Teacher Practical Guidance:

Summative Assessment & Standardized Testing

Category: Assessment & Planning

Rank Order

80

Effect Size

0.06

Achievement Gain %

2

How-To Strategies

Advantages of Summative & Standardized Tests (Pros)

  • Provide an objective measure and performance “viewpoint”

 

  • Can be used as a metric for improvement and identify growth over time

 

  • Can provide meaningful data to show where instruction is strong or weak

 

  • Testing can improve students attention and recall

 

  • Provides a basis for comparison

 

  • These tests are accurate in identifying which students are good at taking tests

 

  • Often required for course, school, district, and state

 

 

Issues with Summative & Standardized Tests (Cons) 

  • Are they accurate?

 

  • Tests can be racist, classist, and sexist

 

  • Can be used as unfair metrics for teacher evaluation

 

  • Not predictors of future success

 

  • May not reflect curriculum

 

  • Measures only one point in time

 

  • Create anxiety, stress and cheating

 

  • Provide limited feedback as results often received much later than the test date

 

  • Do not measure creativity

 

  • Can reduce curriculum options as focus of instruction becomes test-related

 

  • Tests create winners and losers

 

 

How-To Resources

Link – GUIDE (Hanover Research Brief) Using Assessments to Support Instruction

 

Link – ARTICLE (Educ Week) Grades and Standardized Test Scores

 

Link – ARTICLES (EducWeek) Grading & Assessment

References

Amrein, A., Berliner, D., (2002). High-stakes testing & student learning. Education Policy Analysis Archives, 10, 18-19 Link

 

Berwick, C. (2019). What does research say about testing. Edutopia. Link

 

Dufor, R. (2015). In praise of American educators: And how to become even better. Solution Tree

 

Lee, J (2006). Is test-driven external accountability effective? A meta-analysis of the evidence from cross-state causal-comparative and correlational studies. Paper presentation. Annual meeting of American Educational Research Association. San Franciso CA. Link

Summative Assessment & Standardized Testing

DEFINTIONS

DATA

  • 7 meta-analysis reviews

  • 728 research studies

  • 7 million + students in studies

Hattie (2023) p. 320

QUOTES

“Accountability is and has been the key buzz word and focus for improvement in American education…has it worked? After analysis of the performance of students in 18 states with high stakes testing systems we found little to no effect on student achievement. Amrein & Berliner (2002)

 

“States with the strongest accountability measures have made more gains over the years than those with weaker accountability measures. However, these gains mapped similar trajectories from the years before these accountability policies were brought into law. It is no guarantee that states adopting strong accountability policies will impact student achievement until substantial improvements in schooling conditions and practices occur.” Lee (2006)

 

“The National Policy Center reports the broad consensus that the nations test-based accountability system is at best ineffective, and at worst counter-productive…toxic use of school  accountability. Dufor (2015) p. 16

 

 

“Summative assessments (or tests) are used at the end of a unit.  The problem is that after the test the teacher moves on.  If the students did not master the content, teachers are prone to attribute the problem to a lack of student effort and motivation, rather than any weakness in their instruction.” Dufor (2015) p. 169