Chapter 19: High-Stakes Testing: A Parent’s Perspective

An excerpt from An Open Letter to Arne Duncan by Herb Kohl:

As this quote by Herb Kohl denotes, the emphasis on testing has created a culture of test takers and test givers in our public schools. This focus on testing leads to unnecessary pressure on students to perform well on a standardized test. It causes a teacher to emphasize a narrow scope of material. It leaves little opportunity for students to develop their creative and critical thinking skills, and it is used incorrectly as a tool in the evaluation of a teacher, a principal, and a school with serious consequences to the students and their community.