In the United States, standards-based education as well as standardized testing as
we know it has existed for about 30 years, with the intent to make teachers, schools, and
school systems more accountable for student learning, to set meaningful standards to
which students, teachers, and schools can aspire, and to be used as feedback to shape
instruction in our classrooms. (Herman & Golan, 1993) Educational reform in our
country has tended to focus on a "one size fits all" approach to address educational
inequity issues, allowing for a more level playing field in our extremely diverse and
broad educational system. This is accomplished primarily through universalized core
standards and curriculum that emphasize students' cognitive growth in core areas like
math and science. (Townsend) Student performance on standardized tests based off these
standards and curriculum, which are meant to be effective measurements of academic
performance and indicative of teacher performance, has become a key objective for our
school systems. However, the validity and value of standardized testing seen today are
the subjects of increasing debate. (Herman & Golan) Studies suggest these tests are
putting unnecessary pressure on teachers and students and may not be truly effective in
motivating students to perform better and indicating improvement in learning. The
bottom line is that our current educational system isn't working. We as a country are
witnessing our educational system fall behind those of other countries. What we need is
our government and our schools and teachers to work to better educate and prepare
students to compete on a global stage. However, the solution isn't marked improvement
on standardized test scores. Instead, experts agree that it is time for a redefinition of the
ultimate purpose of education, an end to the high stakes testing movement, and
investment in a new approach that will help students grow in a variety of ways, in a way
that promotes differentiated instruction for a diverse group of learners rather than overuniversalized
curriculum and support for underachieving students. (Townsend) I believe
that investment in elective courses such as music education and further incorporation of
music in the classroom can be a part of the solution as well. Studies have shown the many
potential benefits music education and the use of music in the classroom can have for
students, and I believe music has the potential to fix some of the problems existent in our
current education system. 

Standards based education and standardized testing, as we know it, have existed
in our educational system for around 30 years. According to literature, "a driving force
for standards-based educational reform was the 1983 release of A Nation at Risk: The
Imperative for Educational Reform (National Commission of Excellence in Education
[NCEE], 1983)." This report called for the beginning of a high stakes testing movement
with the intent to drastically raise our nation's standard of achievement. This report was
published in accordance with the mounting beliefs that our educational system was in
need of drastic reform to improve student and school performance and that teachers were
unqualified to educate students appropriately on their own. Literature on the subject
concludes, "these forces combined to spur the development of educational standards,
tests, and assessment policies by state educational bodies. (Amrein & Berliner, 2003;
Perreault, 2000)" (Moon et al.) As the high stakes testing movement gained steam,
standardized tests increasingly became, "a tool for reform through their use as a measure
of the quality of the education system, and as the foundation for curriculum and
instructional practices. (Louis, Febey & Schroeder, 2005)" (Moon et al.) Since 2002,
standardized tests have taken on an even greater role in our educational system with the
introduction of federal mandates such as No Child Left Behind, requiring schools to give
annual tests and publically report the results. (Toppo, 2013) Still today, standards-based
education and high stakes standardized tests exist as a fundamental part of our national
education policy. However, although proponents of high stakes testing today believe it
motivates students to study, learn, and achieve more, studies and reports have raised
questions about the effectiveness of these tests and point out many problems associated
with the United States' current system based on high stakes, standards based education
and testing. 

Studies have shown that what is known as "high stakes testing" seen in our
current education system can have a variety of negative impacts on students and teachers
alike. This term was coined by George Madaus to refer to, "testing which promotes
pressure and behavior change by associating test results with important consequences".
(Herman & Golan, 1993) It is well documented that school administration officials and
others use standardized test scores to evaluate schools, teachers, and educational
programs as well as students. These scores are commonly used to make a variety of
decisions that directly impact students and teachers, such as allotment of funding for
programs and promotions. (Herman & Golan, 1993) The findings of several studies
indicated that the termed "accountability pressure" associated with high stakes testing felt
by teachers resulted in more drill and practice type of curriculum and instruction, with
emphasis put on getting through the allotted material and getting students best prepared
for standardized tests. (Herman & Golan, Moon et al) In a study investigating the impact
of standardized testing on teacher instruction, researchers found that at each grade level
studied, the majority of teachers sampled reported that, "state testing programs caused
them to teach in a manner which did not accord with their own view of what constitutes
good educational practice." In other words, teachers today are being told they can't teach
the way they feel is best, they must get through the allotted material and focus on getting
their students best prepared for examinations. When the results of such examinations
were used to evaluate their performance and directly linked to rewards or sanctions, one
study found a narrowing of curriculum and instruction resulted. (Herman & Golan) In a
different study, researchers noting this phenomenon concluded, "The greater the
consequences attached to the test, the more likely it would be to have an impact [on
teaching]. (Romberg et al., 1989)" (Herman & Golan) However, despite the many
potential adverse effects associated with high stakes testing and accountability pressure,
the Obama administration has actually upped the importance of the results of such tests in
recent years by rewarding school systems which tie student test scores to teacher
evaluations. (Toppo, 2013) High stakes testing and the resulting accountability pressure
can have an impact on students, as well. One study found that although accountability
pressure was found to affect students as a whole, the pressure had a greater impact on
students in disadvantaged schools, and the pressure felt by gifted and talented students to
perform on these tests had the potential to disengage them from the learning process.
(Moon et al., 2007) Research on the adverse effects of accountability pressure also
suggests that it may have an impact of teachers' sense of professionalism and pride in
work, with one study finding a negative relationship between teachers' sense of
professionalism and the pressure they feel to improve test scores. (Fish, 1988) The study
also noted a relationship between teachers' sense of professionalism and engagement in
questionable test preparation or testing associated activities. (Herman & Golan) In a
different study, researchers found that teachers were commonly frustrated by the notion
that that what they did in the classroom had to be dictated by what needed to be covered
for testing purposes and felt as though they were simply preparing students to perform on
evaluations. (Herman & Golan) The perception of many teachers is that high stakes
testing seen today compromises their effectiveness in the classroom as well as their sense
of professionalism. Many teachers also argue that these tests many not be truly indicative
of their own ability as teachers and don't accurately reflect on their students' learning
advancement and cognitive growth. This is an understandable concern, considering the
ever-growing importance of such tests with regard to how teachers, schools, and students
are evaluated based on test scores. Often teachers who experience the consequences of
testing firsthand are most opposed to it. (Jones et al., 2003) In addition to the
aforementioned negative impacts resulting from the pressures and limitations associated
with high stakes standards-based curriculum and testing, there is also the question of the
validity and meaningfulness of these tests and whether or not standards-based testing is a
reliable measure of students' improvement in learning and teacher ability. 

Standardized tests in general must be valid, reliable, and meaningful, and in an
educational system like ours where they are so heavily relied on this is of the upmost
importance. However, according to one report on the impact of standardized testing, the
viewpoint of teachers regarding the validity of standardized testing ranged from concern
to distrust, with findings from Dorr-Bremme et al. (1983) which, "indicated that teachers
were concerned about the utility of mandated tests, their appropriateness for some
students, and the impact of testing on instructional time and student self- confidence.
Similarly Smith et al. (1989) reported that teachers were pessimistic about what scores
reveal. Less than one-fifth of the teachers interviewed felt that results from the mandated,
standardized test used in their schools accurately reflected their students' learning for the
year." (Herman & Golan) Researchers have also identified other potential factors which
can result in distortion of test scores and evaluations, such as questionable test
preparation practices, accountability pressure previously discussed, and repeated use of
the same forms, which can contribute to problems such as score inflation. (Herman &
Golan) One report noted the interesting findings of a study, which indicated, "Increases
in test scores appear to be temporary and artificial, suggesting that students on the
receiving end of teaching to the test do not acquire general knowledge about a discipline,
but rather knowledge that is specific to a particular test (Klein et al., 2000)" (Moon et al.)
The combined results of these studies raise concerns that standardized test scores may
reflect teaching to the test rather than overall student learning and suggest teachers feel
these tests aren't accurate indicators of overall learning. 

It is clear that standards based education and accompanying standardized testing
has resulted in a whole host of problems for our educational system. For better or worse,
educational standards, high stakes tests, and assessment policies have become an integral
part of how we hold teachers and students accountable for their work and determine
student achievement and quality of education. In a time when educational reform is
needed more than ever, the question is how can we rebuild and fix the current education
system. Experts, like former IBM CEO and published author on the subject Louis
Gerstner, concur that putting high academic standards in place as well as a sensible
curriculum that allows students to meet them is essential in driving students to succeed
and perform better. A new system also needs to be put in place that will effectively
measure whether students are meeting these standards, with one suggested approach
being broad-based assessments involving multiple measures of what a student has learned
based on teacher evaluations, teacher-made tests, student demonstrations, and so on in
place of high stakes testing. (Merrow, 2001) Better teachers in our schools and simply
more on task time devoted to meeting these standards are fundamental changes that
would help close the achievement gap. (Businessweek, 2011) Finally, support for
underachieving students and investment in extracurricular programs that can help
students develop skills that can transfer to their academic, social, family, and professional
life also are important. (Townsend) I believe music education and use of music in the
classroom can be a part of this solution. As noted by Shields (2001), "It is commonly
accepted and documented by research results that the arts provide an effective framework
and appropriate curricular point of departure for reaching the at-risk student (Acer, 1987;
Taylor, Barry, & Wall, 1997; Thompson, 1995; Trusty and Olivia, 1994). Researchers in
an early study reported... teachers also mentioned the importance of performance,
feelings of success and satisfaction, self-esteem, and self-confidence that spring from
participation in the arts, creative and expressive activities, and keen interest in the subject
matter of the arts as key for at risk students (Center for Music Research, 1990). (Shields,
2001) One report highlighting the consequences of curtailing music education points to
the ability of music programs to motivate students, the development of social skills
associated with collaborative efforts such as performances, and potential for increased
cultural identification resulting from awareness culturally embedded music traditions.
(Catterall, 2013) Playing certain types of music in the classroom is another potential way
music can be a part of the solution. Studies show that teachers can use background music
to help students get in an engaged learning state, have a more positive attitude, and
relieve anxiety prior to examinations, among other things. (Thaut, 1993; Haynes, 2003;
Brewer, 2009) Results of a study in which the amount of time 5th graders spent on task
was recorded with the use of background music and without "indicated that the use of
easy listening background music was effective in increasing the on task performance of
students... it would seem that providing easy-listening background music in the
classroom would be a plausible, yet inexpensive technique for increasing the amount of
time in which students are actively engaged in learning." Another found an observed 2/3
reduction of off task behavior over a nine-week period with the implementation of
background music in a classroom (N. Schofield, 2003). Results obtained by literature
regarding music education and the use of music in the classroom suggests music has the
potential to address some of the current problems in our schools. Especially in early
education and disadvantaged schools, I believe music education can result in students'
cognitive and non-cognitive growth and can motivate them to succeed in a way that
fosters positive attitudes and creativity.
