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Why Are We Testing Our Kids To Death?
Posted on 19th Jan 2012 | In Science With Mom! Blog
Just the other day, I needed to pick up one of my sons early from school, but was informed by the school receptionist that he was in the middle of taking a winter assessment. Our kids had just returned from a 2-week winter break and here they were testing again rather than learning!
I was in a bit of a shock — what on earth could they be testing them for now? They had already been given a baseline exam at the beginning of the year, and had taken numerous other “little” tests before the winter break. This was all in preparation for our state assessment, which was not scheduled for another few months. With all of these assessments, I wondered how did we ever end up in this vicious testing cycle?
To Test or Not to Test?
Let’s face it; my three kids spend most of their school year preparing for a state standardized test, the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT — or the FCRAP as I like to call it!). This would be great if studying for the standardized test ensured that my kids were better educated and loved to learn. But is this really happening? Certainly not!
The thing is, standardized tests have become a bit “de rigueur”. From the onset of the SAT, ACT, and all these other acronym type tests which have crept into our kids’ lives, we have allowed them (and ourselves!) to be continually subjected to year-round assessments — baseline testing, winter testing, spring testing, end-of-course testing, testing for private schools, testing for magnet schools, yada yada yada.
How can this possibly be a good thing? What exactly are we trying to measure? Are we even teaching our kids anything when all we are doing is constantly administering standardized tests?
With all of these assessments, you would think that we would be better able to figure out how to better teach our kids. That’s just not the case. We are simply training an army of professional test takers and ignoring critical core competencies in reading, writing, and mathematics.
A few months ago, my youngest son, Luke, scored a 98% in a reading comprehension assessment test. If you knew Luke and his aptitude for reading you too would be extremely surprised by this result. His teacher told me though, that she had found it extremely strange as well, because when she asked him afterward about the passage he had clearly understood nothing. “It was like he hadn’t read it at all,” she told me. (This was a little more in line with what I expected 
). So I asked him how he had done it. He innocently looked at me and said, “I just matched words in the questions to the words in the passage”. He made it seem like even a well trained monkey could have done it with a little effort! He had managed to crack the test even though his reading comprehension was nowhere near 98%! Which kind of defeats the purpose of the test don’t you think? In the end, these tests are not about the students at all – they are really intended to help the schools either achieve or retain a good school rating.
No Child Left Behind? or No Parent Left Behind?
Part of the blame, of course, lies with the 2001 No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). President Bush’s Act was intended to improve our overall educational system by supporting “standards-based education (SBE) reform” which measures each student against a concrete standard. As opposed to norm-referenced rankings, which only indicate, whether the test taker performed better or worse than other test takers, the well-intentioned NCLB was supposed to place students on equal footing. Instead, it has simply created an educational quagmire over the last decade and allowed the federal government to interfere in our local classrooms and have a disastrous effect on the national educational system. Rather than raising the bar, the NCLB has only increased the stress levels associated with the performance of students on these standardized tests, since they directly impact the school’s funding for the following year. What has resulted is a vicious cycle of schools completely channeling their focus on the performance of students on this particular assessment, since everything from the student’s fate to the school’s budget lies in the balance. Are we not short-changing ourselves with the one-size fits all reform? Isn’t education about tailoring the experience to the student’s learning style? This is why so many parents need to be so actively involved in their children’s schooling these days. I know my parents didn’t spend close to the amount of time with me that I have to spend with my children in order for me to succeed in school. What’s more, it is virtually impossible for kids nowadays to finish their homework without their parent’s help (See: Is Your Kid Getting Too Much Homework?). These days I feel like I am currently back in school and I hope that I don’t get left behind!
Test This!
So what should we all do about this?
If you’re reading my site, you probably are already very involved and interested in your child’s education. We parents must rise together to continually do what we think is best for our children. Just last week, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan stated that “We all need to work together so that…America’s children will have the sort of federal education law they so richly deserve — one that challenges them to achieve to high standards, and provides them with the highly effective teachers and principals who can prepare them for success in college and the workforce.” That’s just lovely, but the NCLB has to get out of the way. In the meantime, make your opinions known to your children’s teachers and principal as well as at your PTA meetings. I also consider homeschooling to be a fantastic option (see: 7 Reasons I Really Admire Homeschoolers). Here, the parent can focus on the child’s learning, rather than on their performance on some inane exam. Concentrate your effort on your child’s learning and not just their performance. In the end, it’s the experience of learning that counts the most!
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I’m a teacher and the tests are killing me! I think we should be cultivating children’s interests and nurturing talents instead of forcing ALL kids to achieve the SAME standards. Are all jobs in the US the same? Do they all require the same skill set? Why can’t we graduate students who have actual skills that could help them find employment? Why do we insist everyone needs college? The richest person in my family never went to college!
So so true!!!!
You’ve told parents to contact school officials: teachers, administrators, etc. Being one such educational representative, I can assure you that we all feel there is entirely too much testing. Contacting us would be like preaching to the choir. For effective change, encourage parents to contact state and federal representatives, SBEC, etc. Once THEY hear from enough parents, change can begin.
I whole wholeheartedly agree with you. I am a teacher educator on on a vicious mission to prove that learning must be FUN and meaningful and challenging. This is a very difficult task to embark on but it is very satisfying once you see students buying into your vision and mission. So let us be heard. LESS TEST LESS STRESS
Malaysia
Love the Article. My children are attending school in PA. It’s even worse here. The teachers are trying to teach them the test instead of teaching them what they need to graduate.
This was an eye opener for me. I have home schooled my four kids from the beginning–they are now 3rd, 4th, 6th, and 8th graders. Pretty much everyone I know home schools, so I did not realize how much testing had overtaken the public school, and not just here in the US! I’d heard about them teaching to the test, but I just didn’t know it was that bad. I’ve only tested my kids once a year in their math and reading skills on-line, and although I like it, I’ve worried how accurate it really is. I can tell you right now that two of my kids would do well on tests, and the other two would struggle and probably not do very well. But are they learning impaired or dumb? No! I was reminded as I read this blog that it’s easy to get caught up in tests as the parent/teacher because you want to know if you’re doing a good job. When my kids have a math review or science quiz, and they don’t do very well, I have had to tell myself that it’s not necessarily a reflection of me as the teacher or even them as the student. Tests are often very flawed, and some kids just don’t do well on tests. Also, will the fact that they can’t remember what a composite volcano is impact them at any point in their life? I can’t imagine being a teacher in a public school who has to work under that pressure. Even though I home school, I admire those public school teachers who keep trying to give children a good education. For the past two years I’ve read and implemented the Charlotte Mason method of education, which is reading living, whole books and using narration and copy work as the method of “testing.” I’ve found that it works very well for my kids, especially my non-readers and non-testers. I love to read out loud (read, period!), and they love to listen. They also love to tell me what they are reading on their own. I’ve also changed my perspective on tests. Instead of worrying about how many they miss, I use them as a way to review the material and discover what they need to work on a little bit more (especially in math). If they get the concept, I move on and let them skip needless exercises. If the next review they’ve forgotten, then we go back and work on it. I’m not sure why I’m posting all this. I just wanted to share and let you know I also appreciated your post on 7 Reasons I Really Admire Home Schoolers. It was very encouraging to me as a home school mom. Thanks!
I am in total agreement that we have way too much testing going on. I am a first grade reading and social studies teacher and I can’t remember when was the last normal week I had where I could do small groups and conference with my students. Right after winter break we had to FAIR test, take the Osceola Writes Expository and the following week Narrative besides taking the math midterms. We didn’t quite finished all that excitement that I have to start administering running records to each individual child.
I too feel that it is way to many assessments and not enough time to instruct. Something is got to give. If we had more time to teach and allow time for mastery, we wouldn’t need all this unnecessary assessments. However, the pressure is on and we teachers are always under the gun.
I have been homeschooling my daughter for the past three years, largely because of this testing requirement. When I was in school, we learned and passed, largely based on our effort and support from our teachers and parents. If we failed, it was often because effort wasn’t being put forth. However, NEVER did we have anything like this. When my daughter started first grade, it was at a local elementary school, and I was surprised at how much homework she was getting, even at that tender age, as well as the content. In first grade, you would expect them to be learning such things as 2+2=4 or things like that. They were being taught STATISTICS!!! I volunteered in her classroom on Friday afternoons for a time and finally asked her teacher, a wonderful lady, “Whatever happened to 1+1=2?” She told me that teachers aren’t allowed to teach that way anymore, but that had to teach to the WASL. When students have to be taught to the test, then they are no longer getting a well-rounded education. How is this even allowed? It seems like all this testing is for the schools and the government to “prove” how well kids are learning, rather than providing a well-rounded education that students will actually benefit from!!! I’m shuddering about putting her in public school for high school for that very reason. Homeschooled, or private-schooled, kids are actually exempt from all this ridiculous testing. Am thinking about K12 for her ninth grade, but she’s been begging me to put her in regular school after that. Help!!
Linda–Start saving for private school
Just kidding! I think by the time she goes to High School there will be many more options available such as larger home school support groups as I think homeschooling will become more mainstream. I know if I were staying on in the US I would definitely home school or I would start my own school with some other involved parents (I have spoken with a few people about this already but sadly I can’t do this right now in my life). I think other involved parents might start their own schools. Why does she want to go to regular school?
I totally agree with you. I remember when I was in school we did a lot of experiments and projects. We were always learning and inquisitive. We weren’t being tested so much and yet we knew what was needed to know by the end of the year
I really enjoy reading your posts. You are talking about the same problems we suffer at our children’s schooling but we can do nothing to save our children. So we share them to kill our children’s skills. Thank you for all.
For a heck of an in depth and interesting read that will make you exlcaim “Holy Cr@p!” about every third page get your hands on “The Death and Life of the Great American School System. How testing and choice are undermining education.” By choice they are speaking of charter schools speicifically. It is written by a historian who studies schools, was brought in under George Bush and helped create NCLB. She has since changed her position 180 degrees and gives the facts, stats, examples, and history of why it won’t and can’t work. So much of NCLB is based upon faulty evidence and extraordinary examples that the average or even above average school can not recreate. It is a must read!
It’s my belief that education is big money and everyone wants in on the cash. Teaching to the test has taken the joy and creativity out of both teaching and learning.
Dear Elva,
After finishing reading this article, I couldn’t agree with you more. My daughter studies in the 2nd grade in Taiwan right now. She is the kid who really loves reading and the most things she knows about are from the books she reads by her own. She and I enjoys reading together and sharing our feelings after finishing a book. But ever since she got in the primary school, we hardly have time to read since she gets a lot of homework every day and almost having 2-3 small tests every week and a big test every month. She enjoys her school life but sometimes she would feel so bored to keep repeating or practicing something she has known already. The part I really don’t like and also worries me most is I am afraid of all the school home works and tests will drown her and make her lose the interest of learning. Eventhough people usually says practice makes the best. But I think let the kids have the motivation to learn what they want to know about is much more important than the school grades.
Since I am a single mom and impossible to homeschool. I really hope I could figure out the way to make a balance out of it.
Knowledge is unlimited. The more you learn the less you feel you know about. Thanks for all the resources you have shared online.
Best regards,
Christine
Generally, I agree with your post, and agree that testing has become sort of an out of control monster. But we need to understand that testing itself is not the beast, it is the kinds of tests that have taken over.
Important definition: Testing is one method of information gathering for the purpose of making educational decisions for various learning outcomes and purposes. I know, that’s a mouthful. (And, no, I’m not an administrator!) Teachers and administrators do need to be able to evaluate the quality of learning (the purpose of many of the tests you mentioned) in order to improve quality of teaching. However, when testing results are used for punishing “bad” schools and teachers and rewarding “good” ones, it is too easy for the process to get twisted.
The problem is twofold: (1) so much information gathering (testing) that it actually interferes with the educational process and (2) bad tests. Your son’s results are excellent evidence that the reading comprehension test he took gave misleading results, and should be unceremoniously dumped. It is incredibly difficult to create valid multiple choice tests, but educators stick to them because they are easy to mark without bias from the marker. However, there is no guarantee of non-bias from the test writer!
There are answers, but this reply is already getting too long. Hint: It does not include abandoning testing altogether, but the number and power of tests need to be limited. It also takes into account that while a bad test damages education, a good test can actually improve education. Believe it or not, there is such a thing as a “good test”.
Consider yourselves lucky, though – my educational context is Thailand, where the role of testing has become even more damaging than in the US.
Yes. You are right. Test/exams do serve a purpose. It’s the over testing that I have a problem with. I agree with you that there is such thing as a good test but right now my kids are not being given them! By the way my youngest child Leah is Thai
Right on!
My grandson is doing K 12 online through Lee County school and I love the curriculum.I agree with you about this testing.I happen to call his teacher last week ,about 10 min later she called back to say “Oh,by the way He needs to be tested next week? ” I’m not sure what he was tested for and I really don’t care.I’m so nervous about the FCAT in March,I just want to say the heck with all this testing! I know he’s learning more than he ever did in public school
and he’s enjoying it ! He’s a smart kid and I don’t need them to tell me that.His teacher last year kept telling us how he was going to fail FCAT .He scored above his grade in Math and Reading ,I rest my case.lol
Well said. This is part of the reason I homeschool. The children in public school are taught to test and that’s about it!
In Christ,
Jennifer
I live in Florida and just delt with the interim test. Why do you think I choose to browse your website for ideas? I have to enrich my kids with science at home. Do you think that our kids have time to learn and that teachers are allowed to express their creativity? NO. The focus is the test! They are bound by bureaucratic red tape that makes them responsible for failing students As a result, they keep giving them tests in hopes of raising the scores. Our legislators haven’t stepped in the classrooms and seen the student whose parent leaves their child in aftercare until 8 p.m. at night (2 hours after closing), refuses to do homework with their child because they don’t speak the language, wants their child to be labled Special Ed so that they can get benefits from the government thus tells their child to purposely be disruptive, drives the most expensive car but refuses to find the child a private tutor, keeps forgetting to take the child to the doctor to get fitted for glasses but the mom doesn’t miss her manicure appointments. The list is long.
Lets not even get into the required texts that leave out the classics and only focus on a worksheet for grammar because you only have 30 mins. to teach Language Arts. We are dumbing the children down with tests and ridiculous tests that teachers have been forced to use no matter what your child’s level is….socialism at its best.
I am a teacher and has been for the last 30+ years. I have never seen so much testing. The students are tested out! There is too much stress to get in all the testing! We must get in over 30 plus grades per student per nine weeks. Then so much wasted time preparing for this or that test so as to meet the state or distict’s quota for tests, just sickening!
I am just retiring from teaching after 42 years in the Australian system and have found that over the last 6 – 8 years, teaching has lost its enjoyment. Where once a teacher could help each child and cater to their individual needs, now this “one size fits all” approach from government has made that an almost impossible task. It was fun to be able to watch children blossom when you could provide challenges and extension to the bright students and remediation and extra help for the strugglers. Now it is all about schools being assessed based on the performance of the students, based on a test set by an outside body. Those results, coupled with a socio-economic factor based on suburb lived in, parents jobs, number of rooms in the house etc, are then being posted nationally to make comparison between schools. I am annoyed the extent to which economic rationalists have been allowed to bring about such major changes to education. Unfortunately, the government seems to think that when a certain number of dollars is spent on education, then a certain level of success will automatically follow. What ever happened to the differences in learning styles children have, the differences in maturation and readiness to learn between them and the ability of teachers to assess the needs of students and so make the professional calls necessary for the benefit of individuals. Thanks for creating this post about a subject which is causing such frustration to teachers at the coal face who feel threatened by a system which is failing to support them
in the nationally vital work they do.
Exactly,Thank you!
Duncan, you are a voice that has confirmed what I suspected some (maybe many) teachers are feeling. An education system overloaded and test orientated rather than learning orientated with teachers that have a joy of teaching, but hampered in their abilities to impart that to their students and have much less satisfaction in their jobs. I also agree with your comments in relation to learning styles, etc.
I most certainly agree with your post. I am actually a school teacher and can see the effect that constant testing is having on my students. They are already burned out and tired from testing and they have not gotten to the yearly standardized test. Every three weeks they have to test. And no, it does not seem to benefit them at all academically. Unfortunately what it does is further tie our hands as teachers because we are forced to teach toward these assessments, because if students do not pass we are further scrutinized and pressured. I also agree with you that testing seems to be more toward principal and school rating, rather than what is best for our children. In a society that claims education is a top focus, it is still left to be questioned how students are still falling behind academically, and doing so progressively with each new year’s crop of students.
I am a science teacher in Taiwan at a bilingual school. I teach science in English to elementary students and these students have way too many tests and way too much homework. They have no time to sit back, enjoy learning, explore, think about what they have learned and use the skills taught at school. I have students who can score 100% in science tests but have no ability to complete planning tasks. I total agree with you but is there a solution to convey these messages across to parents? That’s the real problem. It is the education of the parents….
Jerry… parents, teachers, governments, schools, principals etc….in my opinion as adults we all have a share in the blame. But the real victims here are our kids. It’s time for each of us to say ENOUGH and do our small part to stop this insanity!
Love it!!!! Great points. Science With Me! is awesome. Thanks Mom!
Thanks Mr. L!
Australia has basically the same system called NAPLAN, funnily enough with the same results! Arne’s rhetoric sounds very familiar. However, it seems that these systems are more in line with performance based funding, etc rather than actual education and learning. Much time is spent learning and practicing for test results rather than gaining skills and understanding. I agree with your statement that much of the time is channelled on focussing on their test performance. If we were all tested and assessed for our performance (based on one particular day), most parents, partners, bosses, employees, etc would come up short. Teachers are more overloaded with this system, kids (that they know will not succeed) are exempted from participating so the results are ‘enhanced’ and the school system I believe, caters for kids that have learning styles based in the main, on visual and auditory learning. There are of course, pluses for the schooling system overall, however, I do not agree with this ‘funding’ based ‘learning’. Has this also added to the results of many good teachers leaving the system and the ‘shortage’ of teachers….has it taken away the enthusiasm of imparting skills and learning, teaching, and connecting with students? Thanks Elva for the post. It is food for thought; discussion and in the longer term, change.
Thank you Anne. I am relieved to find that I am not the only parent that feels like this
Thank you for the post. I think the same. Our children attend the same 3rd grade classes. Just before receiving your newest post I sent a message to our son’s teachers about over-testing the kids especially for the past 2 weeks right after the winter break! It is not testing that is a problem is the number of tests given. They spent more time being tested than learning.From the replies on your post and talking to teachers it looks like many share the same opinion, so what is to be done? Whom to contact?
First, let me say that I am a teacher—- AND totally agree with everything that you say until the last paragraph. We are not who you should contact. I do not know of any teacher who agrees with the amount of time that we give up for these assessments. The controlling factor in education has been far removed from the local school. The federal mandate of NCLB started the decline and the trickle down from our own state governments have all but destroyed education as it was. I am not saying that there did not need to be changes, but it is no longer considered my job to make learning fun. It is all about passing a spring test or at the very least showing the significant growth that our government has deemed expected. Let us not consider the individual child’s needs. Forget the ill child who has fought at one point for his life and now struggles every winter for survival. Sorry, but I truly don’t care if this child passes a test. I want him to be at school when he can be and love to learn while he is here. That is what I consider my job…….. INSTILL THE LOVE OF LEARNING!
Contacting your governmental officials to change things at the top and for those schools that have added lots of predictive assessments one should contact the administrators. As a teacher, I have no pull. I just get to follow the mandates of others.
Cindy – you sound like a great teacher and I understand that the teachers are caught between a rock and a hard place with regard to teaching versus testing. Thanks for reminding us all that teachers feel the frustration too and if anything it impacts you even more greatly on an hourly basis!
Agree completely-the end result of the relentless testing are stressed, pressured children -it seems like the education system is preparing them for the typical adult life of today?! Learning is supposed to be fun-repetitive testing is not-its robotic and destructive to the individuality of the child.
Agree! Agree!
This is one of the reasons I have now chose to homeschool my third child as of 4th grade. He has time to really learn a concept and is not continuously feeling like a failure if not doing well on all his tests. Last year it was test test test!! Now it is all in what works for him to learn as an individual
Sounds about right, the FCRAP has taken over. Now the latest rage is having teachers use something called Scales and Goals to evaluate the lessons and and the ability of the teacher to teach their class. This in it self is not bad, but about every 3 years some one sells the school system a new way of teaching better. Principals run around scoring teachers not on the lesson content and the participation of the students but rather on check list. Did the teacher go over the expectations in writing and verbally before every lesson. Did the teacher ask them to put thumbs up, down or iffy whether they under stood the lesson, Can they work independently? Do they understand parts of it? Or can they reteach it to another student? When I was in school we raised our hands if we did not understand something and our teachers could tell by our faces and assignments we completed. I was not expected to be able to reteach my lessons to another student! My sons classroom has one working computer but technology is the way educaiton should be going. Oh, I forgot he goes to the computer lab one a week for 30 minutes. The whole 3rd nine weeks in my child’s 5th grade class is going to be teaching directly to the materials on the test. He comes home and tells me about all this stuff and its ridiculous. His HW is reviews on nouns, verbs, punctuation the math is taught in fragments in reviews. He loves Science but they are spending time going over vocabulary, scientific method and procedures that he has done for years.No real experiments, Science Fairs or projects just paper and pencil stuff. He thinks that when FCAT is over that school is out for the year and its down hill from there. I have seen it for 6 years now. with my other kids. He has already started with the headaches and stomach aches. I think we should be able to respect and trust our teachers and principals to teach and evaluate each other with our documenting ever breath in the room. Give them the materials they need and let them teach. Give them the technology they need in the classroom and stop spending money on fads and “research” done by eggheads that have not been in a classroom of normal kids for years.Training time should be on teaching new information or technology not check list and evaluation tallies. My 5 kids have a total of 37 years in K-college graduates and the whole time there was only 2 mediocre teacher in high school and 3 lousy ones in college! Gee the lousy ones were in college with the rest of the egg heads! I wonder if they are working on this new “idea” for making better teachers and students?
I like this post. In our school our 5th graders are getting ready for a big writing test. This would be great, except a Special needs child who has no standard way of really communicating with us is being force to take this test. He uses a facilitator to communicate with us. Doing this test we will not be able to help him at all. We can not help with any type of prompt what so ever. This child most likely will receive a 0 on the test. It will upset him greatly because for the most part he a very bright child who just can not communicate like other children.
The poor kid! How ridiculous! This is the problem with a “one size fits all approach”. If there is any time in someone’s life that a personalized approach should be taken when dealing with you, surely it should be childhood.
…no teacher left behind …no administrator left behind
read Stanly Bing’s blog (a look back from 2022) and you will realize that in less than 10 years, we won’t have to test
oops, Stanley Bing
Yes sadly, as a teacher I must completely agree. I am infuriated that I am forced to train students rather than to teach them anymore. Parents and teachers must unite to return to true learning for our children.
Learning should be such fun! It’s so sad we are managing to disenchant both teachers and students.