Standardized Testing and its Effect on Education - Free Essay Example

Standardized tests are seen in many schools across america, and are given to students multiple times each year. In fact, The average number of standardized tests administered per school system per year is five (Sproull, Zubrow 628). All of these tests are used as a way for schools to evaluate students learning and comprehension abilities throughout each year. Standardized tests can also play into the decision of whether or not a student is set to move up to the next grade level. These tests are a good way to measure a student at certain points throughout each year, however, they may not be the best way to evaluate a student overall. While many schools put standardized tests into practice, they are not an accurate way to measure a students overall knowledge because they are unfair and harmful to students as well as teachers. Standardized testing was first seen around the time of World War I. These tests were so successful in classifying and assigning military personnel that during the 1920s they were introduced into our school systems (Daniels 12). Many years later, in 2001, the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) was introduced as a way to ensure that no child was left behind in education. This act played a pretty substantial role in standardized testing. NCLB required both annual student testing and school-level reporting that indicated whether schools were succeeding or failing to make adequate yearly progress (AYP) toward proficiency goals ( Dee 253). With this act still in place today, the testing it requires has not only made huge impacts on schools, but on students and teachers as well. Standardized Testing, being that it is so widespread, affects students across the United States in so many different ways. There has been a lot of arguments over the years about whether or not standardized testing is effective in schools. Many supporters of standardized testing argue that the tests are good for students and and have positive effects on them, but some would argue otherwise. Supporters of standardized testing may argue that the tests provide important information for the students. For example, if a student does bad on a section in the test, they know to study more for that specific topic. Another argument that supporters might make is that the tests help to push students to try harder and pay more attention in their classrooms. Although these tests may seem to be a good thing for students, research seems to show otherwise. Standardized tests are surprisingly harmful and even unfair to students in schools today. Research has shown that Students of color, students with disabilities, English-language learners, and low-income students are failing state graduation tests at rates as high as 60% to 90%, leaving them to face bleak futures (Sadker, Zittleman 742-743). This data makes it evident that certain students are at a disadvantage. By measuring all students against the same yardsticks of literacy and numeracy, individual creativity and differences are lost or denigrated (Sadker, Zittleman 744). All students are being given the same expectations on tests and it is clearly unfair to do so in certain cases, such as if a student has a learning disability and has trouble comprehending questions on tests. These situations have many negative effects on students. Frustration , discouragement from trying, increased competition, and a general devaluation of grades and school assessments are the primary negativ e student effects (Mertler 5). All of these effects can make huge impacts on a students education and possibly even their future. Many schools see importance in the motivation of students to do well on assessments by offering rewards or praise to the those who do well. Although rewarding students might seem like an easy fix to help motivate kids, it was stated by George Madaus and Clarke Marguerite that In practice, however, some students immediately dismiss the examination because they perceive the award to be unobtainable (Madaus, Clark 11). One of the reasons that this happens is because Young children adopt an optimistic view of their own abilities and count their own efforts, teacher praise, and tangible rewards as evidence of their learning and progress ( Paris 14). Therefore, if students arent getting praised or rewards from teachers, they might take that as not being smart or making progress. Once a student gets into that mindset, they arent going to try as hard next time because they feel like they arent smart enough to reach the reward. With this in mind, it seems that the rewards or praise given t o students with higher scores, might have some negative and harmful effects on students who dont do as well. Another factor that plays into the harm and unfairness of standardized testing is that many schools scattered throughout the United States are located in regions that dont have a very high-income rate. This means that the schools may not have adequate money to provide the proper materials for its students which in return can affect their learning and test scores. The journal article Poor Teaching for Poor Kids stated that high stakes testing systems may provide more money to those already successful (for example, in the form of bonuses for good scores) and less to those whose need is greatest (Kohn 253). This being said, because of the lack of money in certain schools, students arent doing as well on their testing because they cant afford the needed books and supplies like some others might. It was not only found that these tests affect regions with a low-income, but that The most conspicuous victims of high-stakes testing are low-income minority children (Kohn 251). Those students who are low-income minority children are the ones being affected the most and it is very unfair. Researchers have identified several characteristics of standardized tests that could negatively bias the scores of minority students and of students from low-income families (Neill, Medina 691). These low-income minority students are being subjected to tests that contain questions that only whites and families with a higher income would be likely to know the answers to. Researchers have also discovered that the elaborated , stylized English commonly used in standardized tests prevents such tests from accurately measuring the achievement, ability, or skills of students who speak nonstandard (e.g., African-American, Hispanic, southern, Appalachian, working-class) dialects (Neill, Medina 692). This research shows that these standardized tests arent doing as much good for the students as some may think. They are very clearly unfair to low-income minority students, and in the end they are only causing more harm to those students than good. Not only does standardized testing impact students, but it also has an impact on the educators in schools. Research has found that there are both positive and negative impacts on those educators. In an article written by Craig Mertler, it was stated that Positive effects on teachers include improvements in the diagnosis of individual student needs and the identification of strengths and weaknesses in the curriculum, as well as increased motivation to work harder and smarter, to align instruction with standards, and to identify content not mastered by students, thus allowing for redirected instruction ( Mertler 5-6). With this being said, standardized testing can have positive impacts on teachers, however there are many negatives that come along with it as well. Standardized testing impacts teachers in a more negative way than most might think. On the whole we know that high-stakes testing is controlling both what and how subjects are taught (Au, Gourd 17). Testing in schools seem to be making matters worse for teachers and students throughout the country. According to Wayne Au and Karen Gourd, writers from The English Journal, They are rooted in racism and classism, and as a 2011 National Research Council report tells us, a focus on high-stakes testing for nearly a decade has not closed achievement gaps, and in cases like the use of high school exit exams required for graduation, they have made it worse (Au, Gourd 18). Therefore, having classrooms focus on testing isnt benefiting us as much as we may have thought. Although Supporters of standardized testing believe if teachers cover just the subject matter required by the standards and teach it well, their students will master the material on which they will be tested- no special test preparation will be needed (Asaff 158), many teachers have found that teaching based off of the subjects on the test isnt the most effective thing for themselves or their students. Not surprisingly, in a national study, nearly seven out of ten teachers reported feeling test stress, and two out of three believed that preparing for the test takes time from teaching important, non-tested, topics ( Sadker, Zittleman 743). This data shows that teachers are feeling stressed because of pressure to have their students excel on tests. In return, students are only being taught based on test subjects and are missing out on other information that might be of importance to them later in life. While some teaching in schools should prepare students for testing, there needs t o be more time set aside for teachers to teach on topics that might not be based off of the tests.

Sandra Witelson s Influence On Male And Female Brains (...

Sandra Witelson is currently a professor at McMaster University which is located in Hamilton, Ontario. Witelson is a professor for the department of Psychiatry Behavioral Neurosciences. Witelson had a love for science at a young age as her father was an intelligent man and encouraged Witelson’s interest in the human body. When first attending McGill University, Witelson had planned to major in mathematics, but changed her mind when she realized that psychology was a better fitting choice (Science.ca). Witelson has an outstanding background of education as she has received her B.Sc, M.Sc, and PhD from McGill University. Witelson’s research interests focus primarily around the brain and its functions based on whether it is a male or female brain. The main focus of Witelson’s research is around biological basis for cognition in male and female brains. Sandra Witelson’s research allows for a further understanding of different cognitive functions within the ma le and female brains (McMaster University). Early on in Witelson’s career, she began her work within her brain bank. The brain bank began after Witelson had won a contract from the National Institutes of Health in 1977. Witelson began her brain bank in hopes of understanding why the capacity and ability to speak and understand language is localized within the left hemisphere of the brain for 90 to 95 percent of people. In order for a brain bank to be successful, brains were needed to study. Witelson tried to find donorsShow MoreRelatedGay Men Born Gay1235 Words   |  5 Pagesstudy of 41 brains taken from people who died before age 60, Simon LeVay, a biologist at San Diego s Salk Institute for Biological Studies, found that one tiny region in the brain of homosexual men was more like that in women than that in heterosexual men. Sexuality is an important part of who we are, notes LeVay, who is gay. And now we have a specific part of the brain to look at and to study. That specific part is found at the front of the hypothalamus in an area of the brain that is known

The Transition from the Colonial Era to the Revolutionary War

An estimated seventeen million men, women, and children were enslaved and transported from Africa to the West Indies by Europeans between the seventeenth and nineteenth centuries. Before these individuals became slaves, there were indentured servants. Between the colonial era and Revolutionary War many changes in the practice of labor were made. Expansion of slavery throughout America brought about different conditions of slave life and Paternalism. Slavery in America was very different before and after the year 1790; these changes greatly affected the conditions in which these individuals lived and are worth analyzing. The transition from colonial era to Revolutionary era brought many variations that greatly affected indentured servants that would later be slaves. In the colonial era, indentured servants were individuals who signed a contract that tied them to a land under the authority of a master. They usually worked in plantations to cultivate crops especially tobacco. They were bound to the land from four to seven years to pay off their transportation to America. Once they worked off their time, they were assured land and freedom. At this time, indentured slaves were both black and white people. The profit from tobacco was growing therefore the demand for labor increased. For planters, the issue of indentured servants escaping was becoming common. African people were easier to identify and catch if they escaped because of the color of their skin and lack of resources.Show MoreRelatedThe Founding Fathers The Politicians Who Led Colonial Assemblies And Congresses1522 Words   |  7 PagesFathers -the politicians who led colonial assemblies and congresses-did not distinguish themselves with self-discipline. 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MalaysiaRead MoreThe Education Of Higher Education Essay1662 Words   |  7 Pagesthe foundation of higher education in the United States has a tumultuous past, however, is also an example of how enough desire for progress and pressure from external sources fosters change. From our readings in A History of American Higher Education by John R. Thelin we have discussed the progress and design of American Higher Education from the early 1600’s on. In our second text, American Higher Education in the Twenty-First Century: Social, Political, and Economic challenges, Michael N. BastedoRead MoreTechnological Advances And Its Impact On The United States1900 Words   |  8 Pages From the time when the first English colonies were established in North America until now, there has been some form of armed fighting force in place to protect the interests of the United States and its colonial progenitors. 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The Hortons not only demonstrate the importance of black’s presence throughout the text but some of the contribution and the roles that led to such a vibrant culture in America. It s through the analysis of these wonderful sources and experience of free black Northerners, that reader and historians can have a better interpretation and revision of the building of this early nation. The Hortons utilizes several pieces of work from African Americans history throughout

Contract Law Text - Cases - and Services

Question: Discuss about the Contract Law for Text, Cases, and Services. Answer: Introduction: An acceptance has to be completely in accordance to the terms made by the offer. If an acceptance contains additions terms it is not regarded as acceptance at all and instead is considered as a counter offer (McKendrick, 2014). The concept was initially brought up in the case of Hyde v Wrench [1840] where the court differentiated between an acceptance and a counter offer. The concept was used in Australia in the landmark case of Bressan v Squires [1974] 2 NSWLR 460 where the court held that acceptance has to be absolute. An offer is terminated as soon as it has been rejected and a counter offer accounts to a rejection of the offer. The concept was also provided by the case of Hyde v Wrench [1840]. According to the postal rule of acceptance an offer is accepted as soon as the letter of acceptance is posted by the offeree and not when the letter reaches the offeror (Hunter, 2015). The postal rule was provided by the landmark case of Adams v Lindsell(1818) 1 B Ald 681. The court in this case ruled that according to the general rule of acceptance it has to be brought to the offerers knowledge but in case the acceptance is made by post the offer is said to be accepted as soon as the letter is posted. It was provided in the case of Byrne v Van Tienhoven (1880) LR 5 CPD 344 and the case of Dickinson v Dodds(1876) 2 Ch D 46 that an offer can only be revoked before the acceptance has been made. In case the offer has been accepted it cannot be revoked by the offeror. A consideration does not have to be fair in order to constitute a contract but it must be adequate in relation to contract formation. A past consideration is not regarded as a valid consideration. A past consideration can only be regarded as a valid consideration if the promisor himself promised to pay the promisee in relation to the contract as provided in the case of Pao On v Lau Yiu Long [1979] 3 WLR 435. In order to form a contract the is must be proved that the parties to the contact had the intention of legally binding each other to the terms of the contract (Poole, 2016). however if a party has signed the contract without reading its terms and there have been no misrepresentation by the other party to the contract than the contract is legally binding on the party as provided in the case of LEstrange V Graucob 1934. In the first case the offer made by Mike in relation to the purchase of laptop was $300 including GST. However Bob did not accept the offer made by Mike as the price he demanded by him was $300 excluding GST which was not equal to that of the offer. The statement made by Bob accounted to a counter offer and the original offer was rejected as soon as the counter offer was made. Thus as the original offer made by Mike did not further exist Bob cannot accept it and therefore there is no contract between them as provided in the case of Hyde v Wrench. In the second case the Bob had offered to purchase 200 Pentium 5 hard drives from Tom at a price of $50 each. Tom had sent his acceptance through post that he will comply by the offer made by Bob. As discussed above in the case off Adam v Lindsell an acceptance is said to be made as soon as the letter of acceptance is posted by the offeree. Thus in this case the acceptance was made by tom as soon as he posted the letter. An offer can only be revoked before it is accepted as provided in the case of Byrne v Van Tienhoven. Thus Bob is in a contractual relationship with tom and is liable to pay Tom for the hard drives. In the third case Steve has done favors for Bob in the past and in return demands a computer. Bob promises to give Steve the laptop but latter steps back on his promise. As a past consideration is not lawful Bob is not entitled to give Steve the computer. In the final case as Bob has signed the contract and Mary has already performed the part of the consideration Bob is liable to continue with the contract even if he had no intention to do so according to the principles provided in case of LEstrange V Graucob. Thus Bob has contractual relation with Mike, Tom and Mary and no contact with Steve. References Hunter, H. (2015). Modern Law of Contracts. McKendrick, E. (2014).Contract law: text, cases, and materials. Oxford University Press (UK). Poole, J. (2016).Textbook on contract law. Oxford University Press. Adams v Lindsell(1818) 1 B Ald 681 Bressan v Squires [1974] 2 NSWLR 460 Byrne v Van Tienhoven (1880) LR 5 CPD 344 Dickinson v Dodds(1876) 2 Ch D 46 LEstrange V Graucob 1934 Pao On v Lau Yiu Long [1979] 3 WLR 435.

Where To Look For Freud Essay Topics

Where To Look For Freud Essay TopicsIn order to craft your own Freud essay topics, you should know where to look. The main source of these essay topics would be the writings of Dr. Elisabeth Kubler-Ross. Unfortunately, her papers are locked up in the archives of the medical profession. When the Great Depression hit, most of her papers went to oblivion.Fortunately, a great majority of the things she has written down for her psychoanalytic study and therapy had been recorded and transcribed. As a result, the United States National Library of Medicine has made it available to the general public. It is possible to discover many of her contributions.It is important to understand that there is a lot more that Dr. Kubler-Ross wrote about in addition to writing the basic works on her field. Her work was very much in sync with that of Sigmund Freud and many other analysts and psychoanalysts of her day. What she did not do is list her own findings and opinions.It is a simple matter to write yo ur own Freud essay topics based on what Dr. Kubler-Ross described as her 'basic works.' It has been rumored that her highly controversial 'Dialectical Behavior Therapy' included methods such as shock treatments to cure patients. Her book, 'The Word - A Study in Clinical Terminology,' published in 1953, was only one example of her other writings. It is not uncommon today to see people writing articles and essays on such subjects as psychotherapy and shock therapies.Other primary sources to use include her research in the archives of the American Psychiatric Association. These archives are full of documentation and material that are recorded in the process of the therapy sessions Dr. Kubler-Ross conducted with her patients. Most of the material she took from these archives has never been published in medical journals. Ifyou can't get hold of any of the declassified materials, the best thing to do is to find out where they are stored and if there is a policy in place that would allow y ou to access them.The same applies to other psychoanalytic works. You may find that some journals have web pages of articles and essays by Dr. Kubler-Ross and other psychoanalysts that are considered to be of great value to the student of psychoanalytic theory. If you can find these out, you will be able to bring your own Freud essay topics into the discussion.One of the primary parts of their writing, apart from the description of their basic subject areas, was to provide a structure for the therapist. It was Dr. Kubler-Ross, who had coined the term 'structural analysis.' She viewed this as being extremely useful to the therapist, as it enabled the patient to make plans for himself in relation to his treatment. She also believed that the patient could actually help him and benefit from the treatment.You should feel free to offer your ideas and take part in an open discussion of what others say about the Freud essay topics. Remember that the use of other primary sources is essential to the success of your quest. All of this is far more rewarding than having a Freud essay topics written by someone else, especially if you can think of a unique and original way to use one of Dr. Kubler-Ross' basic works to inform your own research and writing.

What You Dont Know About Research Paper Writer

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Essay Topics For ESL Writing

Essay Topics For ESL WritingMany people find that essay topics for ESL writing are a very important part of the essay process. These topics allow the essay writer to focus their argument in a way that is logical and easy to understand.Your topic is a very important part of your essay. You need to consider it when you write an essay. It should be part of the original idea you had when you began writing your essay.But not only does the topic have to be related to the subject of your essay. It also has to be interesting to the reader. You want to be able to make them curious about your idea or topic. This can help them to remember your essay more easily.It is also important to realize that you are not just going to write about something, you're going to say something. You should consider writing as if you were giving a speech or a presentation. You want to be able to make yourself understandable to the reader. Without an outline, it can be difficult to get started on your essay.Begin by developing a basic outline. Start with your topic. Then do a first draft of the essay, outlining your topic and breaking it down in sentences. Then you can begin to write the body of your essay.Your next step is to start writing. You should develop a plan to work with. A lot of people who are new to writing essays feel intimidated because they don't know where to start. That's where the essay writing guide comes in. The guide can show you how to structure your essay and how to make it easy to read.You can also use research information to help you when you are writing. How many times have you seen a person do something and then you find out later that it's not as good as you thought it was? Your essay should be research based as well. This way, you are more likely to be telling your story from a professional point of view. You want to tell a story of someone who has a problem.Writing essay topics for ESL writing will make your essay easier to read. There are so many different essay topics for ESL writing that you can choose from. Once you learn how to think like a professional, writing can be much easier.