In the UK, students typically take more than a dozen standardized

tests.

"At the age of 16, almost every child in England will take probably
about 15 or 20 substantial examinations," Dylan Wiliam, a professor
emeritus of educational assessment at the University of London,
studies testing, told NPR.

These exams are required to continue on in school. In the last two

years of school, students will also take A levels if they want to continue
on to university or they have the opportunity to pursue diplomas.

Finland's students only have to take one test.

It matters a lot. Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images

Finland doesn't subject its students to tons of standardized tests, but it
does have one big one at the end of their senior year of high school —
the national Matriculation Examination. And it matters a lot. 

"It was very clear for everybody that unless you do very well with this
one examination, that some of these dreams that you may have for the
future will become very difficult to fulfill," Pasi Sahlberg, a visiting
professor at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and an expert
on testing in Finland, told NPR.

Though the nation doesn't pride itself on tons of standardized tests, it

still ranked highly among other nations when they did test:
it came second in science, third in reading, and sixth in math in a
2009 international ranking, according to Smithsonian magazine.

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In Japan, tests are high stakes.

Students are tested to get into high school. AP/Eugene Hoshiko

Though they're tested more frequently than in Finland, in Japan,

standardized tests mean a lot too. In fact, one of the first big
standardized tests students take is an exam that will determine if they
even get into high school. 

"It's a lot of pressure," Akihiko Takahashi, an associate professor of

math education at DePaul University, told NPR. "If you do not pass
the exam, you cannot go anywhere, even high school."

Japanese students almost take the National Center Test for University

Admissions if they want to get into university and many universities
have their own individual tests for entry as well. This "center test" is so
high stakes that many parents begin prepping their kids for it in
kindergarten and many students even buy dolls said to bring them
good luck on the exam. 
The US often requires students to take at least one
standardized test per year.

The US testing system has its own criticisms. AP/Bebo Mathews

Standardized testing varies across different US states, but 41 US states

currently follow the Common Core educational standards. Common
Core does have standardized tests associated with it, but it's up to
schools whether or not they use those exams or others. 

With the introduction of No Child Left Behind in 2001, students are

often required to take at least one yearly standardized test. In 2015,
the average student had taken 112 standardized tests by the time they
left high school, according to the Washington Post.

In addition to these tests, students in the US can also opt into taking
AP exams for college credits and SATs and ACT tests for college
entrance. Unlike many other countries, high school GPA is also taken
into account for college entrance. 
Standardized testing in the US has faced its own sets of criticisms,
including that it judges all students the same despite income levels,
learning disabilities, or simply how they learn and that students in the
US are tested at too high a rate. 

In China, one test means everything.

Students start preparing from a young age. Damir Sagolj/Reuters

China is home to the mother of all standardized tests: the gaokao or

the "higher examination."

The test is a college entrance exam and is extremely high pressure. It's

12-hours long and features sections on "Chinese, English, maths and a
choice of either sciences (biology, chemistry, physics) or humanities
(geography, history, politics)," according to The Guardian. It's
multiple choice and taken over two days. 

Upon completion, students are given their three-digit score, which

determines what college they'll get into and even their earnings
potential. 

Because the test is so high-stakes, it's filled with lots of fanfare.

According to the Guardian, construction is halted in towns and
ambulances wait on standby. Students who score highly are praised
publicly. 

South Africa has a complex standardized testing

history.

The testing system has been controversial. AP/Dennis Farrell

The history of standardized tests in South Africa is a tricky one. Like
much of the world, South African students take one final exit exam to
finish high school and determine college acceptance — theirs is called
the "matric." But what this has looked like has changed over the years. 

In 2014, the test was changed a bit to reflect a shift towards "high-

order questions." Many students were unhappy with their scores,
according to VOA News, and the pass rate dropped. 

But many claim that the pass rate and the test itself needs to be looked
at with a more complex lens. Discrepancies between students who are
wealthy and students who are lower-income, as well as residual
education gaps stemming from apartheid, has lead many to argue that
the test cannot be used as a standardized form for success. 

"Wealth has given some the privilege of a good education," T. O.

Molefe wrote in The New York Times. "The rest, mostly poor black
students, have been corralled into what Steve Biko, the murdered anti-
apartheid activist and founder of the country’s black consciousness
movement, once described as lives of perpetual servitude. The
country’s two-tiered education system — a functional one for the
wealthy and a dysfunctional public system for poor blacks — is to
blame."

Brazil has some controversy surrounding exams.

Students in a small city-run vocational school in northeast
Brazil. AP/Douglas Engle

Brazil's standardized test programs has also sparked conversations.

Students in the country take a relatively new exam called "Enem,"
which is a standardized college entrance exam. But in recent years,
accusations of stolen copies and low test scores have marred the
exam. 

This has opened up a conversation about literacy and income rates

affecting test prep in the country.

In Mexico, there's an emphasis on standardized

testing.
There are a few important exams. AP/Rodrigo Abd

Mexico has recently been introducing more and more standardized

testing into its schools. For example, 15-year-olds have to take an
"Exani-I" to continue their publication education. They also have a
school completion exam called "Exani-II" which determines if 18-year-
old students can move on to colleges and universities. 

When students complete their "professional studies," many will also

take an exam called the "General Exiting Exam." Grad school students
take something called the "Exani-III."

The increased emphasis on standardized testing has, in part with other

factors, sparked protests in the country by teachers.

Canada has standardized tests that can vary by

province.
The tests are high pressure. Shutterstock

Much like the US, standardized tests in Canada vary by province, but

almost every province has some sort of standardized test. Most of
these tests are multiple choice and include questions about reading,
writing, and math. 

But much of the same conversations about standardized tests that

exist in the US and other places is also present in Canada, namely that
these tests don't always cover what's taught in classrooms and that it
can paint students who learn differently with too broad a brush. 

"This standardized test is the total opposite of what we've been doing
all year long, and we expect kids to pass it," a Canadian teacher told
Canadian Living.
"It's a high-pressure time for both teachers and students, and, quite
frankly, I'm not sure that it tells us that much."

Test scores in India have social implications.

Students taking the Indian Institutes of Technology (IIT)

exam. AP/Saurabh Das

India has a standardized high school completion exam called national

boards which are sent to colleges and universities. But in addition to
these tests, students must also take separate college entrance exams.
Both are extremely high stakes and, according to The New York Times,
students can take dozens of these exams before going to college. 

Test scores also have social implications in the country. 

"The score of the child has become a status symbol," Jaya Samaddar, a
mother in India, told The New York Times. “If we go to a party these
days, everybody asks me, ‘How is your child doing?’ No one asks about
my health. The question is, 'What is your child’s academic status?'"

Because of how high stakes the tests are, cheating has become a

problem, according to The Washington Post, with some parents even
risking their lives to help their children.