Assessment: Standardized Testing Burnout

As educators and students reflected on standardized assessments including the STAAR exam in Texas, many critiqued the nature of standardized testing and its impact on students.

  • “Good morning, #summer and amazing #socialstudies educators. Quick #QOTD – does your state have social studies assessments? If so, what grade levels are students assessed & is it a m.c test?” —Social Studies Educator in Texas
    • “The bottom line is, Florida has a lot of testing throughout the year, not just May.  We have full time testing coordinators at most secondary schools. I was shocked to learn one year that students in our district test over 100 days out of 180. There is progress monitoring for Math, ELA throughout the year. Testing for middle school and high school Science…too much testing” —Social Studies Teacher in Florida
    • “WA state does have assessments in place at the 5,8 and 12 grades. The state has frameworks and school/teachers create the classroom based assessments (CBAs) from the framework and the numbers are reported to the state. No m.c. tests.” —Social Studies Teacher in Washington
  • “The state test is sucking the soul out of my classroom. One. More. Day.” —Teacher in Missouri
  • “#texas edus waiting on #staar scores , remember scores don’t define you and they don’t define your students.” —Social Studies Teacher in Texas
    • “A teacher’s impact is far greater than scores produced on an assessment. Educators  keep moving the ball forward, the impact you have made this year on your student’s do not go unnoticed.” —Social Studies Educator in Texas
  • “Students anxiously awaiting STAAR scores to see if they’ll graduate in less than two weeks is cruel and unusual @teainfo. There has to be a better way.” —High School English Teacher in Texas 
  • “Ahem #educators in #Texas – anyone know why MAP @NWEAtesting is done right after #STAAR ? What is the purpose of spending a month on testing , what outcomes do you anticipate on cultivating? Aside from knee jerk reactions to ‘data’.” —Social Studies Teacher in Texas
  • “I wish no sleep or rest to the TN legislators using the flawed standardized testing system & the self-esteem of 3rd graders to line their pockets with education privatization money.” —High School ELA Teacher in Tennessee 
  • “The more you fight for standardized testing/grading/numerical assessment, the more you are fighting for status/maintenance of class/oppressive systems—so that NOTHING changes for those of privilege. Thanks for coming to my Friday TED Talk.” —Math Educator in Ontario