For years, parents have been voicing their concerns about the overwhelming number of standardized tests their children face in schools. Now, it seems President Obama has joined the chorus of voices advocating for change.
In a video message shared on the White House’s Facebook page, Obama called for limits on the number of standardized tests administered to students each year. He announced plans to work “aggressively” with the Department of Education to foster creativity within classrooms.
Under the direction of the Obama administration, the Department of Education aims to ensure that the tests students take are not only high quality but also conducive to effective teaching, avoiding redundancy in the material being assessed. The President emphasized that testing should be just one of several measures of academic achievement, noting that “learning is about so much more than just filling in the right bubble.”
As highlighted by the Washington Post, the average student is subjected to around 112 standardized tests from pre-K through 12th grade, a staggering number. This translates to approximately 20 to 25 hours each school year spent on testing alone—without even accounting for preparation time! This excessive testing is causing significant stress for students and parents alike.
CNN reports that over half of parents believe their elementary-aged children are feeling overwhelmed by homework and testing. Additionally, a study from Yale revealed that the majority of 22,000 high school students surveyed felt either exhausted or stressed during school. It’s disheartening to see children stripped of their joy and freedom in learning.
The surge in standardized testing began with Bush’s No Child Left Behind policy and intensified with the introduction of Common Core standards. While Obama’s new initiative does not abolish Common Core, it aims to limit the number of assessments schools must administer—meaning schools won’t have to give 800 tests that evaluate the same skills—and supports the idea of capping testing at the federal level, pending Congressional action.
Ultimately, the message is clear: our children are not thriving. They are fatigued and overburdened, and the creative spark has been extinguished from their educational experience. Parents have tirelessly advocated for change at local levels, and it’s about time that the President encourages school administrators to listen to these concerns and those of the educators working directly with students.
Continuous testing strips away the joy of learning. It hampers teachers’ abilities to instruct in ways that inspire and stifles any sense of spontaneity in the classroom. Kids begin to associate education with stress and fatigue—not the love of learning that we aspire to cultivate. To support our children’s success, we need to help them rediscover their passion for knowledge, which means eliminating the excessive hours spent filling out tests that yield little educational value.
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In summary, the President’s acknowledgment of the excessive testing culture in schools reflects a growing concern among parents and educators. It’s essential to prioritize our children’s well-being and love of learning over standardized assessments.