High Stakes Testing: Do the Risks Outweigh the Benefits?

High Stakes Testing: Do the Risks Outweigh the Benefits?.

Jennifer Baker
Western Oregon University

High Stakes Testing: Do the Risks Outweigh the Benefits?

Abstract
Standardized testing has been used for decades to provide important school
details to administrators, communities, education boards, and politicians, but
with the passing of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) act in 2001, these tests
were increased in frequency and importance, and now play an integral role in
public school administration. When used sparingly and consistently they can
be beneficial to schools and help support a students education, however,
when overused, based almost exclusively on multiple-choice questions, and
at the point they become high-stakes standardized testing, (tests that
connect a schools performance to funding and support) these tests can
interfere with the implementation of meaningful content and lessons, and
can even become damaging to the students themselves. Studies have shown
that students with wide ranges of abilities, socio-economic standings,
ethnicity, and literacy levels could suffer long-term negative effects resulting
from stress related to these tests.

High Stakes Testing: Do the Risks Outweigh the Benefits?

High Stakes Testing: Do the Risks Outweigh the Benefits?.

Standardized testing has been an increasing topic of discussion

amongst parents, students, teachers, and the media, ever since the type and
frequency of the tests have begun changing much more frequently than ever
before. Many of these conversations are focused on concerns about the
effects of standardized testing on students educational development and if
the data that is being collected from the results is worth the potential
damage. The politicians and administrators that support high-stakes testing
make the arguments that the test results provide them with clear, impartial,
standardized data that they can use to compare schools across the country
and monitor their ability to properly educate our children. (Ravitch, 2013)
Those who disagree with those arguments, generally parents, teachers, and
students themselves, express concerns about the increased stress levels, the
information that is being missed while students are being prepped for the
tests at the expense of getting more detailed learning about non-test topics,
and the diminished confidence that students feel when they dont do well on
the tests. (Kearns, 2011) Many parents are choosing to opt out and are
hoping this will allow their students to receive a more rounded education,
while other parents are struggling with trying to get their students into
private schools, or charter schools that offer higher levels of education.

High Stakes Testing: Do the Risks Outweigh the Benefits?

(Stitzlein, 2015) It is my opinion that the implementation of the testing was
not well thought out, did not take into account the actual students well
being, as well as actively increase the potential for damage to the students
educational development. Parents and teachers must be aware of the fear,
anxiety and loss of self-esteem that their students may be feeling and
actively work to protect them. The transition from routine standardized
testing to high-stakes testing, and the linking of the results to decisions
about federal funding (in some cases even the decision whether or not to
close a low-performing school), has changed our public schools into
institutions that focus more on test results than the educational development
and well being of the students. While not all students will suffer ill effects
from over testing, parents and teachers must be informed of the potential
risks so that they can identify those students who are struggling. I believe
that parents must be allowed to easily opt-out of these tests if they feel their
student is being harmed.
The increase in arguments about standardized testing is due to how
frequently they are being used, the practice of connecting them to funding
and financial support, as well as the increased test prep that may interfere
with more meaningful learning opportunities. Parents and students that were
used to testing occurring every few years, have been surprised to find
standardized tests being administered multiple times throughout the school
year. While there are various reasons for the increased testing, one of the
most common is that the tests are believed to be equal and impartial and

High Stakes Testing: Do the Risks Outweigh the Benefits?

can be easily used by politicians, administrators, education departments,
and even the public to rate the schools, students, and teacher performance
(Kearns, 2011). Schools scores are promoted as offering a way for the public
to try and compare schools in their area and make sure their children are
going to the best one. Some realtors in California even include a schools
Academic Performance Index score as a selling feature (Jorgenson, 2012).
Unfortunately, what isnt being taken into account when reviewing a schools
test results is whether or not these tests are improving student education
and learning, whether the students are able to retain the information that
they memorized in order to pass the test, and/or if the tests are an accurate
measure of an individual students intelligence. These test tend to be
primarily based on multiple choice questions that make scoring easier, and
data easier to collect, but may not be an accurate representation of the
students abilities. The increased use of standardized testing, to the point
that it transitioned into high-stakes testing, came about after the No Child
Left Behind act of 2001 (NCLB), and was a decision made by politicians and
bureaucrats that was implemented without taking the students emotional
and developmental needs into account. There has been no research found
that shows increasing the amount of testing students are subjected to has
any short-term or long-term positive effects. (Nichols, Glass, Berliner, 2012)
There are many mixed feelings about how to properly incorporate and
use standardized testing, and while considerable attention has focused on
the negative effects, there are many administrators and educators who

High Stakes Testing: Do the Risks Outweigh the Benefits?

consider them to be efficient sources of valuable statistical information.
Using tests to determine student placement is considered by the supporters
to be a fair and unbiased way to make sure that students are differentiated
based on their abilities. Gifted students can be easily identified and placed in
more challenging classes while struggling students are identified and placed
where they can receive the resources they need. (Linn, 2001) In addition to
placement, students must be tested to make sure they have learned the key
concepts that are necessary to move forward. Testing ensures that teachers
maintain consistent standards and educational outcomes in the subject(s)
that teach. (Sorensen, 2006) The teachers who feel positively about
consistent use of standardized testing said that they feel that all teachers
should be held accountable to cover their states standards consistently.
(Southerland, 2012)
Unfortunately, the benefits and useful findings that may be realized
from the proper implementation of standardized testing may be lost once the
frequency and importance of the test are increased. At the point in which
standardized testing is increased in frequency and importance to become
high-stakes testing, the demands are heavily increased and the risk of
financial punishment starts to weigh over the administrators and teachers.
What researchers have found are that the efforts that had been made to
coach struggling students and helping the students by providing additional
time and support, will start to transition into increased efforts to improve
scores at all costs. School administrators may require teachers to turn their

High Stakes Testing: Do the Risks Outweigh the Benefits?

energies to test-preparation or in extreme cases, finding ways to game the
system. Schools have been found to find ways to exclude lowerperforming
students from the testing by labeling them as special needs or learning
disabled. At this point the damage to the students becomes less important
than the need to maintain funding. (Nichols, Glass, Berliner, 2012).
Even though there are benefits from testing, studies have been
completed that detail how damaging the long-term effects of basing student
progress and aptitude on scores received from standardized tests, rather
than on more formative types of assessment. Standardized tests themselves
are not always capable of meeting the needs of diverse students and instead
are causing them to suffer academically (Kearns, 2011). Some studies show
that the students that excel at these kinds of tests may actually be better at
patterns and the structure of the test itself, rather than being highly
knowledgeable about the subject matter. Conversely, the students that know
more about the subject may score poorly due to having more creative or
non-standardized ways of processing information and struggle with the oneright-answer format (Weaver, 2011). High-stakes testing became a
requirement, thanks to NCLB, and with little or no testing or development
beforehand. The testing was used heavily in Texas in the years leading up to
NCLB, but there is no evidence that the idea of requiring increasing amounts
of standardized testing was ever subjected to organized, scientific analysis.
(Nichols, Glass, Berliner,2012) This has led to concerns that intelligent and
hard working students, with varying ranges of abilities, ethnic backgrounds,

High Stakes Testing: Do the Risks Outweigh the Benefits?

and socio-economic situations, may receive lower scores on standardized
tests that dont adequately work as an indication of their knowledge. When
the student receives a low score they may then begin to doubt their abilities,
no matter how well they actually understand the material, and begin to
believe that they are inadequate. This potential side effect of the overuse of
standardized testing is an area that needs to be explored, and the inclusion
of assessment models that are more open ended and creative needs to be
discussed. Parents may notice their childs stress and anxiety levels
increasing and share their concerns with the teachers. The problem at this
point is that the teachers feel helpless to protect their students due to the
increased pressure by their administrators to have their students score high
on the tests, to the point that their performance is linked to the test scores
as well.
High-stakes testing and the financial need to ensure appropriately high
scores has led to test-based curriculum changes that increased prep and
drilling, which puts the focus on memorization and repeating, or Sit, Get,
Spit Forget. (Jorgenson, 2012) Unfortunately, this is happening at the
expense of more in-depth learning opportunities and projects, and many
students are missing out on a better, more rounded educational experience.
A study of middle and high school science teachers found that the majority
of teachers surveyed responded that they had been encouraged by
administrators to water down their course content in order to improve
scores, and some even stated that they feared that they would lose their

High Stakes Testing: Do the Risks Outweigh the Benefits?

jobs. (Aydeniz & Southerland, 2012) The pressure to focus on the testing is
often at the expense of allowing students to celebrate holidays or even
socialize with other students. Opportunities for students to interact with
others can be seen as less important time than working on test prep and
drilling (Barrier Ferreira, 2008)
The overuse of standardized testing has been shown to be emotionally
and developmentally damaging to many types of students. Research has
been done that shows that students of different races, socio-economical
classes, gender, and even varying intellectual styles will have different
experiences with their testing. The students who tend to do well are those
from higher income areas, generally are white, and are considered linear
thinkers while students from lower income areas, minorities, non-native
English speakers are more likely to be labeled as at-risk or marginalized
based on poor test performance. (Kearns, 2011) In addition to receiving low
scores these students report feeling anxious, depressed, and detached from
school. Students of all actual ability levels, that consistently receive lower
scores will begin to believe that they are not good enough to succeed and
may in fact settle for the level where they are rather than work harder to
score higher. (Kearns, 2011) The schools that take the more extreme steps of
identifying the lower scoring students and placing them in special-education
classes can potentially, further add to the students lack of confidence.
There are many different types of learning styles, and students
have different levels of comprehension, but the standardized tests are rigid,

High Stakes Testing: Do the Risks Outweigh the Benefits?

allowing (usually) for just one correct answer, and do not take into account
any other outside factors or influences that may affect a students
performance. (Weaver, 2011) The unfortunate result is that many students
are feeling disconnected from the process and their overall education, and
may feel that they are being marginalized. These students may be
embarrassed by their results and hesitant to ask for help which means they
wont receive the support needed to encourage them to succeed. (Kearns,
2011) Increasing numbers of students are dropping out, and many that
manage to graduate dont continue on to college. (Ricci, 2015) Parents are
increasingly becoming concerned as they see their children become
disengaged from school, frustrated, and feeling stressed due to increased
pressure to score higher on tests. Parents are even forming groups and
organizations with the purpose of fighting against testing and rallying for
politicians to pressure schools to bring back more meaningful types of
assessment. Students are taking advantage of their ability to opt out of
testing for and are actively seeking educational support outside of schools.
Some parents are even withdrawing their students from school altogether.
(Stitzlein, 2015)
By adjusting a schools curriculum to prep for testing, and removing
deeper learning experiences from the classroom, then honors students,
creative students, and other above average students may be negatively
affected as well as the at-risk and marginalized students. They may figure
out ways to learn just what is needed, recognize patterns in the multiple-

High Stakes Testing: Do the Risks Outweigh the Benefits?

choice questions, and end up gaming the system in order to receive higher
grades. In a study of honors students it was discovered that they were so
focused on preparing for their tests and assessments that they were not
completing assignments or readings that were not going to be tested. The
result of this is that the students missed out on the purposes and meanings
of the assignments and instead focused on memorizing key words and
concepts. (Sorensen, 2006) Exercises intended to stimulate debate and
critical thinking have been replaced with the same Sit-Get-Spit-Forget cycle
as addressed above. There are discussions about how standardized tests
focus on questions with one right answer and little room for students to
demonstrate how they arrived at their answers. (Jorgenson, 2012) This has
been shown to make these tests difficult for high achieving and creatively
intelligent students. Although they may understand the concepts on the test
at a higher level than their peers, they will most likely score low on the test
due to the questions not being compatible with their style of learning.
(Weaver, 2011) The research and studies provided show that all students,
regardless of their academic standing, stand to miss out on appropriate
learning and development of the skills needed in order to succeed in college
and employment. Overuse of testing also negatively affects self-esteem and
confidence in all students. (Jorgenson, 2012)
According to the American Psychological Association (APA)s web
brochure titled Appropriate Use of High-Stakes Testing in Our Nations
Schools, School officials using such tests must ensure that students are

High Stakes Testing: Do the Risks Outweigh the Benefits?

tested on a curriculum they have had a fair opportunity to learn, so that
certain subgroups of students, such as racial and ethnic minority students or
students with a disability or limited English proficiency, are not
systematically excluded or disadvantaged by the test or the test-taking
conditions. (APA.org) It is important that testing and assessments be
developed in such a way as to accurately measure a students abilities and
performance while at the same time protecting the student and supporting
their educational development. Educators have long known that its
important to take into consideration the learning styles of their students and
to create learning assessments that include multiple approaches, with one
example being the use of a combination of Instructivist (direct instruction),
Constructivist (learners use real world experiences), and Connectivist
(building on layers of learning) lessons and assessments to build a
comprehensive educational plan. The goal then, to create an appropriate
assessment, would include a variety of questions and problems that would
allow students to show their understanding across the three types of
instruction and clearly demonstrate their knowledge of the subject, not their
ability to take a test. (Larson & Lockee, 2014)
The potential for standardized testing to be damaging to a wide-range
of students has been well documented, but it seems like the alternatives
arent discussed at all. Diane Ravitch explains that the benefit of
standardized tests is that they provide the immediate and easily organized
data that politicians could refer to. According to Diane: The thirst for data

High Stakes Testing: Do the Risks Outweigh the Benefits?

became unquenchable. Policy makers in Washington and the state capitals
apparently assumed that more testing would produce more learning. They
were certain that they needed accountability and could not imagine any way
to hold schools accountable without test scores. (p.13) It is noted that
thanks to the increasing development of educational information technology
there are many effective ways and multiple techniques that can be used to
create qualitative assessments, in addition to the quantitative assessments,
that more accurately assess a students knowledge of a subject. The need for
data that can be easily collected and shared can be met along with
respecting the APAs guidelines for assessment (APA.org) by incorporating
multiple forms of technology and types of data. In addition to periodic, not
excessive, standardized testing, technology can be used to add more
meaningful assessments, such as providing the questions and problems in
different formats and allowing students with vision and/or hearing disabilities
to receive the tests in formats that they can understand. There is such a high
potential for using technology to create better and more formative learning
assessments that it seems like opportunities are being missed by focusing so
heavily on one type of assessment geared for the average student.
The decision to require schools across America to increase the amount
of standardized testing was not well thought-out, was not properly
researched, and has been shown to be harmful to all students to the point of
actually limiting their educations. (Nichols, Glass, Berliner, 2012) It is my
opinion that at the point that these tests become damaging to students then

High Stakes Testing: Do the Risks Outweigh the Benefits?

they must be reduced and/or removed. If a parent believes that their child is
suffering from additional stress or appears to be losing confidence then they
must pursue opting out of testing. While the use of high-stakes standardized
testing has been required by politicians and without the needs of the
students taken in to consideration, they do not need to be eliminated
entirely. There are ways in which testing can be paired with more meaningful
assessments and still provide the results needed in order to make sure
schools, teachers, and students are meeting educational standards. One
example of when this type of testing is useful is determining if essential and
prerequisite material has been learned and the student is ready to progress
to the next level class. (Sorensen, 2006) As educators, we need to actively
create environments where students of all ages are encouraged to connect
with their classmates, teachers, and schools, and are allowed to be actively
engaged in their learning and feel like their opinions are valued. (Ricci, 2015)
It is interesting to consider that students enrolled in private schools are
somehow able to receive a deep and meaningful education, and still receive
high marks on the state mandated testing. It appears that the only
difference between these students and their public school peers are their zip
codes and parents abilities to pay tuition. (Ricci, 2015)
The APA has created a set of Standards for Educational and
Psychological Testing with the intention of ensuring that any assessment
used to determine a students aptitude or placement in a subject be
administered responsibly and fairly. (APA.org) The standards call for using

High Stakes Testing: Do the Risks Outweigh the Benefits?

testing in a responsible manner and not using the test results as the sole
means of deciding a students placement or retention. Tests should also take
into account the diverse needs of a student population that includes students
that may be negatively affected by increasing the importance and frequency
of the testing. In my opinion, if the government is going to become involved
and require a high level of testing, then care should be taken to make sure
the assessments are based on established educational principles and are
appropriate to a wide-range of students. The technology used to create the
massive multiple-choice question tests could be updated and adjusted to
allow for the inclusion of varied types of questions and assessments which
would provide all parties with more accurate and detailed data that could be
used to improve education and protect students.
High-stakes testing has become deeply rooted in political policy and
educational reform movements so it is unlikely that the amount of testing is
going to be reduced by those who have been working so hard to increase the
frequency and importance of testing. Therefore, it is imperative that
students who are being negatively affected by the pressure and intensity of
high-stakes testing be allowed to opt-out of further testing without recourse.
High-stakes tests were added into federal education policy without the
proper vetting and research to ensure that they are safe and supportive of
students educational needs. Standardized tests have been shown to be
harmful to minority and low-income students, as well as ineffective at
demonstrating retention and abilities, so parents should not be pressured or

High Stakes Testing: Do the Risks Outweigh the Benefits?

made to feel badly about deciding to opt their child out of high-stakes
testing. Education and assessment should always keep the students best
interest as a priority.

High Stakes Testing: Do the Risks Outweigh the Benefits?

References
AmericanPsychologicalAssociation(n.d.).Retreivedfrom http://www.apa.org/pubs/info/brochures/testing.aspx.
Aydeniz,M.,&Southerland,S.(2012).ANationalSurveyofMiddleandHighSchoolScienceTeachers
ResponsestoStandardizedTesting:IsScienceBeingDevaluedinSchools.JournalofScience
TeacherEducation,2012(23),233257.doi:10.1007/s1097201292663
BarrierFerreira,J.(2008).ProducingCommoditiesorEducatingChildren?NurturingthePersonalGrowth
ofStudentsintheFaceofStandardizedTesting.WesternConnecticutStateUniversity.
Jorgenson,O.(2012).WhatWeLoseinWinningtheTestScoreRace.Principal,May/June2012,1215.
Kearns,L.(2011).HighstakesStandardizedTestingandMarginalizedYouth:AnExaminationofthe
ImpactonThoseWhoFail.CanadianJournalofEducation,34(2),112130.
Larson,M.&Lockee,B.(2014).StreamlinedID:APracticalGuidetoInstructionalDesign.NewYork,NY.:
Routledge.
Linn,R.(2001).ACenturyofStandardizedTesting:ControversiesandPendulumSwings.Educational
Assessment,7(1),2938.
Nichols,S.,Glass,G.&Berliner,D.(2012).HighStakesTestingandStudentAnalysis.UpdatedAnalysis
withNAEPData.EducationPolicyAnalysisArchives,20(20).
Ravitch,D.(2013).ReignofError:TheHoaxofthePrivatizationMovementandTheDangerToAmericasPublic
Schools.NewYork,NY.VintageBooks.
Ricci,C.(2010).TheCaseAgainstStandardizedTestingandtheCallforaRevitalizationofDemocracy.
ReviewofEducation,Pedagogy,andCulturalStudies,26(4),339361.
doi:10.1080/10714410490905375
Sorensen,J.(2006).DocumentingtheAchievementsofOurStudentswithoutCompromisingExcellence.
JournalofNationalCollegiateHonorsCouncil,Spring/Summer2006,3336.
Stitzlein,S.(2015).ImprovingPublicSchoolsThroughtheDissentofParents:OptingOutofTests,
DemandingAlternativeCurricula,InvokingParentTriggerLaws,andWithdrawingEntirely.
EducationalStudies.
Weaver,K.(2011).StandardizedTestingMeasuringtheAcademicSuccessofStudentsAcademic
Achievement.

High Stakes Testing: Do the Risks Outweigh the Benefits?