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Running head: ECONOMIC, ETHNIC, AND CULTURAL SEGMENTS

Effects of Standardized Testing on Children

A Bibliographic Essay
Megan Kaufman
Ottawa University

Running head: ECONOMIC, ETHNIC, AND CULTURAL SEGMENTS

Abstract
This paper is a bibliographic essay that is meant to guide the reader in research conducted
on the effects of standardized testing on children. It is going to examine the long term, as well as
the short term, consequences that standardized testing has on children. These sources were
gathered in an attempt to answer the research question, What are the impacts of standardized
tests on economic, ethnic, and cultural segments of a diverse student population? This paper is
divided into separate sections that discuss different aspects of schools and how standardized
testing affects each of these areas, or how these areas affect test scores. All sources have been
outlined and evaluated for relevancy and credibility. Many of these articles contain information
about each subtopic. The first subtopic will discuss how economics effect standardized test
scores. The second subtopic explores the role of ethnicity in how well a student scores on a
standardized test. The final subtopic will also explore how different cultures affect testing. The
first topic, economics, will help the reader understand how economic hardships may or may not
effect scores. This can also be linked to the second subtopics, ethnicity and culture, and how
these are correlated. This essay is going to focus on how each of these affects student test scores.

Running head: ECONOMIC, ETHNIC, AND CULTURAL SEGMENTS

Economic, Ethnic, and Cultural Effects on Standardized Testing
A Bibliographic Essay
For many years educators have been researching and studying the effects of standardized
testing on children. This is a topic which leaves many members of the educational community
divided. Some argue that standardized testing in the only way to accurately and fairly test a
students knowledge. Others disagree and say that testing is not the only way to test a childs
knowledge. It is no secret that some schools are more economically inclined than other schools,
and it has been discussed whether or not that has any impact on the quality of education the
children are getting. Which consequently affects their standardized test scores. Another
controversy is whether or not culture affects test scores. This can also be tied back into the
economic effects. It is stereotyped that minorities tend to go to schools that are not as
economically well off. So therefore they are not getting the best education which consequently
can affect test scores. Historically it can be shown that different Culturally Americans have put a
heavy emphasis on standardized tests. We have our students take college entrance exams which
decide whether or not they will get into the college of their dreams. Standardized tests also have
cultural stigma of being harsh and there is much dispute on whether or not teachers should place
such an emphases on teaching to the test. There have been different measures put into place to
try and close the apparent gap between each of these three factors. This essay does not propose
an answer to whether or not standardized tests are still credible. It only outlines the connections
and research that has been done on this subject and makes connections between two or more of
the different subtopics. This essay is not meant to persuade only to inform of facts and uses
articles to display these facts.

Running head: ECONOMIC, ETHNIC, AND CULTURAL SEGMENTS

Economic Impacts
As mentioned before, the economy plays a large role in how schools are run. The gap
between the haves and the have-nots is increasingly growing. Some schools still do not have
access to computers and or other important teaching materials. There is no definitive answer as
to whether or not this really has an impact on children. However, a study conducted in California
wanted to test the connection between having a computer at home and if this impacts educational
development. It was ultimately found that not having a computer at home did not impede
educational development and therefore did not affect standardized test scores in any way.
Economic impacts can also include other things other than just technology. Food is another
indicator of economic status. It is a trend that those who do not have as much money cannot
afford the best food for their children and often resort to buying unhealthier options because they
are cheaper. There is a definitive link between childrens test scores and their health. The factors
they looked at were physical health, psychological well-being, and health behaviors (food). It
was found that those with higher heath scores did better on tests than did their less healthy
counterparts. The following sources helps to further explain the link between economics and test
scores.

Fairlie, R. W., & Robinson, J. (n.d.). Experimental Evidence on the Effects of Home
Computers on Academic Achievement among Schoolchildren. National Poverty Center
Working Paper Series #13-02. National Poverty Center. Retrieved from ERIC database.
(ED539512)
This article analyzes the connection between having computers and education
status. They explored to see whether or not this impedes education development.

Running head: ECONOMIC, ETHNIC, AND CULTURAL SEGMENTS

This study used California schools. They used 1,123 school children in grades 610. It was found that this did not affect standardized test scores.
The authors of this article are qualified to be writing on this topic. Farlie is
a professor at the University of California Santa Cruz who does research on
education while Robinson is also a professor at UC Santa Cruz who does research
is on Africa and impact of the economy on impoverished countries. I did not find
any spelling, grammar, or citation errors within this article. A bibliography is
provided to assist anyone reading this article. This article is fact based and I did
not detect any biases. It was presented in an evenhanded manner. The purpose of

the article is to present their findings. The article is scholarly in nature.

Ickovics, J. R., Carroll-Scott, A., Peters, S. M., Schwartz, M., Gilstad-Hayden, K., &
McCaslin, C. (2014). Health and Academic Achievement: Cumulative Effects of Health
Assets on Standardized Test Scores Among Urban Youth in the United States. Journal of
School Health, 84(1), 40-48. http://dx.doi.org.lib.ottawa.edu/10.1111/josh.12117
This article looked at different demographics within schools and wanted to
identify what factors impacted children's test scores. They looked at physical
health, psychological well-being, health behaviors, family environment and few
others to see if these had effects on testing later on. It turns out that the average
students had a score of 7.1 out of 14 total points. 940 students were tested. Those
with higher heath assets scored higher on standardized tests.
The authors of this article are very qualified to be writing and researching
on this topic. They have backgrounds in educational research and also are
affiliated with several well-known schools that research education. I did not find
any spelling or grammar errors within this article. The pictures and diagrams help
to reader to interpret some of the information provided. A biography is also

Running head: ECONOMIC, ETHNIC, AND CULTURAL SEGMENTS

provided to help readers interpret the information given. The article is factual in
nature and does not contain any biases. It was written in an evenhanded manner
and is research based. This article is scholarly in nature.
Ethnic Impacts
Ethnicity is something inherent and something that someone cannot change. It is widely
discussed how ethnicity affects standardized testing. In a study conducted by the Dean of North
Carolina University. They posed a question about how well minority groups score on tests. They
also wanted to determine if they need to enhance instruction for diverse students and if they need
to be translated into other languages. It was concluded that even though standardized tests have
the same level of difficulty as regular classroom tests, standardized tests are more useful when
testing minority groups on certain curriculum. Another article outlines the effects of historical
literacy on standardized testing. It incites an argument about whether or not standardized testing
helps history or if it just helps in math. Ultimately it was found that historical literacy still has
some factors in standardized testing. Below is some more information on ethnicity and test
scores.

Braden, J. P. (1999). Performance assessment and diversity. School Psychology

Quarterly, 14(3). http://dx.doi.org.lib.ottawa.edu/10.1037/h0089011
This article talks about how performance assessments affect the diverse section of a
student population. They posed questions about how well minority groups score on
tests, do they enhance instruction for diverse students, and are they commonly
translated into other languages. The author or this article concludes that even though
they have the same level of difficulty as regular classroom tests they are more useful
when testing curricular standards than instructional tests.

Running head: ECONOMIC, ETHNIC, AND CULTURAL SEGMENTS

The author of this article is the Dean of the College of Humanities and Social
Sciences and Professor of Psychology at North Carolina State University. When he
wrote this article he taught and directed the school psychology programs at the
University of Wisconsin- Madison. Due to his heavy background in psychology and
social sciences I believe him to be a credible source. I did not find any spelling,
grammar or citation errors within his article. A bibliography is provided so anyone
reading this article can check his sources. The article is factual and does not have any
biases within the way the research was conducted. It was presented in an evenhanded
manner and is research based. The article includes tables that help display the data that
was collected. The purpose of the article is to present his finding of the research he
conducted. This article is scholarly in nature.

Maranto, J. H. (2015). The Effects of Standardized Testing on Historical Literacy and

Educational Reform in the U.S. Academic Leadership Journal in Student Research, 3(8),
1-8. Retrieved from ERIC database. (Accession No. EJ1062724)
This article outlines the historical effects of standardized testing. It talks about the
history of public education and the results of the first standardized test. It helped to
incite an argument about whether or not standardized testing helps history or if it just
helps in math. Ultimately it was found that historical literacy still has some factor
within standardized testing.
This article was written by a masters student at Fort Hayes University. She is a
credible source because this is what she did her masters research on. This article is
also peer reviewed. I did not find any grammatical or spelling errors within this article.
This helps further its credibility. There is a bibliography included at the end of the

Running head: ECONOMIC, ETHNIC, AND CULTURAL SEGMENTS

article to help readers see where she obtained her information from. This article is
factual and does not seem to have any biases. This article is scholarly in nature.

Cultures Response to Standardized Testing

Culturally Americans have put all of their faith into standardized tests. They use them to
determine what college students are allowed to be admitted to. Sometimes they even decide
whether or not a student can advance into the next grade level. A study was conducted that
looked at standardized test scores and looked at the differences between men and women on a
college entrance exam. It was found that math self-concept and intrinsic values interact. It was
also determined that prior reading achievement has a negative effect on math testing. Part of the
standardized testing debate says that these kinds of testing are ruining our schools. One of the
arguments is that standardized testing is not the only way to test a student on his or her
intelligence. They think that we are sacrificing our children in order to raise test scores and
teachers do this by teaching to the test. That is, they only teach curriculum that will later be on
a standardized test. Many students feel that these high stakes tests determine everything about a
students life. These tests can make or break a students academic career. There are more and
more flaws coming to light with these types of tests. Another article that attacks standardized
testing says that these tests take up valuable learning time. It says that is causes students stress,
students begin to internalize failure and a loss of curiosity to learn. The following articles go into
further detail explaining the cultural effect of standardized testing.

Guo, J., Parker, P. D., Marsh, H. W., & Morin, A. J. (2015). Achievement, Motivation,
and Educational Choices: A Longitudinal Study of Expectancy and Value Using a

Running head: ECONOMIC, ETHNIC, AND CULTURAL SEGMENTS

Multiplicative Perspective. Developmental Psychology, 51(8).
http://dx.doi.org.lib.ottawa.edu/10.1037/a0039440
This article explored the individual and gender differences when it came to
entrance into a university. They looked at standardized test scores and examined
the differences between men and women. Participants were of Australian
nationality, aged 15. The results of this state that math self concept and intrinsic
values interact and prior reading achievement has negative effects on math
testing.
The authors of this article are doctoral students at Australian Catholic
University. Due to their credentials I believe their research is credible and this
source is credible. There are no spelling or grammar errors within this article, this
helps add to its credibility. The researchers provided a bibliography so anyone
reading the article can check how they are interpreting the data. The article is
based on quantitative as well as qualitative research so the information within it is
primarily factual. The authors do not seem to have a bias. The information is
presented in an evenhanded manner. There are tables and statistics included
within the article that help to show data collected. The article was written in 2015
which means that the research is current and applies to current times. The purpose
of this article is to convey research and conclusions of research conducted. This

article is scholarly in nature and can be used in the future for other studies.
Kohn, A. (2000). Measuring what matters least. In The case against standardized testing:
raising the scores, ruining the schools. (p. 1). Retrieved from
http://teacherrenewal.wiki.westga.edu/file/view/Testing,+Testing,
+Testing.pdf/227207662/Testing,%20Testing,%20Testing.pdf

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Running head: ECONOMIC, ETHNIC, AND CULTURAL SEGMENTS

This book depicts the lingering effects of standardized testing on students. It
outlines how tests are not the only way to test our children of their intelligence.
He says that this is what is ruining schools. He thinks that we are sacrificing our
children in order to raise test scores. He thinks that the more people learn about
the dangers of standardized testing then the better off society will be.
The author of this book is an author and lecturer. He has been on the
forefront of education and educational research for a while. I believe that he is a
credible author due to his background in psychology, human behavior and
education. I did not find any spelling or grammar errors. A bibliography was not
provided in the version that I accessed. This is a book that outlines opinions on
education so it is slightly biased. The purpose of this book is to dissuade teachers

from using standardized testing.

Mantell, R. (2013, November 25). Testimony on the impact of standardized testing on
students. Retrieved March 16, 2016, from United Federation of Teachers website:
http://www.uft.org/testimony/testimony-impact-standardized-testing-students
This letter lays out different testimonies of children talking about standardized
testing. They discuss how high stakes tests determine everything about a students
life. It decides whether or not students move to a next level of college or whether
or not they can graduate. More and more flaws of this type of testing are coming
to light and more schools are questioning this type of testings validity.
The domain is is a .org. This means that it is an organization and usually
has more credible information. The author is a vice president for junior high and
intermediate schools. I did not see any grammatical errors within this website. He
does not use any outside information so bibliography was needed or provided.
The websites information is factual and is based on real like testimonies. I do not

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Running head: ECONOMIC, ETHNIC, AND CULTURAL SEGMENTS

detect any biases within the information. There are no graphics or images within
this webpage. This also adds to credibility. The last time this article was updated
was when it was written. The purpose of this article is to share testimonies of real
life experiences when it comes to standardized testing. This article is mostly
general in nature. However because it is mostly testimonies it can be used in other

academic papers.
Strauss, V. (2014, March 11). 13 Ways high-stakes standardized tests hurt students.
Retrieved March 16, 2016, from The Washington Post website:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/answer-sheet/wp/2014/03/10/13-ways-highstakes-standardized-tests-hurt-students/
This article talks about how standardized tests hurt students. They say that the
costs of standardized testing are a loss in learning time, reduced content
knowledge, narrowed curriculum, shut out of programs, diverted resources,
school closures, loss of curiosity, blocked access to facilities, harmful stress,
internalized failure, grades, graduation requirements and altered school culture.
This article lays out the guidelines for why standardized testing is ruining our
school system.
The domain is a .com which means that it is a for profit domain. The
author is Valerie Strauss researches her own pieces and does not have any real
credentials when it comes to education. She does not have the authority to be
reporting this topic. There are no spelling or grammar errors that I could see
however the language being used is not academic language. The author uses a
more colloquial language that everyday people can understand. A bibliography is
not present. This leads to a lack of credibility and makes me question if any of this
post was plagiarized. This websites content is mostly argumentative. She is trying

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Running head: ECONOMIC, ETHNIC, AND CULTURAL SEGMENTS

to prove that what she is saying is correct. There are advertisements but they do
not pertain to the article at all. The last update was when the article was posted.
The purpose of the article is to get the reader to believe that the thirteen ways
outlined out in this article are true. This article is not scholarly in nature and is
more popular and meant for the layman.
This paper produced multiple sources for use in researching the effects of standardized testing.
These sources were found using the question, What are the impacts of standardized tests on
economic, and cultural segments of a diverse student population? in mind. These sources
explain and discuss the different impacts each of these topics has on children and their
standardized test scores. Below are some additional articles that help to further knowledge on
these topics.

Oakland, T., & Weilert, E. (1971, February). The Effects of Test-Wiseness Materials on
Standardized Test Performance of Preschool Disadvantaged Children. Paper presented at
Annual Meeting of the American Educational Research Association, New York, NY.
Retrieved from http://web.b.ebscohost.com.lib.ottawa.edu/ehost/detail/detail?
vid=18&sid=95687a13-73b5-402b-bcb69be4e0f32142%40sessionmgr112&hid=110&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZSZzY2
9wZT1zaXRl#AN=ED047050&db=eric
This paper talked about the examination of certain variables that apply to different
test-readiness of preschool to primary grade children. The study looked at
different inherent abilities that seem to be required for taking standardized tests. It
was found that this type of test-readiness had limited to no value when it came to
test performance.

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Running head: ECONOMIC, ETHNIC, AND CULTURAL SEGMENTS

One of the authors, Oakland, was a professor at the University of Florida
and a professor at the University of Texas. He was also board certified in
neuropsychology and school psychology. The other author, Weilert, I could not
find much information on. However due to Oaklands extensive background in
school psychology I still find these authors credible. There were no spelling or
grammar errors within the article. This article is researched based and does not

seem to have any biases. The purpose of this article was to submit their findings.
Stiggins, R. J., & Conklin, N. F. (1992). In Teachers' Hands: Investigating the Practices
of Classroom Assessment. Albany, NY: State University of New York Press.
The aim of this book is to identify teaching practices that will help improve
literacy outcomes for school children. This study used a literary assessment and
analysis of 2,000 children. These assessments were carried out by 200 teachers. It
was found that the type of activities used teachers varied only slightly within the
teachers classrooms.
One of the authors of this book, Richard Stiggins, founded the Assessment
training institute. This provided greater development in creating and distributing
higher quality assessments. This means that he has more than enough
credentialing to be a credible source. There are no spelling or grammatical errors
within this book. It has been edited multiple people which adds to its credibility. A
bibliography is provided to help anyone reading establish the credibility of the
books references. This also helps to deter from plagiarism. The books content is
very factual and is written in an evenhanded manner. I did not detect any biases
within the book. This book was written in 1992 so it is somewhat current. The
purpose of this book is to share the authors findings on the best way to give

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Running head: ECONOMIC, ETHNIC, AND CULTURAL SEGMENTS

classroom assessments. This book is mostly scholarly in nature and can be used in
other academic papers.