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Amanda Cox
Tammy Davis
Comp. II
02 October 2015
Standardized Testing: Harming the Lower-Class Since 2002
A common stereotype for students who are living in poverty is that they dont care about
their education. According to the U.S Census Bureau, the poverty rate in 2014 for children
under age 18 was 21.1 percent (12). Thats a fairly large percent of kids who allegedly dont
care if they succeed in school. This stereotype is believed because low-income students tend to
do poorly in school compared to students who come from middle to upper-class families.
However, these poverty stricken students should not be charged full responsibility for being
unable to prosper in school. The reliance on standardized tests is a factor in low-income students
struggling to achieve educational goals. Necessary resources are not available to low-income
students for these tests, and such tests dont help impoverished students get into college.
Standardized testing does not help students achieve higher education, nor can such tests be
adequately prepared for by low-income students.
The resources needed to pass standardized tests are not available to students who are
poor. Experienced teachers, for example, who have strong backgrounds in the subject the
educators are teaching, are not generally found in high poverty schools. Teaching methods in
high poverty schools leave something to be desired. Students are subject to curriculum using
rote memorization and practice drills (Bhattacharyya 637). This basically means the material

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is to be crammed into memory and then repeatedly practiced, because impoverished schools
cant afford experienced teachers who use more successful methods. Learning is more than
memorizing; its understanding the material so a student can convey this knowledge at a future
job. Low-income students also have limited access to parents who are available to help them
study. Either both parents are working or a single parent is working one to three jobs.
Unfortunately, standardized tests determine whether the student knows the material
needed to move up to the next grade. A child knows the stress of test taking before beginning
school because of the test that tells their parents if they are ready to start. The word test soon
becomes an evil and feared word. If the student fails a standardized test he or she is held back a
grade and they have to re-memorize the same material they couldnt memorize before. This has
a negative impact on the low-income student. Bhattacharyya argues that so many low-income
and minority groups suffer from low self-esteem and in many cases fail to graduate from high
school (637). The student begins to feel like they will never get it or they arent smart
enough, and so they give up on themselves.
Not only is there an abundance of pressure for the student, but also for the parent, and the
school, pushing the student to pass their test. The student wants to learn, the parents want their
child to have a fair chance at success, and the school doesnt want to be shut down. In her
article, Megan Erickson complains that we are so test obsessed that schools are being closed
based on test scores, even when those scores reflect that the schools have a heavy enrollment of
very poor kids or children with disabilities (14). Most high poverty schools dont have after
school tutor programs to assist their students. Parents want their children to do well in school,
but cant attend parent/teacher conferences to discuss what problems the child is having because

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they are working. The lack of tutor programs and parents who can attend conferences does not
help a student pass their test.
In spite of all the pressure to pass tests like the ACT or SAT, low-income students are
more likely to fail. Failing these standardized tests reduces the students chances of going to
college. The students parents dont have the financial means to send them to college so the
standardized tests are their best options. Even if the student decides to take out loans they would
have to make a certain score on their ACT/SAT in order to attend a four year university. The
reasons previously listed are the reasons why most low-income students dont continue their
education after high school.
As a result of not attending college there is a greater chance that the low-income student
will continue to live in poverty. The U.S Census Bureau informs that the poverty rate for those
with a high school diploma but with no college was 14.2 percent (16). This was reported in
2014 and is a low percentage. Most jobs that pay above minimum wage today require a degree.
Therefore, the student will have to choose a career that pays minimum wage. They will also need
to choose a career that comes with insurance benefits and a retirement plan. Since the minimum
wage doesnt adequately cover the cost of living, it is believed that the student will be living a
paycheck-to-paycheck lifestyle.
Nevertheless, there are some ways we can help low-income students break the poverty
cycle. One thing we can do is provide these students with more resources needed to pass their
standardized tests. For example, the state should provide free standardized test preparation
classes for schools, including those with a high poverty rate. Teaching methods should be
modernized and focused on making sure the student understands the material instead of

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memorizing it. Instead of multiple choice based tests they should be given short answer and
essay based tests. These measures have not been taken because schools with a high poverty rate
dont have enough funding to provide free preparation classes, or provide students with more
experienced teachers.
A more preferred option would be not to rely on standardized tests to determine how
intelligent students are. Weve been relying on these tests for years now, yet there hasnt been
much of a change in the students results. Countries that arent using standardized tests are
producing more successful students. Finland, a country strongly against standardized testing, has
instead entrusted good teachers with the educational growth of their students (Bhattacharyya,
637). Some may argue that instead of relying on high-stakes test results, we should start valuing
education more by paying teachers a higher salary, and by placing more funding into schools
with high poverty enrollment rates.
Furthermore, getting accepted into college should be a more achievable goal.
Standardized tests should aim to help low-income students receive a college education instead of
holding them back. Questions on these tests should be short answer and essay questions instead
of multiple choice. By doing this, a students knowledge of the subject can be clearly seen.
However, these tests should not be relied on to determine if a student will get accepted into
college, but instead rely on the students overall grade point average. If we make these changes
and stop relying on standardized tests, lowering poverty in the United States is possible.
In conclusion standardized tests are useless to students who are living in poverty. They
dont have the resources they need to succeed at these tests so failure is imminent. There is too
much pressure to pass these tests because they determine whether the student will move forward,

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and low-income students are more likely to fail. Standardized tests also fail in helping a lowincome student receive a college education. In order to end poverty in the United States we need
to stop relying on standardized tests. We have been using them for years and there have been no
positive changes. We should instead rely simply on good teachers, provide high poverty schools
with tutoring programs, and make higher education more achievable.

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Works Cited
Erickson, Megan. Standardized Testing: The Monster That Ate American Education. Big
Think. 2015. http://www.bigthink.com 20 Sept. 2015.
Bhattacharyya, Sumita, Mary Junot, and Hillary Clark. Can You Hear Us? Voices Raised
against Standardized Testing by Novice Teachers. Creative Education CE 10 (2013):
633-39. Print. 20 Sept. 2015.
DeNavas-Walt, Carmen, and Bernadette D. Proctor. Income and Poverty in the United States:
2014. Poverty Main. U.S. Government Printing Office, 2015. Web. 20 Sept. 2015.