"Standardized tests try to package the assessment of a wide range of fundamental skills into a relatively contained, standardized format so that skills are evaluated relative to some clear standard"
Ultimately, what is the point, though? Almost every day there are articles about hiring on Hacker News. Not once have I read the advice to look at the results of the applicant in the standardized school tests. If the test results are not relevant in the real world, why cripple education by aligning it with the necessity to do such standardized tests.
I think at least for HN affine companies, "I have build a robot" would be a much better selling point than "I have high marks on the standard test". Intuitively somebody having too high marks might even raise my suspicions (little creativity and drive, just does what he is told without questioning it etc.). Which is of course unfair, some people are simply good. But it is an emotion that arises.
Standardized tests serve a number of roles in public education, very few of which relate to either enhancing or testing a student's ability to get a job.
The main applications relate to checking in on students' progress through the education system relative to their peers. It is also a way to compare the performance of particular groups of students (or schools) relative to others, which is very controversial, but obviously easier than trying to judge the quality of the robots they produce.
By far the greatest advantage of standardized tests over other assessment methods is that they scale beautifully. When you want to ask the question "how are we as a country/state/district doing compared to others", standardized tests provide a reasonably easy-to-interpret, reliable reference point. It's not just about what a test score says about an individual student (which ultimately is very little), but what the test scores indicate in aggregate.
Ultimately, what is the point, though? Almost every day there are articles about hiring on Hacker News. Not once have I read the advice to look at the results of the applicant in the standardized school tests. If the test results are not relevant in the real world, why cripple education by aligning it with the necessity to do such standardized tests.
I think at least for HN affine companies, "I have build a robot" would be a much better selling point than "I have high marks on the standard test". Intuitively somebody having too high marks might even raise my suspicions (little creativity and drive, just does what he is told without questioning it etc.). Which is of course unfair, some people are simply good. But it is an emotion that arises.