Measuring, Assessing, and Testing Children

I do NOT believe in measuring, assessing, or testing children. Especially for the purposes of school standards and "classroom management".  Tests become necessary when systems (particularly schooling) are put into place that group, label, and box people. Without those systems the want for and abundance of testing would diminish and eventually dissipate.

As for academic testing- what is or isn't in your mind is private. Don't measure and judge what's in my head. Kids have a right to privacy of their own minds.

That being said...

Howard Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences is fascinating. I would recommend reading about them, not for the purposes of testing children, but to get an understanding of how complex and beautifully multi-faceted humans are. The eight intelligences are: musical-rhythmic, visual-spatial, verbal-linguistic, logical-mathematical, bodily-kinesthetic, interpersonal, intrapersonal, and naturalistic.
 I would also like to strongly point out that Gardner opposes the idea of labeling learners according to these intelligences. He believes everyone possesses an individual and unique blend, and one should feel empowered not boxed in.

Furthermore...

Emotional Intelligence. More informally known as EMPATHY. We are all born with it, let's nurture it.
Raising An Emotionally Intelligent Child:The Heart of Parenting 
written by Ph.D. John Gottman , Joan Declaire , and Daniel Goleman




For the purposes of the rest of this assignment....
Test scores are higher in other countries (Sweden and Finland for example) which have less testing. The US has the highest instance of testing, and the scores are lower. Furthermore, the US tests now to measure whether certain schools, curriculums, and teachers should continue getting funded. Other countries measure to test the kids' knowledge, solely.