Standardized test scores: A good way to measure student ability in the Internet age?

Yes

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by Mataba

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Standardised testing is a way of assessing what knowledge or skill is retained for a specific task or subject. It is the only fair means by which a society can asses the progress of a pupil or set of pupils. Regrettably any form of testing has a limitation when assessing the cognitive understanding of a process or skill. A student can score high in a test, but be unable to apply his/her knowledge to a specific task. Where testing is relevant to a specific task or analysis, then testing becomes useful and analyses the students ability to perform under various sets of circumstances.

Intern et testing, and the use of the Internet, is only another means by which testing can be carried out. To fully assess a students ability in a particular subject, all methods of test may be necessary. For example, pure mathematics is a subject which, while academically very challenging, serves very little purpose to an engineering student if he/she needs the ability to apply what he/she has learnt. The student requires skills in applied mathematics and sciences, simply because the applied sciences are a necessary requirement when satisfying the skill demands of the discipline.

General standardised testing has its place, as a guide only. It can tell whether a student has mastered the basics of a subject, and, has taken the time to learn the key elements highlighted in the test. Standardised testing is not a good way to measure a students ability to apply his/her knowledge.

On voting yes, an assumption can be made, that standardized testing will never be totally replaced by other forms of assessment. Standing alone however, it does have severe limitations when both cognitive understanding and practical application ability is a prerequisite for assessment. The modern world seems to have lost its ability to understand that academia and technology are, very often very different disciplines. While it is necessary to include certain levels of academic content into a technological process, it is the application and understanding of the process which is important. Testing needs to have a broader base if it is to have true relevance.

To illustrate a simple example; a child may need to learn the reading and spelling of aword. That is academia. To know and understand its true meaning, and subsequently apply this knowledge is the key to measuring the childs true understanding.

The internet age has done little to improve cognitive understanding. In short, it is a page of words which may or may not satisfy the research requirements of a student. Whether the student fully understands the content of what is being transcribed, is questionable.

In short therefore, neither the internet, nor standardised testing, is sufficient to assess the true ability, or potential, of a student.

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