TOPIC: SCHOOL LIFE
School Corridors Quieted as SLAS Prepares for its Standardized Testing
by Calvin Ma
Standardized testing is a great way to
compare oneself to students all around the
world and to see whether one is above or
below average, so many schools now have
regular standardized tests administered as
a way of checking whether the current
curriculum is succeeding in preparing the
school’s students for college or not. While
standardized tests are often difficult and
tricky, students who take these tests are
usually more prepared for high school or
college in the future.
“Our teachers have prepared us for this
exam by teaching the materials from the
books.” Lydia, a sixth grader, stated. “I am
confident that I can score high on this
exam.” Many students felt very confident
in their chances of scoring above average
because usually the standardized tests
such as the Iowa Test of Basic Skills (ITBS),
which is taken generally by middle and high
school students, or the PSAT (Preliminary
SAT), which is taken by high school
students, feature subjects normally taught
in school; they test the students on their
understanding of basic math skills, and
reading and writing abilities.
When all of the tests are graded, all of the
scores are compiled, and then averages are
taken. After receiving the test results, the
student can then compare his scores in each
of the categories, Math, Reading, and
Writing, with all the students who took the
test. Afterwards, the student can determine
the areas where he needs to improve or
study in order to score higher next time.
“I think that they are pretty easy; because
of the multiple choice questions, it is less
likely for a student to miss a question.”
Lydia noted. While the PSAT and the SAT
deduct 1/4 of a point for every missed
question, the ITBS does not. Moreover, the
ITBS has several levels intended for
different age groups and is mainly used for
instructional improvements, whereas the
PSAT has only one level and is mainly used
to prepare for the SAT.
Furthermore, most standardized tests are
designed so that in the end, the results will
form a “Bell Curve”, which means that most
test takers fill score somewhere in the
middle, while few will score a very low score
or an extremely high score. This ensures
that the tests are created fairly for all
groups; if it did not have this design, the
tests would be either too difficult or too
easy. Moreover, these standardized tests
consist of questions that are created by
experts and experienced teachers, and the
questions that appear on the tests are often
randomly chosen by a computer to ensure
fairness.
Generally, most students benefit from
taking standardized tests because they
become capable of sitting through hours of
exam without having to take breaks. Even
though standardized tests do indicate one’s
level of understanding of a particular
subject, or sometimes even one’s ability to
take that test, it is important to know that
they do not accurately reflect one’s
intelligence or competence in the real
world