Standardized testing has become a monster we all accept. This begets two questions: Is standardized testing needed? And if not, why does it exist?
To answer: Standardardized tests are an unnecessary and quite often inaccurate measurement of aptitude and intelligence steeped in cultural biases and racism.
To explain the first half of this statement: numerous factors can impact a person’s standardized test scores. These include levels of sickness, nervousness, and fatigue. These factors are so obvious even teachers and tutors mentions them as examples of how standardized testing is flawed. However, standardized test scores are also based on racial, cultural, and class bias.
The very history of the most infamous test: The SAT, is steeped in racism and cultural bias. According to research done by sociologist Joseph Soares, who wrote several books on the SAT’s fascist roots, the SAT was created to prove the degeneracy of Jewish college applicants. In fact many Ivy league schools had Jewish quotas,in order to lower the school’s Jewish population and allow for a higher number, but ultimately less qualified white-anglo saxon population. Many schools though a high number of Jewish students, no matter their excellent merit would ruin the school’s reputation, and in order to keep their allotted quota, stopped looking at just grades and began looking at standardized SAT scores. This quota has stopped applying to Jewish applicants, but has now moved on to Asian-american applicants.
Many students are also at a disadvantage with studying for standardized testing because of their class status. A student from a high class family will have more access to private tutors and learning materials than a student from a lower class family. Poor students of color who come from lower class families suffer the most because their class and race will work against them in the admissions process and in the long run: while their scores may be high enough for their dream school, student loan debt will lurk in the distance, that is even if they are eligible for a loan.
With all of the evidence it should be clear that standardized testing is extremely flawed and inaccurate, and therefore must be abandoned, but what should replace it? Not everyone can write a beautifully crafted essay (which can be molded into a new way of applicant and academic discrimination), get stellar grades (which is just as flawed), and/or participate in numerous extra curriculars. Colleges and schools should focus on individual talents and skills instead of promoting homogeneity and discrimination: after all academia and learning should be an inclusive and diverse environment.
