Let me be honest: I am ambivalent about high stakes testing in education. I understand the reasons they have become a popular and required part of the education process. I understand that they serve as a check on what students are or are not learning, and I have no better alternative if we as a society are to require some objective standards for accountability in our schools, colleges, and universities. But yet I am ambivalent. Something about these tests bothers me, though I usually cannot tell you just what that may be. However, give me a specific case, and I know what can go wrong with them.
