With the Iowa Statewide Assessment of Student Progress taking place next week, it is important to emphasize that standardized testing does not measure one’s intellectual ability and instead may provide students with a disservice. Standardized testing is a large stress source for students and teachers alike. It does not consider non-native speakers, students with dyslexia and/or other learning disabilities and more. Instead, standardized tests provide students with a source of annoyance and inconvenience that takes time away from learning with the accommodations they need.

Psychology teacher Kerry Lust explained that “[s]tandardized tests are difficult for students whose first language is not English…[they] are also difficult for students who are on IEP’s (individualized education programs). I have a son on an IEP and standardized tests are not a good measure of his abilities.”

Even students who face no testing difficulties often find the tests a waste of their time and struggle to find the motivation to try to achieve a good score that does not affect their grades.

Junior, Morgan Meiners, expressed it to be “difficult to want to spend so much time on something that provides no benefit to [her] and has no effect on [her] future. [She] think[s] standardized stinks to take every day for a week.”

While Meiners feels that ISASPS scores do not affect her, some students may take on additional stress regarding their scores.

When asked if Lust believes testing affects a student’s self-image she explained “[she] hope[s] not. [She] hope[s] students know that these tests don’t define them and that they are much more than a score.”