A False Accountability Narrative: The Human Rights Implications of Developed Nations Over-Testing Youth in Education

Standardized testing is a human rights issue that continues to plague the educational systems in developed nations. Within countries like the United States and the United Kingdom, vexatious accountability measures, such as those provided by standardized testing, have polarized the educational arena, leaving in its wake a litany of human rights concerns. This culmination of over-testing and outcome-only driven education equates to an end game where employment and dollar signs erode the very fabric of human rights for children. In this paper, we hope to inspire understanding of the issues of contention happening in developed nations today regarding standardized testing issues, and we will make recommendations that may help these nations move from the statistical to the enlightened view of growing responsible and civic-minded citizens into the twenty-first century.