With the first semester finally wrapped up, leaving the first wave of MCAP(Maryland Comprehensive Assessment Program) testing done and a continuation of Juniors preparing to take the SAT this March, an age-old debate resurfaces. Is standardized testing necessary? With the stress these exams bring students, can they really be considered an accurate measure of performance?
According to the MCAP website, the exams serve as a way to prepare students to achieve college and career readiness by the end of high school, using a series of exams starting in the third grade. However, this can be stressful for students who may already be trying to balance regular exams for their classes on top.
For some students, the timed access of the test is both a stress inducer and a distraction. “[During these tests] I keep looking at the time and not really focusing on the questions,” sophomore Vera Larbi shared. To combat this, some tests, such as the SAT, have a feature to hide the timer until the last five minutes of the exam.
However time is not the only factor stressing student’s out with these exams. Not only do the results help to determine student wide performance but have also begun to be factored into grades or serve as a barrier to opportunities. For instance, in Frederick County both the government and biology MCAPs are now being included as 20% of every student’s final grade; a newfound way to stress out students who won’t get the scores back until months after the exam.
Additionally these exams typically are drawn out and all occur around the same time at the end of the semester. This can be very stressful and hard mentally on students. Instead, as said by Oakdale English teacher, Julia Showalter, it may better serve students “to change the schedule of testing. So that they’re not sitting there testing every single day.”
One alternative brought up by students for the current system is to use regular testing throughout the course to identify these standards rather than one big comprehensive exam on top of other exams. The current system is not only stressful but, as Larbi put it, rather repetitive. While some systems have been in use, such as benchmarks throughout the semester, many of these courses still have a state test at the end, such as biology. For instance Larbi suggested to “keep the tests we already have [unit tests/benchmarks] to have that foundation, but also not to stress us out with standardized tests.”
Some courses also only have an exam at the end, and it may serve as a better benefit to students to have a diagnostic exam towards the beginning to not only help track growth but allow teachers to actually use the results to assist students throughout the semester, instead of having to wait an entire year. As Showalter said, by using an exam as a diagnostic tool, “We can look at skills, weaknesses, group students or even offer individual support to help them.” These exams could then be supplemented by an additional check at the end of the semester to track growth and identify needed standards such as college and career readiness.
Overall, it is clear to see that the current standardized testing system is flawed. To fix all of the issues a complete overhaul of the system may be necessary. Whether through alternative testing throughout the course, or even just messing with the time to help reduce the major stress levels students experience. Students are not defined by a test score, and yet the current system acts as a major barrier all the same.
