The "fallacy" of standardized testing [discussion]

[Taualumna]

I don't think standardized tests are "ethnically biased". How can they be? 1+1 is always going to be 2. In terms of reading/writing skills, I can only think of two reasons why they can even be close to being "ethnically biased:

1. Immigrant and first generation students (especially very young kids) may have weak English skills

2. Exposure. Sometimes, tests use words and ideas that some kids might not be familiar with (e.g. wheat fields. There was a test question given to Grade 3 students in an Ontario-wide test a few years ago where the story they read had something to do with wheatfields (or maybe it was corn). Apparently kids from rural areas up north have never seen one, so they found it difficult to answer the question. Schools up there don't have as many books and equipment as schools in south, and therefore the kids aren't exposed to things like that)

Tests questions shouldn't be written to cater to all groups. Adults, however, should try to expose children to as many topics as possible.