Alfie Kohn's critique of standardized testing in American schools

¶ … Standardized Testing and Its Victims" by Alfie Kohn is a well-written pieces which focuses on the facts and implications surrounding the flaws with the way that standardized testing exists in America. The article opens by discussing the pillars of indisputable truth which surround the phenomenon of standardized testing. These "facts" are as follows: American students are tested more than any nation in the world; most of the variance in test scores have to do with factors that are not related to teaching/learning; many of the standardized tests which exist today were ever intended to measure the quality of education or how much a student had retained; standardized tests measure the worst type of learning (superficial learning) (Kohn, 2000). Kohn continues with more facts to support her argument by illuminating that the bulk of child development experts forbid the practice of giving standardized tests to young children; standardized tests needlessly consume too large a portion of the budget of already strapped schools (Kohn, 2000). The final "fact" that Kohn discusses is that a large portion of teachers are leaving the field as a result of the aggravated rate of standardized testing. Kohn then uses the latter portion of her essay as a means of discussing some of the more troubling trends that standardized tests have imprinted upon the educational arena at large and why this is so destructive to educators and students alike. Ultiamtely, Kohn concludes that the perpetuation of such exams only serves to give unfair advantages to white students while minority students are expected to compete within an arena that is not weighted in their favor.

The author's method of persuasion is a strong one, particularly since she opens up her essay with a list of "facts" which she describes as indisputable but on closer examination, not all of them are not actually facts. Intelligently enough, the first fact that Kohn uses as a means for supporting her argument is worded as follows: "Our children are tested to an extent that is unprecedented in our history and unparalleled anywhere else in the world. While previous generations of American students have had to sit through tests, never have the tests been given so frequently, and never have they played such a prominent role in schooling. The current situation is also unusual from an international perspective: Few countries use standardized tests for children below high school age -- or multiple-choice tests for students of any age" (Kohn, 2000). This statement is extremely compelling and well worded; furthermore, it makes an entirely persuasive argument, in and of itself. The implication is that if so many other high-achieving nations aren't testing their kids as much (countries like China, Japan, Sweden, or England) then why is America? It truly creates a very strong suggestion that perhaps America needs to make some massive and immediate changes to the way in which it educates and assesses its children.

Many Americans are well-acquainted with the way in which the American school system is tremendously lagging behind other countries: this statement very strongly suggest that if other, high-achieving countries, with higher literacy rates along with higher math and science scores are testing their children less, and spending more time on more pressing issues, then perhaps America should do the same. However, the overwhelming flaw with this paragraph is the glaring fact that Kohn does not use any supportive evidence to demonstrate that what she claims is in fact true. The assertion, while strong, has nothing to rest on, and on closer examination, just looks flimsy.

Other times, Kohn will make a bold statement, and then readily admit that she has no evidence to support it, which can't help but make the reader wonder why she is mentioning it at all. This occurs very conspicuously when Kohn presents what she refers to as "fact 8" which consists of the assertion that more and more teachers are leaving the field of teaching because of the heightened amount of standardized testing. Kohn readily admits: "I have no hard numbers here, but there is more than enough anecdotal evidence -- corroborated by administrators, teacher-educators, and other observers across the country, and supported by several state surveys that quantify the extent of disenchantment with testing -- to warrant classifying this as a fact. Prospective teachers are rethinking whether they want to begin a career in which high test scores matter most, and in which they will be pressured to produce these scores" (2000). The problem with this assertion is that there are not facts or evidence offered. Kohn is merely sharing the anecdotes from her limited life experience.

This is extremely problematic as Kohn is offering up limited hearsay up as a fact. If Kohn truly believes that she has collected enough narrative evidence from these educators to classify this claim as a fact, then she needs to engage in a formal research study in order to corroborate her findings in a manner which will be actually useful to her. Furthermore, when Kohn does attempt to offer evidence, it's again clear that it's not actually evidence, just more hearsay, but from a sophisticated source. Kohn cites the New York Times who asserted that "a growing number of schools are rudderless, struggling to replace a graying corps of principals at a time when the pressure to raise test scores and other new demands have made an already difficult job an increasingly thankless one." This continues to be just conjecture, though vividly worded, just from a different source this time and one which happens to be better regarded.