When my oldest child entered the third grade, I considered whether I should have her take a standardized test. Certainly we tested our kids on their academic subjects, and I had also administered placement tests for math skills. However, standardized testing falls into a whole new category. As both a former public school and private school teacher, I know that testing can frequently be misused. I wanted to have the joy of watching my children learn without the pressure of meeting standards that may have no positive impact on their education or truly test their knowledge or ability. There are many opinions in this area, but I believe there are valid reasons to consider testing our kids.
Standardized test defined
A standardized test is an exam that requires all test takers to answer the same questions in the same way, and that is scored in a “standard” or consistent manner, which makes it possible to compare the relative performance of individual students or groups of students.
Some states have home education laws that require students to take standardized tests. (You can check your state’s requirements here.) However, many do not and it’s important to note that this form of testing can be the antithesis of what many home educators deem valuable. We want our children to master their subjects, so we encourage individual instruction and allow our children to follow their personal interests to a higher degree than most other forms of education. We care about their personal character development, and many of us especially desire to nurture our children’s faith in God. None of these things can be evaluated by a standardized test.
Tool to guide instruction
Yet, testing can help evaluate whether a curriculum is enabling the student to learn well. For example, when our son struggled with map skills on a standardized test, I knew that I should spend time in this area. The next time he tested in this area, he did not miss a single question! This standardized test helped me see an area of weakness in our curriculum and enabled me to modify our lesson plans.
But scores can also lead us astray. When my daughter tested post-high school on Vocabulary on the Stanford Achievement Test in third grade, it didn't mean that she was ready to go to college. It meant that her vocabulary skills were very high and an area where we probably did not need to spend a lot of time. However, when two of my children scored lower than expected on their reading comprehension, it encouraged me to spend more time making sure my children understood a story. This sparked some great discussions on plot, setting, characters, and led us to recount many exciting adventures!
Practice for future tests
In today’s environment, children will likely need to take multiple choice tests in various situations. Our state requires one take a multiple choice test to receive a driver's license. Some job applications have required tests. Also, most colleges expect students to take either the SAT or ACT exams as part of the application process. Testing your children at home prior to these types of tests allows them to practice and ask questions before being in a more serious setting. We also occasionally took group standardized tests with our homeschool organization to encounter a more rigid testing environment.
No competition
Early in our home education journey I decided that I would not show our children their own test scores or compare them with those of their siblings. One of my children was quite gifted at guessing answers quickly and correctly, while another child was more thoughtful and slow, but less skilled at guessing correctly. Yet, both children were bright and talented in similar ways. So, I downplayed competition in this area. If they asked about their test results, which was infrequent, I would tell them that they were all doing great, which in my opinion they were. Occasionally I might say we all needed to work harder on reading comprehension or some other subject, without giving specifics about that information. Normally they never saw the outcome of their standardized tests; perhaps this is why they did not feel the pressure or anxiety that can be caused by testing.
In summary
Personally, I am not a fan of most standardized testing. However, it is a good tool to guide instruction and help prepare children for future tests. Each family has its own dynamics to factor into a decision on standardized testing—many families decide not to test at all until the high school years. Whatever your family decides (taking into consideration your state homeschool law), standardized tests used wisely and thoughtfully can help parents make informed educational decisions.
—Cynthia