High Stakes Testing

Education Week opinion letters submissions
Gwen Keraval for Education Week
Assessment Letter to the Editor State Exams Offer Pathways for Some—Not All—Learners
A parent writes a letter to the editor detailing her child's experience with state exams in New York.
April 25, 2023
1 min read
This May 8, 1964 file photo shows Linda Brown Smith standing in front of the Sumner School in Topeka, Kan. The refusal of the public school to admit Brown in 1951, then nine years old, because she is black, led to the Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas. In 1954, the U.S. Supreme Court overruled the "separate but equal" clause and mandated that schools nationwide must be desegregated.
This May 8, 1964 file photo shows Linda Brown Smith standing in front of the Sumner School in Topeka, Kan. The refusal of the public school to admit Brown in 1951, then nine years old, because she is black, led to the Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas. In 1954, the U.S. Supreme Court overruled the "separate but equal" clause and mandated that schools nationwide must be desegregated.
AP Photo
Equity & Diversity Educational Inequality: 4 Moments in History That Explain Where We Are Today
A new Columbia University report highlights how inequality was embedded in the creation of public education in the United States.
Ileana Najarro, March 20, 2023
5 min read
Photo of high school students taking exam.
iStock/Getty
Assessment States Have Soured on the High School Exit Exam. Here's Why
The pandemic is one reason, but interest has waned for some time in light of mixed research.
Sarah Schwartz, January 26, 2023
3 min read
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Accountability Opinion What Should School Accountability Look Like in a Time of COVID-19?
Remote learning is not like in person, and after nine months of it, data are revealing how harmful COVID-19 has been to children's learning.
Peter DeWitt, January 10, 2021
6 min read
Miguel Cardona, President-elect Joe Biden's nominee for Secretary of Education, speaks after being introduced at The Queen Theater in Wilmington, Del., on Dec. 23, 2020.
Miguel Cardona, President-elect Joe Biden's nominee for Secretary of Education, speaks after being introduced at The Queen Theater in Wilmington, Del., on Dec. 23, 2020.
Carolyn Kaster/AP
Federal Where Biden's Choice for Education Secretary Stands on Key K-12 Issues
Connecticut Education Commissioner Miguel Cardona, Biden's pick for education secretary, has taken positions on an array of K-12 issues.
Evie Blad, December 22, 2020
8 min read
Illustration of students in virus environment facing wave of test sheets.
Collage by Vanessa Solis/Education Week (Images: iStock/DigitalVision Vectors/Getty)
Assessment Opinion Testing Students This Spring Would Be a Mistake
High-stakes tests would tell us very little we can't know in other ways, writes a longtime assessment researcher.
Lorrie A. Shepard, December 16, 2020
5 min read
School Climate & Safety Briefly Stated Briefly Stated: Stories You May Have Missed
A collection of news stories you may have missed.
March 3, 2020
7 min read
Recruitment & Retention What the Research Says Eliminating High-Stakes Testing May Not Lessen Most Teacher Turnover
For many teachers, high-stakes testing is a major source of frustration—but they're not necessarily quitting over it.
Madeline Will, February 25, 2020
1 min read
BRIC ARCHIVE
Getty
Assessment Opinion It's Time to End Timed Tests
The research is clear that speed doesn't reflect intelligence, writes Alden S. Blodget.
Alden S. Blodget, September 30, 2019
5 min read
BRIC ARCHIVE
Getty
School & District Management Opinion There Is Rampant Distrust in Education. Here's How to Fix That
Is it possible to replace a culture of long-simmering distrust? Only if education leaders make some serious changes, writes Katherine Schultz.
Katherine Schultz, June 19, 2019
4 min read
Assessment Math Scores Slide to a 20-Year Low on ACT
The continuing decline in math achievement comes even as fewer students are taking the college-readiness exam.
Catherine Gewertz, October 17, 2018
5 min read
Assessment Conn. Stumbles in Quest to Use SAT as Achievement Test
The state's closely watched bid falls shy of full approval from federal reviewers.
Catherine Gewertz, September 19, 2018
6 min read
Assessment Was the SAT Leaked? Six Questions Answered
Rumors are circulating that the exam reused questions from a test given in Asia last fall. Here's what you need to know.
Catherine Gewertz, September 19, 2018
3 min read