Education Commons^™

Standardized Testing And Stress In Teachers And Students, Gretchen L. Spoelman-Delong

Culminating Experience Projects

This project demonstrates the relationship between standardized testing and increased stress in both teachers and students. The emphasis placed on standardized testing and therefore potential for increased anxiety and stress for teachers and students is important because stressed and anxious teachers are not going to be teaching to their full potential. Likewise, stressed and anxious students are not going to be able to rise to their full learning potential (Gonzalez et al., 2017). The purpose of this project is to decrease the amount of stress and anxiety that students and teachers feel. This can be accomplished by informing school personnel, …

Staar Preparation: How It Affects The Perceptions Of Third-Grade Students, Taylor Whitworth

Masters of Education in Teaching and Learning

Test preparation is a hot button topic in education today. Many studies have looked at students’ and teachers’ perceptions after the administration of the STAAR test. This study investigated third-grade students’ perceptions of the STAAR before and after previous-form test preparation interventions. The researcher used observations, surveys, and interviews to collect data. The data was analyzed using the constant comparative method and descriptive statistics. The author found five major themes that answered the two original research questions. Most students had negative perceptions of the STAAR test prior to intervention, and these often stemmed from information from family members. Overall, the …

Testing Privilege: Coaching Bar Takers Towards “Minimum Competency” During The 2020 Pandemic, Benjamin Afton Cavanaugh

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

Abstract forthcoming.

Understanding The Educational Landscape: A Comparative Study Of Public, Alternative, And Montessori Models, Elizabeth Dykens

Selected Honors Theses

This thesis intends to demonstrate the relevance and significance of alternative education within today’s educational climate. First, the literature review traces the historical backdrop of the American public school system and the founding fathers’ original purposes for education. It explores the shifts in policy and pedagogy that have led to current models and methods of education. Then, the literature review focuses on alternative educational philosophies, with an emphasis on the Montessori Method, and why they not only address the critiques of the public system but also better align with a child’s nature and development. The study backing this thesis lays …

Rethinking Standardized Testing From An Access, Equity And Achievement Perspective: Has Anything Changed For African American Students?, Michael Couch Ii, Marquisha Frost, J. Santiago, Adriel Hilton

Journal of Research Initiatives

This study examined standardized testing and its effects on African American students. The authors focused on three perspectives: access, equity, and achievement about students' academic success in their K-12 educational experiences and how the quality of their education and test scores impacted their college acceptance rate, respectively. The three perspectives are specific to the works of Dr. Asa G. Hilliard and Dr. Barbara A. Sizemore, both of whom were passionate about the academic success and progression of students of African descent. Their many works embody a fight against standardized testing for students, especially those of color, and work toward a …

Use Of Standardized Test Results By Faculty And Students For Advanced Practice Nurse Certification Success, Dinorah Martinez-Anderson

Nursing Theses and Dissertations

The utilization of standardized testing as a recognized educational strategy to measure pre-professional readiness in Advanced Practice Nursing (APN) graduate programs has increased. Research supports such use for predicting licensure success for undergraduate education, however when related to the use in graduate nursing education, it is limited. Teaching and learning practices of APN faculty and students have not been comprehensively explored. This study examined the use of standardized testing results by faculty and students in APN graduate education that contributes to student national certification success. The Reconceptualization of Vygotsky’s Theory of Zone of Proximal Development (RVZPD) underpins the study. An …

Standardizing America: Why It Should Be A Method Of The Past, Samantha N. Jackson

OUR Journal: ODU Undergraduate Research Journal

This paper examines, critiques, and suggests improvements on the method of standardized testing in American schools. This paper discusses the history and development of standardized testing and its initial purpose and intentions. Additionally, the effects of standardized testing on students, teachers, and parents are evaluated, with special consideration on how high stakes testing adversely affects disadvantaged student groups such as children in minorities and low-income districts, bilingual students, and children with disabilities. The research suggests that standardized testing is not only damaging to students in these groups, but most likely not the most efficient way of testing student performance in …

Students' Attitudes Towards Standardized Testing: A Literature Review, Kelly Gard

Curriculum and Instruction Undergraduate Honors Theses

Standardized testing is a task that all students must undertake during their educational careers. Standardized tests are large determinants to course placements, exceptionality placements, grades, school sanctions or rewards, and education policy. It is imperative that all students have an equal opportunity to succeed on standardized tests. However, bias, stress, and anxiety in standardized testing often hinders the opportunity for many students to excel on the tests.

The purpose of this literature review is to discuss the research conducted on standardized testing bias which includes the prevalence of testing bias as well as the causes and types of testing bias. …

More Than A Score: The Test-Optional Movement In Higher Education, Lisa Montgomery

West Chester University Doctoral Projects

“Test optional”, “test flexible,” and “no tests required” are buzzwords surrounding the college admissions’ process today. Getting into a college or university may require a student to submit several sets of grades and scores from either the SAT or ACT, write essays, prepare for interviews and/or complete other admission requirements. As of 2018, there are at least 1,000 accredited, bachelor-degree-granting colleges and universities that altered their admissions policy to either eliminate consideration of standardized testing scores or have moved to test optional or test-flexible admissions policies (Safier, 2017).

This qualitative mixed methods study investigated why higher education institutions are implementing …

Testing For All: An Exploration Of Disproportionality In The Georgia Alternate Assessments, Kelly D. Childers, Meagan Arrastia-Chisholm, Katharine S. Adams, Heather M. Kelley Ph.D.

Georgia Educational Researcher

Public schools use standardized testing to measure students’ academic achievement at the conclusion of each school year. Students with severe cognitive disabilities are evaluated through the Georgia Alternate Assessment (GAA). The purpose of this descriptive study was to describe the demographic characteristics of students who took the Georgia Alternate Assessment (GAA) and students who took the Georgia Milestones End of Grade Assessment (EOG) in English/Language Arts using publicly available data from the 2014-2015 academic year. Additionally, the study investigated disproportionality of certain student groups who took the GAA and EOG in English/Language Arts. A series of chi-square analyses resulted in …

How Schools Create Healthy Testing Cultures And How Principals Use Standardized Test Data To Become Leaders Of Learning, Holly A. Gurule

Teacher Education, Educational Leadership & Policy ETDs

Standardized tests are not new to the field of education. The problem with them seems to lie in the ways these tests are now being used as criteria for various high-stakes decisions such as teachers’ evaluations, school grades, school sanctions, and even graduation from high school with a diploma. With so many different uses for standardized tests, it is easy to see how our perception of them has become skewed.

This bounded case study of a small elementary school in a large urban district centered on shifting the focus away from looking at standardized tests as a negative, as mere …

The Correlation Between The Act, Inc. Explore Test And Student Success In High School Advanced And Advanced Placement Mathematics Courses, Virginia Story

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to compare the relationship between the mathematics portion of the EXPLORE test with students successes in advanced and Advanced Placement(AP) mathematics courses in high school. The data was collected from a rural Tennessee school system consisting of five years of data among graduated seniors. Analysis was completed to determine the difference between the two county high schools in advanced coursework. The findings of this study concluded a positive correlation between EXPLORE scores and the frequency of students who took advanced mathematics courses. Positive correlation between EXPLORE scores and student successes in advanced courses was …

Contributors To Success On The Automotive Service Excellence (Ase) Student Certification Exam, Robert K. Vlacich, Mark D. Threeton, Kyungin Kim

Journal of Research in Technical Careers

This study sought to identify which elements contribute to success on the Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) Student Certification exam. Students at an eastern U.S. technical college who completed all of their automotive major courses and the ASE Student Certification exam during the spring 2017 semester were selected for the study. The results of this study revealed that there was a direct correlation between performance in Physics, Algebra, and Trigonometry 1 and performance on the ASE Student Certification exam. It was also revealed that students who were required to participate in remedial math and/or remedial reading courses were likely to perform …

“Be Calm, Keep Calm”: A Study Of Fourth-Grade Students’ Experiences Of High-Stakes, Marcinda Asburry

Ed.D. Dissertations

The researcher examined the experiences of fourth-grade students as they prepared for and took the TNReady assessment, which is considered a high-stakes test. The sample size consisted of three boys and two girls who attended a private school located in rural Southeastern Tennessee. Through drawing protocols, interviews, and student writings. The researcher found the boys in this study experienced more anxiety as compared to the girls when it came to preparing and taking the TNReady assessment. The researcher also found that students emphasized the role of the teacher in helping them deal with anxiety that they experienced. Research regarding how …

The Relationship Between District Concert Band Music Performance Assessment Participation And Student Achievement In Miami-Dade County Public Middle Schools, Arthur J. N. Scavella

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Since the implementation and achievement score pressures of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, elective course offerings such as music have been drastically reduced, especially in the middle school setting. A great deal of correlational research has shown a positive correlation between music education in school and students’ overall academic achievement.

This study examined the correlation between those middle school students that participated in the District Concert Band Music Performance Assessment (MPA) versus those middle school students that did not regarding their achievement scores on the 2016 English language arts (ELA) and mathematics subtests of the Florida Standards …

Parents' Reasons For Opting-Out Students From High-Stakes Tests, Rachael Mcloud

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

An increasing number of parents are opting-out their children from high-stakes. Accountability systems in education have used students' test scores to measure student learning, teacher effectiveness, and school district performance. Students who are opted-out of high-stakes tests are not being evaluated by the state tests, making their level of achievement or proficiency unknown by the state government. The purpose of this basic interpretive qualitative study was to gain an understanding of the various reasons, factors, experiences, and personal events that led parents to opt-out their children from at least one 3rd through 8th grade high-stakes test. Data were collected using …

These Testing Obsessions Are Getting A Little Weird, Dave Powell

Education Faculty Publications

This morning, as she was getting ready for work, my wife noticed something unusual about our son, who is in third grade. He was quietly eating breakfast, like he always does, but something about him was different. He was wearing a plain white t-shirt.

He must have noticed that she was looking at him, because he looked up and said: "Do you think it's okay if I wear this shirt today?" His wardrobe normally consists of about five t-shirts that he cycles through, one after the other, and sometimes tries to wear twice in a row if we don't catch …

The Impact Of Mathematics, Science And Language Arts Writing To Learn Strategies On The Culture Of Learning In Primary And Secondary Students, Ronnie Tarchichi

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this quantitative study was to institute student growth and achievement in standardized test scores in the district with the use of writing to learn strategies. The objective of the study was to ensure growth and comfort for students with standardized testing and to train teachers to implement an approach to pedagogy (writing to learn strategies) centered on skills needed to increase standardized test scores. Using experimental research embodied in an action research design, five teachers were asked to take on different experimental and control groups of students in remediation periods known as either the twilight period (after …

Standardized Testing With A Focus On The Common Core Curriculum, Dina T. Beck-Billig

The Touro Teacher

The author discusses the history of standardized testing, focusing on testing in the United States and China.

Media Coverage Of Standardized Testing: A Qualitative Analysis Of Newspaper Reports In Four North Carolina Newspapers, Denita Dowell-Reavis

Education Dissertations and Projects

Standardized testing exists as part of public policy to measure the success of students, teachers, and schools. Ushered in by No Child Left Behind during the G.W. Bush era, testing came with labels for schools which opened the conversation as to whether schools were in crisis or failing. Most of the focus in research on standardized tests has centered on whether the tests were biased, if they were overused, and how they affected teaching and learning. In a comprehensive review, no studies could be found to determine what the public knows about standardized tests based on newspaper reports. This examination …

Survive And Thrive During Testing Season, Lori Desautels

Lori Desautels

Right now, students across the nation are embarking upon a series of standardized tests following intense days and weeks of test preparation accompanied by anxiety and worry from both parents and educators. Many of these test participants are English as a Second Language (ESL) learners with a wide diversity of learning potential, social and emotional challenges, strengths, cultures and interests. Among these young learners, there are many who put themselves to bed in the evening, get themselves up and ready for school, and do not have breakfast, arranged homework times or adult support to guide their school days...

Standardized Testing, Learning, And Meritocracy: A Reply To Professor Dan Subotnik, Harvey Gilmore

Touro Law Review

No abstract provided.

A Grounded Theory Study Of The Impact Of Florida School Report Cards On High School English Language Arts Teachers' Self-Efficacy And Perceptions Of Student Writing, Casey S. Briand

Honors Undergraduate Theses

This study sought to uncover how the annual Florida School Report Card influences secondary English Language Arts (ELA) teachers’ self-efficacy and perceptions of student writing. The study’s findings suggested that ELA teachers’ self-efficacy may be indirectly influenced by the School Report Card. The participants in this study suggested that they do not feel totally capable of applying the information learned from the School Report Card to their own classrooms. The teachers who participated in the study also reported that they have low outcome expectations when interacting with the School Report Card. They do not believe that their actions can influence …

Teaching In A Standardized World: An Autoethnography Of My Student And Teacher Life, Caitlin Anne Hunter

Honors Capstone Projects - All

This paper is an autoethnography, which is a study of me and of my teaching. Through reflecting on my life as a student and a teacher, I have found that the difference between standardization and differentiation has stuck out and influenced both my learning and my teaching. I have chosen to focus on these two areas of education in looking at assessment and instruction. This paper weaves together a review of literature of differentiation, standardization and the history of standardized testing with anecdotes from my life. Throughout this process I will look at the question, “How does one differentiate in …

It's Like They're Building The Airplane While It's In The Air, Dave Powell

Education Faculty Publications

One of the things I was most concerned about when I left the classroom to become a teacher educator was losing my credibility. Everybody knows the rap on teacher educators: they're out of touch, too theoretical, disconnected from the everyday life of the classroom teacher. Of course, sometimes criticism is like a good joke. It's only funny because it's true—sometimes. [excerpt]

Indiana, Susan R. Adams

Susan Adams

Indiana was admitted to the Union as the 19th state on December 11, 1816. Corydon, Indiana, located in southern Indiana, was the first state capitol until 1825, when the capital was moved to a more central location in Indianapolis. Indiana, located in the midwest, was formerly part of the Indiana Territory, dissolved in 1798. The first governor of the territory was William Henry Harrison, who served from 1800 until 1813. Harrison later became the into president of the United States, in 1840. Two constitutions have been ratified in Indiana: the first in 1816, and the current constitution in 1851. Indiana …

Survive And Thrive During Testing Season, Lori Desautels

Scholarship and Professional Work – Education

Right now, students across the nation are embarking upon a series of standardized tests following intense days and weeks of test preparation accompanied by anxiety and worry from both parents and educators. Many of these test participants are English as a Second Language (ESL) learners with a wide diversity of learning potential, social and emotional challenges, strengths, cultures and interests. Among these young learners, there are many who put themselves to bed in the evening, get themselves up and ready for school, and do not have breakfast, arranged homework times or adult support to guide their school days...

The Relationship Between Selected Standardized Test Scores And Performance In Advanced Placement Math And Science Exams: Analyzing The Differential Effectiveness Of Scores For Course Identification And Placement, Josue N. Urbina

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

There is a national need to increase the STEM-related workforce. Among factors leading towards STEM careers include the number of advanced high school mathematics and science courses students complete. Florida’s enrollment patterns in STEM-related Advanced Placement (AP) courses, however, reveal that only a small percentage of students enroll into these classes. Therefore, screening tools are needed to find more students for these courses, who are academically ready, yet have not been identified.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the extent to which scores from a national standardized test, Preliminary Scholastic Assessment Test/ National Merit Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT), in …

Confusing Achievement With Aptitude, Dave Powell

Dave Powell

My wife and I read and reread the words several times, allowing them to sink in. "Being in an academic class would cause him harm," the principal wrote about our son, "as the rigor would be too great." The report continued, "He would be the lowest-ability student in the class and by a large margin." It is a day you don't soon forget when the principal of your son's school tells you—in an email, no less—that your child simply is not capable of managing academic work. [excerpt]

Indiana, Susan R. Adams

Scholarship and Professional Work – Education

Indiana was admitted to the Union as the 19th state on December 11, 1816. Corydon, Indiana, located in southern Indiana, was the first state capitol until 1825, when the capital was moved to a more central location in Indianapolis. Indiana, located in the midwest, was formerly part of the Indiana Territory, dissolved in 1798. The first governor of the territory was William Henry Harrison, who served from 1800 until 1813. Harrison later became the into president of the United States, in 1840. Two constitutions have been ratified in Indiana: the first in 1816, and the current constitution in 1851. Indiana …