Charleston County
School District
Testing Central
WATCH: Testing in CCSD (Spanish)
For parents and students, the end of the academic year can be a stressful time. Annual testing can cause anxiety for many students, which is known not to help while taking tests. Parents also feel pressure, as they worry about how their child’s test scores will impact their academic performance and opportunities in the future.
The words “standardized testing” automatically elicits a negative connotation. Quite often, these feelings occur because neither parent nor student clearly understands the purpose of all these tests that are taken at the end of the year.
LINK:
The Importance of Tests and Assessments
Standardized testing dates back hundreds of years but it was the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) of 1965 which included testing and accountability provisions to raise standards and make education more equitable. This accelerated the use of standardized testing in our country.
While testing has evolved over time, its main purpose has remained virtually the same – to ensure students are provided a quality education.
Today, testing provides educators with the tools to judge a student’s performance by measuring trends, and test scores that can be utilized to design an individualized plan compatible with the student’s academic level.
In addition, testing can help students in the following ways:
- Placement in classes that are ideal for their level, so they are challenged not frustrated.
- Testing can also help alert school personnel and/or parents to possible learning or developmental disabilities. The earlier a student can be identified with a learning issue, the more likely they will be able to overcome the obstacle.
- Additionally, testing demonstrates how much information a student is retaining and indicates what modes of learning or teaching strategies are most effective for each individual student.