High-stakes testing

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The use and misuse of high-stakes tests are a controversial topic in public education, especially in the United States and U.K. where they have become especially popular in recent years, used not only to assess students but in attempts to increase teacher accountability.[2]


In common usage, a high-stakes test[3] is any test that has major consequences or is the basis of a major decision.[1][4][5]


  • is a single, defined assessment,
  • has a clear line drawn between those who pass and those who fail, and
  • has direct consequences for passing or failing (something "at stake").[6]


The stakes[edit]






  • Driver's license tests and the legal ability to drive
  • Theater auditions and the part in the performance
  • Many job interviews or drug tests and being hired
  • High school exit examinations and high-school diplomas
  • No Child Left Behind tests and school funding and ratings
  • Ph.D. oral exams and receiving the doctorate



A test may be "high-stakes" based on consequences for others beyond the individual test-taker.[5] For example, an individual medical student who fails a licensing exam will not be able to practice his or her profession. However, if enough students at the same school fail the exam, then the school's reputation and accreditation may be in jeopardy. Similarly, testing under the U.S.'s No Child Left Behind Act has no direct negative consequences for failing students,[12] but potentially serious consequences for their schools, including loss of accreditation, funding, teacher pay, teacher employment, or changes to the school's management.[13] The stakes are therefore high for the school, but low for the individual test-takers.

Assessments used in high-stakes testing[edit]


Some high-stakes tests may be standardized tests (in which all examinees take the same test under reasonably equal conditions), with the expectation that standardization affords all examinees a fair and equal opportunity to pass.[6] Some high-stakes tests are non-standardized, such as a theater audition.


The "clear line" between passing and failing on an exam may be achieved through use of a cut score: for example, test takers correctly answering 75% or more of the questions pass the test; test takers correctly answering 74% or fewer fail, or don't "make the cut". In large-scale high-stakes testing, rigorous and expensive standard setting studies may be employed to determine the ideal cut score or to keep the test results consistent between groups taking the test at different times.


High-stakes tests, despite their extensive usage for determination of academic and non-academic proficiency, are subject to criticism for various reasons. Example concerns include the following:

  • High-stakes testing may encourage teachers to omit material that is not tested. "Teaching to the test" can result in a narrow curriculum and lower skills. For example, if a driving exam does not test parallel parking skills, then driving instructors may stop teaching that skill to a driving student, in favor of focusing instruction time on the material that will be tested, such as determining which vehicle has the right of way at a four-way stop. The result is that the student will be able to pass the test, but may be unable to park a car safely in some places. According to Campbell's law, the higher the stakes are (for the test taker or for the school), the more likely this is to happen.
  • Testing causes stress for some students. Critics suggest that since some people perform poorly under the pressure associated with tests, any test is likely to be less representative of their actual standard of achievement than a non-test alternative.[14] This is called test anxiety or performance anxiety.
  • High-stakes tests are often given as a single long exam. Some critics prefer continuous assessment instead of one larger test. For example, the American Psychological Association (APA) opposes using a one-time high school exit examination as the single determinant of whether a student should graduate, saying, "Any decision about a student's continued education, such as retention, tracking, or graduation, should not be based on the results of a single test, but should include other relevant and valid information."[15] Since the stakes are related to consequences, not method, however, short tests can also be high-stakes.
  • Tests can penalize test takers that do not have the necessary skills through no fault of their own. An absence of skill may not be the test taker's fault, but high-stakes test measure only skill proficiency, regardless of whether the test takers had an equal opportunity to learn the material.[19][20][21] Additionally, wealthy students may use private tutoring or test preparation programs to improve their scores. Some affluent parents pay thousands of dollars to prepare their children for tests.[22] Critics see this as being unfair to students who cannot afford additional educational services.[23]
  • High-stakes tests reveal that some examinees do not know the required material, or do not have the necessary skills. While failing these people may have many public benefits, the consequences of repeated failure can be very high for the individual. For example, a person who fails a practical driving exam will not be able to drive a car legally, which means they cannot drive to work and may lose their job if alternative transportation options are not available. The person may suffer social embarrassment when his acquaintances discover that his lack of skill resulted in loss of his driver's license. In the context of high school exit exams, poorly performing school districts have formally opposed high-stakes testing after low test results, which accurately and publicly exposed the districts' failures, proved to be politically embarrassing,[24] and criticized high-stakes tests for identifying students who lack the required knowledge.[25] As high-stakes testing moves into the 21st century, many exams are performed using online tools. This puts low income students at a disadvantage as less than 65% have computers in their household. Low-income school districts do not have the funding to provide students with the tools and training to perform the tasks required for the test. Tests may given mid-year to provide for the lack of technology services at the school[26]
  • High-stakes testing starts too young for children. The tests often start as young as third grade, and sometimes even earlier. High-stakes testing make children responsible for knowing or not knowing information, in order to be promoted, and if they do not know the information they are punished by being retained or summer school.[27]


  3. ^ National Council on Measurement in Education http://www.ncme.org/ncme/NCME/Resource_Center/Glossary/NCME/Resource_Center/Glossary1.aspx?hkey=4bb87415-44dc-4088-9ed9-e8515326a061#anchorH
  9. ^ Mari Pearlman (April 4, 2001). "High-stakes Testing: Perils & Opportunities". Archived from the original on 2009-09-25. Retrieved July 23, 2009. 
  13. ^ Greene, Jay P., Marcus A. Winters, Greg Forster (February 2003). "Testing High Stakes Tests: Can We Believe the Results of Accountability Tests?". Civic Report. Manhattan Institute for Policy Research. 
  14. ^ Zuriff GE (1997). "Accommodations for test anxiety under ADA?". J. Am. Acad. Psychiatry Law. 25 (2): 197–206. PMID 9213292. 
  16. ^ a b Jacob, Brian A. and Steven D. Levitt (Winter 2004). "To Catch a Cheat" (PDF). Education Next. 
  18. ^ Lewis, Anne (April 2000). "High-stakes testing: Trends and issues" (PDF). Mid-Continent Research for Education and Learning. 
  19. ^ a b Togut, Torin D. "High-Stakes Testing: Educational Barometer for Success, or False Prognosticator for Failure". 
  20. ^ Myers, David (2001). Psychology. New York: Worth Publishers. p. 464. ISBN 1-57259-791-7. Why blame the tests for exposing unequal experiences and opportunities? 
  22. ^ "Tackling the SAT? Test-prep help abounds". Christian Science Monitor. 90 (175). Associated Press. August 4, 1998. pp. B3. ISSN 0882-7729. Retrieved 2007-07-09. Some parents spend thousands of dollars for private sessions... 
  23. ^ Johnson, Dale, Bonnie Johnson, Stephen J. Farenga, & Daniel Ness. (2008). Stop High-Stakes Testing: An Appeal to America's Conscience. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield.
  26. ^ http://www.census.gov/history/pdf/2013computeruse.pdf
  27. ^ Kozol, Jonathan (2005). The Shame of the Nation. New York: Crown Publishers. p. 53. ISBN 978-1-4000-5245-5. 

Further reading[edit]