Why do you think Florida/other US states are so obsessed with standardized testing?

[roboplex22]

So I have returned to the public school system this year (and half of last year) after being expelled from my Catholic High School (because I have a chronic illness ). I love my school, but I was welcomed with TONS of tests. It seems like every few weeks over the announcements it says "This is the 3rd week of FSA EOC retakes for Algebra 1, Biology, and Geometry". I not only had to take the tests that I missed last year while at public school, but I had to take the tests from the courses I took when I was in private school! I mean, I was tested on Algebra 1 almost a year after I finished the course! Nobody can remember ALL of the curriculum after a year. I just don't get it. Kids should learn for learnings sake, not for testing's sake. Even this year, we have finals, then the End of Course exam. Some also take the PERT test, and also the SAT! That's ALOT of testing. So why do you guys think everyone is so obsessed with standardized testing?

[Swndlr]

Yeh as a fellow east coast dweller, I dont get why standardized tests are a thing in high school. I dont think they matter, no one takes them seriously, and truly, most people just look at them as a waste of time, even most teachers.

I can get maybe the SAT and ACT being a thing, those help colleges decide on your acceptance or not, but the rest are useless.

[Aytex]

Yeh as a fellow east coast dweller, I dont get why standardized tests are a thing in high school. I dont think they matter, no one takes them seriously, and truly, most people just look at them as a waste of time, even most teachers.

I can get maybe the SAT and ACT being a thing, those help colleges decide on your acceptance or not, but the rest are useless.

i take dem seriously....

:c

[Amazingasian]

I think it's so that schools can be ranked.  That's why I randomly answer every question on those tests.

[arnavvr]

Yeh as a fellow east coast dweller, I dont get why standardized tests are a thing in high school. I dont think they matter, no one takes them seriously, and truly, most people just look at them as a waste of time, even most teachers.

I can get maybe the SAT and ACT being a thing, those help colleges decide on your acceptance or not, but the rest are useless.

 

+1

[skyress3000]

I was tested on Algebra 1 almost a year after I finished the course!

That's actually reasonable; if you can't remember Alg 1 you're going to have a bad time in future math courses. However, I agree that standardized testing is generally way overdone.

[Guest]

Heres a hint:

 

Schools want to brag about their scores, so they can get more grants from the state.

[Sam Z Man]

Everything you need to know:

[itsmyjobtoknow]

Because the state think it actually means something....proves how smart an individual is or shows how smart the state is as a whole.

 

Here in NYC, every public school has some type of standardized test and in my opinion, it means nothing. Teachers make a big deal on how your regents grade will determine what College and high school you will go to but in reality, even the smartest kid I know still ended up in the same College I am and my grades were all over the place in terms of passing grades. 

[TheKDub]

i take dem seriously....

:c

 

I don't

Well, some of them I do, such as the SAT and ACT, but other than that, nah.

 

Though even then, I don't really do shit to study or anything for them.

 

 

On the subject of bullshit in schools, today a kid in my algebra II class asked my teacher if he's ever used the shit he was teaching us (logarithms and such) outside of school or school related things, and he said he didn't, and he didn't really even know why we need to be taught it

[roboplex22]

i take dem seriously....

:c

I do too, but it seems like if you do bad on it then you're screwed. They didn't do any review, they just make these unfortunate souls take a test on shit they most likely already forgot.

[PlayStation 2]

Common Core man.

Anyways, my geometry teas her alongside multiple other teachers I knew from last year pretty much knew that standardized testing and outer benchmark tests are a piece of ga' bage

[AresKrieger]

Federal school funding, and mandates that make no sense in terms of improving students education

 

Watch the vid @Sam Z Man posted for some satirical info on the subject

[itsmyjobtoknow]

Yeh as a fellow east coast dweller, I dont get why standardized tests are a thing in high school. I dont think they matter, no one takes them seriously, and truly, most people just look at them as a waste of time, even most teachers.

I can get maybe the SAT and ACT being a thing, those help colleges decide on your acceptance or not, but the rest are useless.

 

 

i take dem seriously....

:c

 

Lets be honest here, your bachelor's degree is the same no matter what college you go to, even if it is the best one in the state. You are still a rookie in an employer's mind.

 

Now Master Degree is something different here. What college or university you attend to for your Master's will affect your chances of getting a job.   

[SloppyMcFloppy]

I do too, but it seems like if you do bad on it then you're screwed. They didn't do any review, they just make these unfortunate souls take a test on shit they most likely already forgot.

I would take every tests seriously. Not just the SAT and ACT. 

[GSTARR]

Because whether you like it or not, you said it yourself; you don't really remember Algebra I, and I bet your score reflects that.

All that bullshit about "test stress" only applies to those with a ridiculous amount of anxiety in even "normal" events; standardized tests aren't the most accurate, but they do tell you where you're at.

 

If you take them seriously.

Besides, it means easy school day. Just take a test

[FAQBytes]

So I have returned to the public school system this year (and half of last year) after being expelled from my Catholic High School (because I have a chronic illness ). I love my school, but I was welcomed with TONS of tests. It seems like every few weeks over the announcements it says "This is the 3rd week of FSA EOC retakes for Algebra 1, Biology, and Geometry". I not only had to take the tests that I missed last year while at public school, but I had to take the tests from the courses I took when I was in private school! I mean, I was tested on Algebra 1 almost a year after I finished the course! Nobody can remember ALL of the curriculum after a year. I just don't get it. Kids should learn for learnings sake, not for testing's sake. Even this year, we have finals, then the End of Course exam. Some also take the PERT test, and also the SAT! That's ALOT of testing. So why do you guys think everyone is so obsessed with standardized testing?

So much testing is garbage, and the fact that teacher wages are incorporated into it is even more trash. A teacher of mine  gave me a sheet of paper with a formula on it and said "This is how us teachers are being graded". I didn't believe it until John Oliver did an episode on it, and it was the exact same formula. Go figure. He was telling the truth.

[roboplex22]

Common Core man.

Anyways, my geometry teas her alongside multiple other teachers I knew from last year pretty much knew that standardized testing and outer benchmark tests are a piece of ga' bage

Same here. I went to my geom teacher for help because I wasn't sure what was going on, and you could tell she thought it was just BS. In Florida, last year was a shit show. They switched over from the infamous FCAT to the FSA all online tests. The system screwed up, tests weren't being graded, and some schools just said screw it and didn't even test. Parents were rebelling, refusing to let their kids test, and it was just awful. I had teachers saying I needed to test, others said dont bother.I still haven't gotten my Reading scores FROM LAST YEAR, and I'm not even sure if they were graded. I mean I'm fine with a few tests, but if I take them for no reason, or they just don't have their shit together, then why bother?

[GigaSnow]

Because whether you like it or not, you said it yourself; you don't really remember Algebra I, and I bet your score reflects that.

All that bullshit about "test stress" only applies to those with a ridiculous amount of anxiety in even "normal" events; standardized tests aren't the most accurate, but they do tell you where you're at.

 

If you take them seriously.

Besides, it means easy school day. Just take a test

 

Easy? Maybe, but I remember having to sit in a room having to sit and wait for the test time to end, regardless of when you/your class finished. It was brutal. No books, no chatting, nothing. 

 

I don't miss it at all.

[skyress3000]

On the subject of bullshit in schools, today a kid in my algebra II class asked my teacher if he's ever used the shit he was teaching us (logarithms and such) outside of school or school related things, and he said he didn't, and he didn't really even know why we need to be taught it

yo teacher stupid... most of the stuff is actually pretty useful in applications of science and engineering, and it also lays the basis for higher level math like calculus, which is incredibly applicable to the real world.

[roboplex22]

Because whether you like it or not, you said it yourself; you don't really remember Algebra I, and I bet your score reflects that.

All that bullshit about "test stress" only applies to those with a ridiculous amount of anxiety in even "normal" events; standardized tests aren't the most accurate, but they do tell you where you're at.

 

If you take them seriously.

Besides, it means easy school day. Just take a test

Sorry I forgot to specify that I wasn't actually in school taking Algebra. I was taking a really horrible online course, and it really didn't teach well. I suppose that's why I didnt remember much .

[SloppyMcFloppy]

[GSTARR]

Easy? Maybe, but I remember having to sit in a room having to sit and wait for the test time to end, regardless of when you/your class finished. It was brutal. No books, no chatting, nothing. 

 

I don't miss it at all.

Easy af compared to a school day

[TheKDub]

yo teacher stupid... most of the stuff is actually pretty useful in applications of science and engineering, and it also lays the basis for higher level math like calculus, which is incredibly applicable to the real world.

 

For most people, they're never going to use a large portion of the shit they learn in school because their careers just simply don't need to use it.

 

Are there some careers out there that need people to know those sort of things? Yes, but do all careers need people to know them? No.

[roboplex22]

Another thing I find slightly disturbing is the seeming inflexibility to people with a disability. I have a chronic illness (as mentioned earlier) that includes horrible head pain. As you could imagine, that makes doing math/reading REALLY DIFFICULT for 2 hours on end. I have a 504 plan, but all that seems to go out the window when test day comes. I can't have a modified test with less questions, it has to be EXACTLY the way Rick Scott himself wrote it. I'm not trying to use that as an excuse to get out of the test, but I think it really impacted my grade. I wasn't able to work out hard questions because it hurt so bad, and the State of Florida doesn't care. I got extended time, but that's just longer for me to sit doing a test that in itself, causes intense pain. It's screwed up.