View a standardized test taken by millions of students in the United States each year that directly impacts teaching methods, school budgets, and grade promotion. Currently, millions of schools use high-stakes testing to determine these major factors. The United States expects students to perform well on standardized tests or school districts will suffer financial consequences under the No Child Left Behind Act (Au 502). This puts pressure on everyone from administrators to students in a school district. Schools around the world are pressured to pass these standardized tests when they measure only a fraction of a student's intelligence. Standardized testing must be discontinued because it negatively impacts school curricula, the mindsets of students and teachers, and the fairness of testing for all students. National standardized testing is a requirement of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) that promises parents that: it will teach more effectively, students will be motivated, and school systems will function more productively (Nicolas 42). All of these promises are said to lead to better education for students, especially those raised within minority groups (Nicolas 45). The main purpose of standardized tests is to evaluate students and show whether or not the standards of the standardized test have been met in the school. However, the risks of these tests outweigh the benefits. A standardized test is not the only test that determines a student's intelligence level. Standardized testing puts pressure on teachers to educate a diverse group of students, all of different academic levels. When students perform poorly on standardized tests, school districts are forced to miss out on federal education for…half of a paper test…that doesn't even measure a student's full intelligence. School districts that are afforded minimal test prep cannot expect their students to successfully perform at the same rate as students in another school district who can afford a plethora of test prep. So, these poor school districts suffer at the hands of state education officials. Standardized testing causes schools to focus more of their instructional time on the test instead of focusing their teaching on the other skills students need to succeed in life. This test preparation also eliminates any possibility of students being able to broaden their horizons with other supplemental education since test preparation commonly involves memorizing the same facts or knowledge. Standardized testing is an abomination to the intelligence of students, the creativity of teachers, and the productivity of school districts.