The construction of ‘illiterate’ and ‘literate’ youth: the effects of high-stakes
standardized literacy testing
Laura-Lee Kearns
Abstract
High-stakes standardized literacy testing is not neutral and continues to build upon the
legacy of dominant power relations in the state in its ability to sort, select and rank
students and ultimately produce and name some youth as illiterate in contrast to an
ideal white, male, literate citizen. I trace the effects of high-stakes standardized testing
by using the voices of 16 youth who failed the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test
(OSSLT) to illustrate how the ‘illiterate youth’ revealed to students, schools, and
communities by this test is culturally and socially constructed. In an age where multiple
literacies are more and more valued, standardized literacy testing acts as a form of
social control projected upon the ‘adolescent’ body that has historically been deemed
‘other’ or ‘deficient.’ Just as colonized subjects needed to be ‘civilized,’ so youth now
need to acquire a state defined literacy in a competitive and fast paced learning
environment. This article helps to demonstrate how power operates on marginalized
youth through standardized literacy testing that is being used transnationally.
My Reaction
Being literate means a person able to read and write, failing in a standardized test is
not a basis to tagged a student as illiterate but rather it can be a tool to sort, select and
rank students. Mainly the purpose of standardized testing is for admission and
placement of students. Admission: Inform decisions about which people should be
selected for entrance to an educational institution. In admission tests (also referred to as
'entry tests') is a way to help universities distinguish the top applicants, particularly for
competitive courses. However, there are still some that they take into consideration in
admitting students and one of these is their personal statement but definitely not to
tagged a student as literate or illiterate. Placement: determine which courses or level of
a course a student should take. A placement test is a test given by a school to
determine the academic or skill level of a student, especially a new student, in order to
place them in the correct class. Students are required to take placement tests before
registering, therefore I do not agree with the article, probably the one who wrote this
article felt that way but that is not how standardized testing worked as I have stated
above and that is based on what I learned and researched.