Standardized Testing & Cultural Biases

“Tracking is a practice linked to the legitimation and maintenance of deep social inequality.” 

– From Bill Bigelow’s Getting Off the Track – Stories from an untracked classroom

Because major cultural biases exist in standardized tests, students of color as well as those students coming from low-income families are at a clear disadvantage from the get-go and often times suffer as a result. How can we be administering these tests to our students, knowing that they are clearly unfair and favor the white middle-class students? Not only are they unfair, they seem to fall severely short of assessing a student’s true abilities.

In her article Why Standardized Tests Are Bad, Terry Meier points out that if a large portion of middle-class white students suddenly performed poorly on standardized tests, the results would be thrown out and the test itself would be viewed as discriminatory. However, even though over two decades of research clearly shows that cultural biases do exist in standardized tests, there seems to be no concern at all for students of color. This is so upsetting and discouraging. How much more proof do we need to demand changes? Especially with how much weight is placed on these tests, being an all or nothing, the process can be so stressful on students and then, if they don’t pass, the result can be a huge blow to their confidence and to their idea of self-worth. It seems that we are just perpetuating struggling student’s internalizations that they themselves are to blame for their low-achievement, when, clearly, it’s a problem within the system itself.

When considering the most effective ways of measuring a student’s ability and achievements, I am learning just how important it is to have a variety of ways/avenues for students to show what they know. The idea of flexible assignments is so important and enabling students to relate what they’re doing to their own lives, personal experiences and interests. Curriculum needs to constantly draw on students lives and because of student’s differing abilities and ways of learning, evaluation should be flexible as well. It’s exciting for me to think about all the different ways a teacher may implement these ideas into her classroom. For example, the use of student performances, imagination, different forms of writing, art, class discussions, field trips, interviews, films, slide-lectures, improvisation, readings, poetry, simulations, acting, sharing circles... all of these are wonderful ways to expand your curriculum and contribute to equal access to learning for all students.