For the past week, all underclassmen and juniors came to school at 7:45 for CAASPP testing, whether practice and not. This new schedule is due to the low test scores from last year’s juniors—this year’s seniors. In contrast to the importance placed on it, CAASPP testing should not be used to evaluate a student’s academic prowess. The only factors it plays in students’ lives are as a stressor and to add to their boredom at school.

The CAASPP poses unique challenges for students. The greatest fallacy of the CAASPP is that there is no reason for students to want to perform well. Results of the test have little to no perceived effect on a student’s academic record, college admission or career opportunities. Even if this is not true in reality, because who knows what the results are used for, students are just not motivated to do their best. 

It is also unfair to expect students who have not taken courses in the subject field being tested to do well on course-specific content. This is most relevant for the CAST test (California’s standardized science test). Course sequencing throughout the state is widely varied, so not all juniors have taken all of the classes included in the test: earth science, biology, chemistry and physics. This is especially true for Hart students in AP classes, who tend to focus on either life or physical science, not both.

To improve their effectiveness, state-run standardized tests should be administered every year in high school to ensure continuity, not just once. The standards covered on these tests should be clearly communicated to teachers and school administrators so course sequences can be designed to meet these standards. In addition, state exams should be more evidently linked to college admission and standing in state-run public schools to further incentivize student performance. 

Let’s face it—the current exams lack proper incentives for students to perform well, are too dependent on a single course sequence and disadvantage students with different interests and academic backgrounds. In addition to addressing content issues, the state of California should administer exams for all grades annually and allow students to better use these exam scores when applying to universities. This will ensure an accurate assessment of students’ educational needs and improve the effectiveness of the exams that are universally hated.