ecognition of quality and lack there of should be a basic goal of the education system, as it strives to direct resources and change situations that are not meeting the demands of accountability, yet it is clear that High Stakes testing does a poor job identifying good schools and good teachers as it ignored, by default important information that is not available on the test scores. It has been clear for countless years that socioeconomics, for example plays a much larger role in most high stakes test scores than the ability of the teacher, as it does in many other issues surrounding student performance and even long-term lifetime outcomes. Excellent teachers in poorer school districts will be misidentified as substandard due to factors beyond their control, and students will be held back based on circumstances outside of their control, if a single form of assessment is to be the rule.

The….

7).
Although "one would expect higher quality assessment instruments that produce better information to make education decisions given NCLB-imposed penalties for districts associated with poor performance on the test...many states struggle with budget deficits and funding restrictions. They cannot allocate the funds necessary to improve the testing programs. States are forced to rely on large-scale assessments with too few questions and a narrow focus on skills and knowledge that are easily measured....representatives from the NJDOE [New Jersey Department of Education] have admitted publicly that finances, not technical integrity, drive the state's assessment program... [Their] current philosophy is 'do the best with what we have'" and is based upon the assumption that some testing, of whatever kind, is better than not testing at all (Tienken & ilson, 2007, p.16)

The irony is palpable -- the high-stakes nature of testing requires teachers, operating under finite limitations of time and money, to focus on….

Thus, students faced with fear and stress, are overwhelmed, concentrating on the test rather than on the goals of learning. They cannot concentrate on school work, understanding the importance of learning and education, because of stress that forces some to focus only on the test and others to drop out.
III. High stakes testing disadvantages those with learning disabilities.

In addition to lowering the teaching capacity of some teachers and students' focus on the value of education, many scholars argue that high stakes testing can be harmful to those with learning disabilities. First, many argue that students with learning disabilities receive different curriculum than students without learning disabilities, making it impossible for students with learning disabilities to do well on the same tests given to their peers. Furthermore, many students do not receive the aid that they need when taking tests, such as hearing aids or visual aids, and some students….

"Schools will not be able to attract high-quality teachers to a system that stifles richness and creativity and emphasizes a narrow band of knowledge and a very restricted set of tests to measure it." Consequently, struggling schools will get worse as teachers move to more affluent public or private schools to teach. The students will suffer the consequences of inadequate instruction the most.
In the end, High Stakes Testing does not appear to be benefiting anyone except those who like to study data. The tests generate information from and about students and schools. However, that information is probably not very accurate due to the way the information is manipulated and the limitations of the tests themselves. The reality is that a better system of promoting student achievement and evaluating schools needs to be found. That system may include testing as one of its elements, but due to the negative impact….

Because of this, students who had disabilities, low language proficiency, and who come from various ethnic backgrounds are viewed as such during the grading process. In addition, these kinds of assessments allow professors to not only assess whether the students have learned the subject matter, but also whether or not they have the skills to proceed in the academic realm. According to the Ohio Department of Education (n.d.), there are many types of assessment, including formal and informal that include everything from teacher observations to extended projects. By combining a variety of these formal and informal testing methods over an extended period of time using multiple assessors, students' predictions for success will be more accurate. This way, it is easier to determine whether or not students have learned the necessary skills and are ready to move on to the next level or obtain their degree. Although opponents of these….

articles on high-stakes testing. Specifically, it will review the three articles, and include how the articles changed my personal views on high-stakes testing. Clearly, testing is a necessity in the educational environment, and yet, many forms of testing seem to be more a form of control and labeling rather than a way to accurately measure the student's expected and actual learning outcomes. High-stakes testing may help reinforce the school district's learning standards and outcomes, but it may not be the method most effective in measuring the child's development and learning potential.
What is the purpose of educational testing? Ostensibly, it exists to measure a student's progress throughout the school year, but it can also be a measure of the educator and district's success in passing on information from educator to learner. Most parents and professionals want some measure of proof that their children are receiving a quality education that can….

Only 32.6% of lack households own a computer, compared to 65.6% among Asian-Americans, 55.7% among Whites, and 33.7% among Hispanics. Similarly, only 23.5% of lack households have Internet access compared to 56.8% among Asian-Americans, 46.1% among Whites, and 23.6% among Hispanics" (p. 31). This so-called "digital divide" gap, though, between the "information haves" and the "information have-nots" continues to shrink and more and more young people are using these technologies in and out of the classroom (Subramony, 2007). As a result, high school teachers today must not only understand how these technologies work, they must be able to help guide their students in their effective use for educational pursuits. In this regard, Labbo notes that, "The push forward of new digital literacies involves the critical need for educators to better understand how to help students learn how to use new computer technology tools and digital genres" (p. 200).
Consequently, to….

Understanding AssessmentsAssessments are essential in education because they serve as measures of student understanding (National Research Council, 2001). They can be also be used by teachers to make instructional decisions, and evaluate the effectiveness of educational programs (Stiggins & Duke, 2008). My personal and professional experiences with assessments range from high-stakes standardized tests to formative classroom quizzes, have shaped my understanding of their multifaceted nature.The main purpose of assessment is to evaluate students' mastery of content and skills, and if done well the assessment can give valuable data that informs teaching and learning (National Research Council, 2001). Formative assessments can be anything from quizzes to discussions, but they are conducted during the learning process and help teachers see students' strengths and areas for improvement. They give immediate feedback so that teachers can make adjustments to their instruction if needed. Summative assessments, on the other hand, take place at the end….

hile some suggest that high-stakes testing is an inadequate way of measuring the academic achievement and learning of most students, many also agree that high-stakes testing has severe disadvantages for special education students. Kymes points out that high-stakes testing may be a discriminatory assessment method for special needs students, placing an "unfair burden" on these students. The scholar argues that testing plans cannot be created for each and every student, and even when they can, these testing plans are not always put into practice (Kymes). In addition, Ralabate notes the importance of finding alternate testing methods that allow students with disabilities to perform to their highest ability.

Determining that high-stakes testing is not a correct method of assessment for special needs students, however, is just half of the task at hand. In fact, significant information exists to argue that students with disabilities, in addition to schools, can be seriously harmed by….

High-Quality Elementary Education
hat ingredients go into a high quality education for elementary school children -- and what does the literature reveal? hat has been the impact of "No Child Left Behind" in terms of achieving that seemingly unachievable goal? These and other issues are covered in this paper.

Improving Elementary School Quality: Social-Emotional / Character Development

A research study in the peer-reviewed Journal of School Health reveals that a school-wide program involving a "social-emotional and character development education program" can "significantly improve" the quality of the education experience for elementary school children (Snyder, 2012, 11). The program, called "Positive Action," was conducted involving 20 elementary schools in Hawaii -- racially and ethnically diverse schools -- between the 2002-2003 school years and 2005-2006 school years.

In brief, the six-unit Positive Action (PA) program utilized in Hawaii involved 140 sessions -- lasting 15 to 20 minutes each -- per elementary grade per academic year (Snyder,….

Bias
High stake assessments

High stake assessments are purposed to improve the achievement of students. They are aimed at holding individuals accountable for their performance in the tests. However, the system is far from achieving its goals. The high stake assessment does not improve learning in fact the system creates disparities in the system. Only a few students benefit from these assessments while the rest do not get any benefit from the system. The 2010 college bound seniors average SAT scores shows the students performed differently. The performance of the students was categorized according to the age, ethnicity and income. These assessments are bias when issues of ethnicity, socioeconomic status are addressed. The differences in the scores are a reflection of the difference in the educational opportunities and resources available for the students (Neill, 1998).

The students in the different categories performed differently due to the stereotype threat which the high stake….

Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System
An effort to improve the quality of education for all students and to ensure that no child is left behind, Massachusetts advocates, parents and educators of the Coalition for Authentic eform in Education (CAE) have proposed, House Bill 3660 for the reform of the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAST) test.

The high rate of high school dropouts and gaps in achievement among cultures and economic levels has suggested an evaluation of Massachusetts current testing system. Massachusetts has experienced a drop-out rate of approximately 10,000 students per year over the last decade with the highest numbers among the Hispanic, African-American, low-income families, students with learning disabilities and language barriers.

This paper will illustrate the effect of high-stake test and student achievement. It will look at the current MCAST, the need for reform and the underlining challenges to provide equal and quality education to for children.

Advocates claim that the current system….

No high-achieving nation tests every child, every year, in the way we're currently doing. They have much more intellectually ambitious assessments [or measuring not just memory but what students can do with knowledge].
-- Ed Finkel, 2010

As the epigraph above emphasizes, during an era when critical thinking skills have assumed new importance, young people's academic and professional careers are still being controlled by high-stakes standardized testing regimes and teachers are increasingly being held accountable for student performance. As a result, it is little wonder that there has been a growing tendency on the part of many educators to "teach to the test." Indeed, and as also underscored by the epigraph above, the classroom testing process itself can be viewed as being counterproductive to the extent that it detracts from long-term learning and the development of the critical thinking skills young people need today to be competitive in the workplace. This paper….

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was first signed into law in 1990, and several amendments to it have been made including the most recent changes made in 2009. Generally, the ADA requires that "reasonable accommodations" are made to infrastructure and environment, including those related to a test-taking environment (U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 2008). Accommodations are made according to the specific needs of the situation, with the goal being the provision of an "an opportunity for a person with a disability to achieve the same level of performance and to enjoy benefits equal to those of an average, similarly situated person without a disability," (U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 2008). An employer or educational institution, for example, would need to ensure that desks can be adapted to suit test-takers with physical disabilities, that the test-taking venue is accessible to persons needing assistance in a wheelchair or other device, or….

Bridging the Gap between Testing and Technology in Schools," authors Michael Russell and alter Haney look at the potential effects of technology in schools on testing and assessment. The authors begin by stating that while many schools are emphasizing technological proficiency, state assessment methods often still make students take tests on paper. The writers argue that these written tests skew the results by undermining the performance of students who are used to digital technology. For the authors, taking a test on paper is like forcing modern accountants to take an accounting test using only an abacus.
The authors cite examples from several states and schools to support their argument. In Ohio, for example, students need to pass the Ohio Proficiency Test as a requirement for high school graduation. These Ohio students are just a small percentage students made to take such "high-stakes" tests across the country every year. Researchers worry….