U.S. fourth graders saw their math scores drop steeply between 2019 and 2023 on a key international test even as more than a dozen other countries saw their scores improve. Scores dropped even more steeply for American eighth graders, a grade where only three countries saw increases.
Crazy thing is, research says frequent testing actually improves learning. BUT, the way it’s practiced by a lot of educational institutions feels like major misinterpretations of this information. It’s about practicing recall, and even better if it’s in a practical context and in low to no stakes scenarios.
Like you said, when you put so many incentives on test results, teaching to the test rather than the content becomes the norm, and everyone suffers.
The small testing for mastery isn’t the issue and is really all that should be done. It’s the hours and hours of state testing that we require of nine year olds that’s the killer. We do quarterly testing starting in third grade with a major test at the end of the year in both reading and math (plus history for 4th and science for 5th). So leaving elementary school kids have completed 30 state assessments that each take several hours to complete (not every kid needs over an hour but you’re still in the testing environment until everyone is finished). Then, there’s no consequences for failing. You still get promoted to the next grade and you’re invited to summer school but not required to attend. If I recall correctly, the data shows that testing is effective and beneficial if its short term, like a unit test, and not long term like a midterm or final.