A Defence of Standardized Education

Daryn Caruso
EDU5253
December 9th, 2017
Introduction
As an educator, I am in favour of the implementation of the education moments
in the Davis (2016) reading (standard, authentic, democratic citizenship, and systemic
sustainability). However, I do not agree that standardized education should be
discarded or that it does not have educational merit in the modern school system. It is
feasible for standardized and other educational moments to coexist. Although there are
aspects of standardized education that may no longer be needed in modern schools
some components still maintain their relevance even though they may be discounted or
improperly implemented. School structure (age grouping, memorization, & time
management), common core curriculum, mathematics education, and standardized
assessments (EQAO, SSAT, & SAT) contained in a standardized system still maintain
their value in education, especially when integrated in a system with the other
education moments.

Standardized Assessment
A criticism of standardized education is that it relies on homogeneous
assessments and teaching from a textbook that has resulted in student academic
deficiencies. The emphasis on standardized assessment (EQAO, SSAT, and SAT) has
resulted in teachers focusing their lessons to prepare students solely to succeed on
standardized tests. "Teaching to the test also has a "dumbing" effect on teaching and
learning as worksheets, drills, practice tests and similar rote practices consume greater
amounts of classroom time “(Sacks, 2000). Students whose education is focused
primarily on preparing for standardized tests have demonstrated to have insignificant
lasting comprehension of the learnt content. “Research suggests that while students’
scores will rise when teachers teach closely to a test, learning often does not change”
(Smith & Fey, 2000) Another deficiency of teaching to the test is that these
assessments can rely more comprehensively on memory retention than on higher order
thinking demonstration. “Insofar as standardized tests assess only part of the
curriculum, time spent on test taking often overemphasizes basic-skill subjects and
neglects high-order thinking skills.” (Herman, 1992) Examples show that students
have demonstrated learning in supplementary means while not producing high results
on standardized assessments. “there are examples of schools from New York and
Boston that have demonstrated improvements in student learning while their
standardized test scores did not show substantial gains” (Neil, 2003) Being able to do
well on a test may not translate into being able to successfully apply knowledge in
other settings, both academic and non-academic.

While standardized tests can be misconstrued as not being relevant in student

education: “The value of standardized tests has been scrutinized from numerous
positions, though many critics treat authentic assessment as antithetical to
standardization.” (Moss, 1992) Standardized assessments are also commonly mislabelled
as being multiple-choice centric, which is not always the circumstance. “Standardization
can occur with a variety of item formats, such as questions posing ill-structured and
close-structured problems, as well as with items containing both open and closed
response options. It is mistaken to presume that standardized tests cannot assess
cognitively complex skills.” (Hathcoat, 2016) Teachers who prepare their students for
standardized tests do not have to rely on the traditional notion of teaching to the test.
“Teachers that address the entire curriculum, particularly when preparing their
students for standardized tests, provide their students with a solid foundation for future
success. " (L. Volante, 2004) Standardization may contain more validity than its
challengers may appreciate.

Standardization as Preparation
Student’s benefit from having a set of academic skills in place before they are
able to commence learning activities that require independence, as are common in the
educational moments besides standardization. A standardized educational setting can
provide the opportunity for the other learning moments to occur, as it can provide
students with skills measured against a specific standard. Davis’ assessment that
authentic education “involves a readiness to depart from plans when one’s imaginings
about what might happen don’t actually fit with what unfolds in a classroom.” (Davis,
2015) can be applied in a setting that integrates some standardization, in terms of
academic goals and standards. In regards to integrating standardized work in the
classroom, I regularly start mathematics class with mental math activities that rely on the
student memorization of mathematical processes.

According to Davis, school “introduced a need for literate and numerate

workforce, as the abilities to read and calculate came to be seen as universal and minimal
competencies for the worker.” (Davis, 2015) This process began in the 1700s and
continues today in many countries. I was told when I was in elementary school that the
school bell was used in order to get students ready for factory work. Because of the shift
in the global education paradigm “Schooling came to be defined not in terms of readiness
for life, but preparation for the job market.” (Davis, 2015) This shift has not been an
entirely negative result. Because of standardized education children and adults have been
equipped with skills that many would not otherwise have. This type of schooling has
permitted the technical achievements that have occurred over the last three hundred
years. Recently, I have been working in classrooms in the Toronto District School Board
that are in desperate need of educational structure. The students have become accustomed
to not being held to a high standard and, as a result, have fallen behind in many of the
skills they should be expanding on. Occurrences like these are when I believe that it
would be beneficial to have some standardized education (such as common core) present,
where teachers are able to compare their student’s academic data with data from students
in other parts of the country or anywhere world. This could increase both student and
teacher accountability. When students complete their schooling employers will be
concerned with their ability to meet the needs of the position. School should be preparing
students for the workforce, which will not happen of students are not held to a high
standard.

Besides standardization, the additional moments of education discussed in the

Davis (2015) reading can provoke student interest in the development of their
education in a way that a standardized system may not be capable of. An increased
interest took place in my education when I was in elementary school and had the
option of selecting different projects (both the topic and the format), which I look back
upon as being part of authentic learning. I enjoyed having an option of what to study
and found that selecting how I was going to present this new information to be
motivating. I related my positive association of authentic education to Davis’ stating,
“Within the frame of Authentic Education, the notion of personal potential is understood
as something that is created rather than something that is predetermined.” (Davis, 2015)
Authentic learning is a moment that can inspire students to expand and demonstrate
knowledge. As enjoyable as experience as this was, I still had the necessary skills
engrained in me so I could manage an assignment that required me to be independent.
This was not done completely through authentic learning; there was a large amount of
standardization in my education. Reflecting on my own education, there was more of a
standardized structure than there is in classrooms today.

Math Deficiency
Mathematics can be a problematic subject for teachers to instruct in a fully
authentic/democratic/systemic environment, as the methods of instruction and
assessment can significantly differ. It is beneficial for students to have some set of
expectations for each grade level that can be assessed in the same way across an entire
nation or natures. Otherwise, assessment can become difficult for teachers as there is
will be no standard to base grading on other than the teacher’s individual interpretation
of the curriculum. According to the 2015 PISA test, the first seven countries in the top
ten were countries that still utilize standardized mathematics. The 2016 TIMSS (The
Trends in International Maths and Science Study) resulted in the first five of the top
ten countries in math and science still use standardized education for mathematics.
These examples support the belief that using standardized education to teach
mathematics still has beneficial results and should not be discarded.

Counterargument to Davis
A concept in some readings that is not clearly defined is the concept of what is
normal in regards to grades. Davis’ states that “A schooling that is structured around
assumptions of normal development, normal ability, and so on, then, is decidedly
inauthentic.” (Davis, 2015) Education depends on a standard or goals that classroom
learning is based on, which is what I would classify as normal. Otherwise, the education
may be authentic but also may lack structure and can differ greatly from one school to the
next. This can lead to imbalanced education even the same school board. Hathcoat (2016)
defends the use of standardized assessments as having the most merit when comparison
results: “implementing standardized tests not only holds institutions accountable to
stakeholders of higher education, but collecting information using standardized tests
would allow for between-institution and value-added assessment of student learning
outcomes.” (Hathcoat, 2016) Grades could be inauthentic if teachers do not have
standards set for their students that can be compared to other school boards.

I disagree with Davis’ that: “while society has changed dramatically with the
transition from the industrial to the information age, schooling has remained entrenched
in an industrialized sensibility.” (Davis, 2015) Although there remain some aspects with
an industrialized sensibility, such as: a bell, schedule, separating classes, age grouping,
etc. Not all of these aspects are negative. For example: having a fixed schedule is
beneficial as it teaches students about time management. Many modern classrooms are
equipped with technology and there is an emphasis on teaching the student as a whole
person, which includes character development. There was less of an emphasis on these
aspects in my education, which wasn’t too long ago, but as a teacher I have adapted to the
other moments in the Davis reading as I appreciate the benefits they can have. Another
area that I believe that can be incorporated in a system with some standardization is the
concept of teaching the whole child.

Standardized Education Alongside the Education Moments

Authentic, democratic citizenship, and systemic sustainability are educational

moments that incorporate teaching the whole child as “human intelligence is about vastly
more than facility with logical and symbolic tasks.” (Davis, 2015) During the industrial
period of education, which Davis examines, the focus on the development of the whole
child was not focused on; the emphasis was on developing skills that would be needed for
the workforce. Deeming that “Standardized Education ignores individual difference as it
seeks to offer uniform experiences leading to a generic set of competences. Authentic
Education seeks to amplify possibilities by attending to and nurturing each individual’s
unique interests and competencies.” (Davis, 2015) disqualifies the work that can be
achieved in a classroom that incorporates some standardization. Student character
development and personal potential can be developed in all educational settings. A mix of
educational pedagogies, including, standardized education can take the development of
the whole student into account, even setting aside classroom time on character
development (which is done at many schools in the Toronto District School Board). From
interpreting various readings, many of the supporters of the other education moments
don’t fully take into account that when students grow up they will have to meet the
expectations of the modern workforce, which is something that standardized education
can prepare them for, by holding students accountable for their progress.

Final Thoughts
As education moments have transformed to meet the needs of the economy and
society there are aspects of standardization that remain beneficial. While standardized
assessments may result in pressure on students and teachers, their results are still valid
in comparing student knowledge in different subjects. The standard set by these
assessments can be beneficial to students as they must have high expectations and are
held accountable for their results, as classrooms with some standardization can provide
structure for students. Although this structure may have been implemented for
hundreds of years it can still be beneficial. I am not recommending a return to a
traditional fully standardized education system, however I am in favour of not
abandoning all aspects of standardization, specifically in regards of structure for
younger students, mathematics education, and the use of standardized assessments.

References

Davis, B., Sumara, D. & Luce-Kapler, R. (2015) Engaging Minds: Cultures of and
Practices of Teaching (3rd ed.). New York: Routledge.

Hathcoat, J. D., Penn, J. D., Barnes, L. .B, & Comer, J. C., (2016). A Second Dystopia in
Education : Validity Issues in Authentic Assessment Practices. Research in
Higher Education, 57(7), 892–912.

Herman, J. L. (1992). What research tells us about good assessment. Educational

Leadership, 49(8), 74-78.
Moss, P. A. (1992). Shifting Conceptions of Validity in Educational Measurement :
Implications for Performance Assessment, 62(3), 229–258.

Neil, M. (2003b). The dangers of testing. Educational Leadership, 60(5), 43-46.

Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. (2015). PISA 2015: Results
in Focus (Press Release). Retrieved from https://www.oecd.org/pisa/pisa-2015-
results-in-focus.pdf

Sacks, P. (2000). Predictable losers in testing schemes. School Administrator, 57(11), 6-

9.

Shepard, L. (2000). The role of assessment in a learning culture. Educational Researcher,

29(7), 4-14.

Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study. (2016). As global study TIMSS
turns 20, new results show East Asian students continue to outperform peers in
mathematics. Retrieved from http://timss2015.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/T15-
Press-Release-FINAL-11-29.pdf

Volante, Louis (2004), Teaching to the Test: What Every Educator and Policy-Maker
Should Know, Canadian Journal of Educational Administration and Policy