Blog #4: Racism in Standardized Testing

In Robin Diangelo’s White Fragility, Diangelo discusses the good/bad binary of racism that continues to exist in the 21st century, which is essentially how well-intended, educated people avoid the discussion of race because they believe they are not racist (Diangelo 72). The good/bad binary dates back to the civil rights movement, where white northerners would see images and read headlines of white southerners inflicting violence on black people. To the white northerners, these acts of violence, prejudice, and racism committed by white southerners caused them to be on the “bad” side of the binary. This gave the white northerners the idea that racists were from the south and were “mean, ignorant, old, [and] uneducated” (Diangelo 71). By identifying the southern whites on the “bad” side as racists, this gave northern whites the idea that they themselves were on the “good” side and were not racist. This conclusion for them made them feel that they were not to blame for the racism happening in their country. Little did they know that because they were not participating in the conversations surrounding racism, they were helping the perpetuation of racism, putting northern whites on the same playing field as the people they deemed “bad.” Racism is very much alive today, one way through high-stakes testing, which is failing our students of color in a system that is supposed to “leave no child behind.”

High-stakes standardized tests are traditionally instruments of assessment that are meant to identify achievement in students in response to competent teaching and learning, most commonly in the areas of Mathematics and English. According to Wayne Au in “Racial Justice Is Not a Choice,” test scores are not an accurate representation of student competency of content, but more a reflection of the outside factors students experience, such as family income, neighborhood, access to resources, and the education levels of parents (Au 244). Because these tests assess only a few skills, students’ full capabilities are not recognized, therefore the results are inaccurate. What the tests don’t assess are the students’ learning processes both in their academics and social-emotional learning that is done through relationship building. There is so much more to know about a student other than numbers, and standardized testing is a disservice to students of color specifically, who are forced to take assessments that do not represent them.

In every high school I’ve taught in thus far in my undergraduate studies, I’ve noticed a dangerous trend in result of high-stakes testing in English, seen through RICAS. Students who score poorly on these assessments are forced to take “comprehension” courses as their grade-level English course. These courses generally frontload basic content rather than engaging students in culturally relevant curriculum, which deprives them of enriching, higher level content. And unfortunately, schools track the course history of these students and their low test scores, keeping them in the lower level comprehension courses. Reflecting on the students I’ve worked with who have to take these courses, most of them students of color, many of them truly believe that the reason why they are placed into comprehension level courses is because they are “stupid.” This is awful to witness, because while these students have talents beyond the assessments that will never be reflected in the RICAS, their educational identity is shaped through the classes they are forced to take, affecting their self-esteem and behavior. What high-stakes tests don’t know about my students is that they are confident speakers, imaginative creative writers, graphic artists, poets, and leaders. What would school be like for my students if their talents were reflected on the assessments that determine their academic worth?

So I think back to the age-old saying that important leaders in this country have parroted: “Education is the great civil rights issue of our time.” If Diangelo could weigh in on this quote, I think she would say that what our nation's leaders mean by this is that schools are failing students of color, and nobody wants to discuss it. By neglecting these issues, educators are perpetuating the racism that casts a dark shadow on our society, affecting children of color in a place that should help them reach their full potential. As educators, we need to have these raw conversations, and develop ways to provide thorough and relevant curriculum to students, as well as recognizing them for their individual talents.