Stress. Everyone is feeling it. The hallways are buzzing, teachers are rushing, students are buggin’. Is it just the usual hamster wheel of fourth quarter, or is there another layer to the anxiety?

From where I stand, there’s a worrisome trend in education that is contributing to the already  high levels of stress we all—students, teachers and staff—are experiencing in school. A trend that takes away from our ability to take creative risks, have a say in what is studied, and generally enjoy the learning process. It’s called standardized tests. And a new one–PARCC–is coming soon to a theatre near you.

Why should we be concerned about the increasing use of standardized tests?  Well, let me pull a classic teacher move and pitch the question back to you.

When a family member asks you about something interesting or exciting you did in school, is a test the first thing that springs to your mind? I’m going to guess not.

Tests, especially long and state-mandated ones, generally don’t make for meaningful learning experiences. For many people, they are a source of fatigue, and yes, stress.

But wait a second.  Just because something is long and stressful, does that not make it meaningful? Well, no. (Research paper!) But here’s a question to consider: if something is long and stressful, shouldn’t you get some bang for your buck? Shouldn’t you get a lot of feedback on your work, a better understanding of your skills, a sense that what you did mattered?

Well, yes. And so here’s another question, and I recognize it’s a controversial one: Does the report you get from MCAS give you this?

You might argue back: is the fact that standardized test reports are not personal and specific really such a big source of concern? Isn’t that the whole point of a standardized test report—they’re sort of the same for everyone?

Yes. And that’s a problem. Standardized tests are just that: the same for everyone. They force all students to focus on the same curriculum, regardless of their talents or interests. They force teachers to shelve creative projects in favor of test prep. And they force schools to focus obsessively on the results. And that’s where things really get messy.

Did you hear about the Philadelphia cheating scandal? What about the Las Vegas one? Or the big one in Atlanta in which 58 schools and hundreds of teachers were involved? If you haven’t—just google “standardized tests and cheating” and look at all the hits. What’s up with that?

Here’s what’s up: Standardized tests—and how students do on them—are becoming more and more powerful and consequential. They are now graduation requirements (they didn’t use to be). They are now determining what your teachers teach (this is new, too). They now shape a school’s reputation, impact funding, feed into teacher evaluations, and even control whether a school can stay open or not.

Major stress? Yes. And all this for a test that has been shown to have no predictive value; your score on standardized tests like MCAS or the SAT says nothing about how well you will do in college or the workplace; people who do poorly on standardized tests can (and do) perform very well in college and vice versa.

I’m going to end with the topic I started with: stress. I’m actually pretty stressed about writing this opinion piece. It’s risky in today’s climate, to come out and question standardized tests. I’ll be honest and say I’m stressed about how my superiors will react to the views I’m sharing here. But I also strongly believe that as a teacher, I need to speak honestly and truthfully about what I believe is good for my students. Trust me, I have a long list on this topic…  but standardized tests are not on it…

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