CON CASE

Opening: Imagine a clock, a design that has evolved over the years, all the gears
turning together to create a finely tuned result but, one gear has broken. That gear is
now useless and every other gear in the system cannot go on with this faulty part, and
thus the clock ceases to function. This brings us to today's resolution, Resolved: On
balance, standardized testing is beneficial to K-12 education in the United States.

For clarification of todays round, I offer the following definitions, all of which,
unless stated otherwise, from merriam-webster:

Standardized Test: (Source: edglossary.org) any form of test that (1) requires all test
takers to answer the same questions, or a selection of questions from a common bank
of questions, in the same way, and that (2) is scored in a standard or consistent
manner, which makes it possible to compare the relative performance of individual
students or groups of students.

Education: (Source: oxforddictionaries.com) The process of receiving or giving

systematic instruction, especially at a school or university.

Is: present plural of be.

Institution: (Source: dictionary.cambridge.org) a custom or practice that has existed

for a long time and is accepted as an important part of a society.

Observation One: An education is an institution and an institution is only as good as

its parts.

Main Argument One: Today, standardized tests are a faulty part of the United States
institution of education.
(Point 1A)
 Claim: Standardized tests require a change in the nature of teaching to be able
to function.
Data: (Source: aft.org) One of the effects of the increased number and
heightened stakes of standardized tests is that the roles played by teachers have
changed. Specifically, teachers institutional tasks have increased because they
are expected to take up work related to testing in addition to their regular
teaching duties. Institutional tasks include:
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collecting, organizing, and analyzing data associated with
tests
grouping and regrouping students according to test
performance
developing vertical articulation of the curriculum to align with
tests
coordinating students assignments, based on test scores, to
remedial programs
Impact: Standardized tests require the implementation of more parts, the taking
up of work relating to testing, into the educational system to function. This
displays just how faulty standardized tests are to the educational institution as
they cannot function without another characteristic educational system, and thus
resources have to be allocated to constantly support this part of the system.
(Point 1B)
Claim: The primary function of standardized tests is useless on an educational
level.
Data: (Source: jessup.edu) The second key assumption about standardized
testing, is that its primary function is to determine a students academic standing.
However, test data is certainly more useful to administrators than students,
because a competent teacher can determine a students proficiency level based
off homework, quizzes or classroom participation. If standardized tests are not
necessary to determine a students academic level, it raises an important
question, whether test results (versus other sources such as teacher input), are
the best source for determining policy or curriculum changes.
 Impact: The primary objective of standardized tests is to provide a guideline for
teachers to follow to allow them to see a students proficiency level on the subject
that the student is currently learning and move to improve upon that students
weaknesses. However, there are other working parts of the educational system
that achieve the same feat that these standardized tests were meant to do.

Main Argument Two: An effective way to improve the institution of education is

repairing the faulty part that it contains, standardized testing.
(Point 2A)
Claim: Shifting the specification of the assessments from a national level to a
local level would help repair the fault.
Data: (Source: Measuring Student Achievement by Jeremiah Gawthrop) By
localizing assessment testing, rather than nationalizing it, the tests would more
accurately reflect student ability, since they will be designed with specific
curriculum in mind. If each school district was responsible for developing their
own assessment tests the issue of high score variance could be overcome.
Impact: Instead of every assessment test being created for the national majority,
localized assessment tests could be designed towards the local majority,
meaning test scores would more accurately reflect the cultural norms of the
community.
(Point 2B)
Claim: Standardized tests have powerful and often negative effects on student
learning, but their negative effects can be reduced by certain measures.
Data: (Source: ncte.org) These measures include:
Employ multiple assessments of student achievement so
that standardized tests are administered alongside broader, more
comprehensive measures of student learning.
Represent standardized tests to students as one type of
assessment among several and help students understand how this type of
assessment functions.
Ensure that the standardized tests being used are valid and
reliable for the populations of students being tested.
 Provide special accommodations such as allowing extra
time, dictation, and translators for English language learners and other
students with special needs.
Impact: To fix a faulty part, you need tools and this data provides the specific
tools that make the test a fair and accurate measure of student mastery on the
material.

Closing Statement: Let us return to the clock, the gear is still broken and useless, but
what if we fix it into a new working one. The clock would then suddenly return to life,
achieving what it was meant to be. The same would happen to education if we fixed the
faulty part of standardized testing. The whole system would come to life and be a
benefit to the K-12 students of the United States.

https://debateclash.com/2015/11/december-public-forum-topic-analysis-standardized-
testing/

http://www.ncte.org/library/NCTEFiles/Resources/Journals/CC/0242-
nov2014/CC0242PolicyStandardized.pdf

http://my.jessup.edu/publicpolicy/wp-
content/uploads/sites/39/2014/04/Gawthrop_Jeremiah_Final.pdf

http://www.aft.org/sites/default/files/news/testingmore2013.pdf