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Does standardized testing in school benefit children? Is there any evidence-based proof in either direction (positive or negative)?
—An elementary school teacher and mom
This is an interesting question, and the answer probably depends a bit on which tests you are talking about. (Although regardless, the data portion of your answer is “not much proof in any direction”)
If we step back, we can start by asking what the benefit of testing students on their knowledge is. Why do we ever test in school? My sense is there are a few reasons. First, for evaluative purposes. Second, to teach the kind of executive function skills that are necessary to study and focus for a long-term project. Third, to figure out where kids are struggling, either as individuals or as groups, so you can teach better.
These benefits accrue when we test as part of a general school curriculum. Standardized testing is different. It isn’t typically used to evaluate individual students, and there is no studying component. Some of these tests, like MAP testing from NWEA, are designed to help teachers better understand where their students are struggling. Having consistent measures over time that can be compared with other students can be extremely valuable for teachers and students.
When we turn to something like end-of-year state-level tests, which are designed to measure proficiency, the benefits for individual kids of taking the test are less clear. However, these tests are an effective (if imperfect) way to measure how a school or school district is doing. Without testing of this type, we have little insight into whether the methods schools are using to teach are working.
On the academic side of my work, I’m currently looking at post-COVID educational recovery. For this work, state-level standardized testing data is crucial, since it allows us to think about which states are recovering well and which aren’t (paper here, if you’re interested). If we can identify what approaches are working, we can figure out how to roll them out to all students.
Conclusion: Standardized testing for the most part is not useful in the moment as an individual student activity, but it is very important for improving schooling for all students.
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