. When my kids were small I had to work really hard at home to de-emphasize what was going on in school. In FL kids must pass the test to be promoted to 4th grade. My kids were never in danger of not passing the test. There was no benefit to my kids to scoring higher than a passing grade.
Why would they make themselves crazy to do well on these tests? Why should they? To make some teacher look better? The teachers make the kids crazy because THEY benefit from the kids scoring higher. I am not going to allow my kids to be pressured so some adult can benefit from his suffering so I am one of those parents who say "I really don't care what they score on the FCAT."
This craziness is the reason that I took my kids out of the public school system. As a teacher I understand why teachers put all the pressure on the kids. But as a parent I need to protect my kids from that sort of abuse.
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