Assessment instruments given to large samples of students under ...

[stephzh]

Assessment instruments given to large samples of students under uniform conditions and scored and reported according to uniform procedures are best described as:
 
  a. standardized tests.
  b. criterion-referenced tests.
  c. high-stakes tests.
  d. performance tests.

Question 2

Describe criticisms of high-stakes testing that are often cited by people who oppose this process.
 
  What will be an ideal response?

[kaykay69]

Answer to Question 1

a

Answer to Question 2

Critics of high-stakes testing argue that teachers spend too much class time having students practice for the tests, the curriculum is narrowed to what is being tested, and the tests don't provide a true measure of what students have learned. They also contend that cutoff scores are arbitrary, and the instruments are too crude to be used in making crucial decisions about students, teachers, and schools. In addition, the tests have had a disproportionately negative impact on members of minority cultures and particularly those with limited proficiency in English. The process is also costly; in a given year, millions of students take state-mandated tests at an annual cost of billions of dollars, and many educators and parents feel that standardized testing is overemphasized. Finally, cheating is also a problem. For example, one report indicated that teachers in 18 schools in Washington, DC, cheated on students high-stakes tests in 2012, and in 2013, the former superintendent of schools in Atlanta was indicted for racketeering related to a cheating scandal in the district's schools.

[stephzh]

Thank you

[kaykay69]

No problem