IntroThe purpose of standardized tests is to help teachers teach students the basics of what they need to know to get ahead in school. These tests are standard for core classes at any level, but differ from state to state. For Virginia it is the SOLs (Learning Standards), in Arizona it is the AIMS (the Arizona Measurement Instrument), although the name differs because its focus is the even in all states. These tests aim to measure what students have learned throughout the year. To help improve the results of these tests, the No Child Left Behind Act was created in 2001. The bill accomplishes this by making states and schools more accountable for student progress. It improves the educational results of the disadvantaged; improving core programs run by local educational agencies, and much more. Unfortunately, educational tests like SOLs and other standardized tests do not offer much improvement in academic performance. Math tests do not improve academic performance. Urban schools are not making significant progress in mathematics achievement. Significant Progress in Math Scores Over the Past Two Years” Hechinger, Wall Street Journal, December 2009. Although exit exams contribute the least to improving math test scores, “exit exams are those who improve reading or math test scores the least or those who are already high. reaching students" Hechinger, Wall Street Journal, December 2009. Moreover, while America's eighth-graders already perform lower in math than students in five other schools, "the results of a report published by Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) reveal that eighth graders in the United States performed lower in mathematics than students in five other countries, including...... middle of article... ...N&ic=YShriberg, D., & Shriberg, AB (Eds.). (2006, fall). high-stakes testing and dropout rates. Dissent, 53(4). Retrieved from http://sks.sirs.com/cgi-bin/hst-article-display?id=SVC00091-0-3436&artno=0000269881&type=ARTStandardized tests: Who owns the standard? (1995, March 1). Contemporary women's problems. Retrieved from http://elibrary.bigchalk.com/elibweb/elib/do/document?set=search&dictionaryClick=&secondaryNav=&groupid=1&requestid=lib_standard&resultid=1&edition=&ts=793C892686A3D30491965AC8AAA269E1_1267206624279&start=1&public ationId =&urn=urn%3Abigchalk%3AUS%3BBCLib %3Bdocument%3B125093447Warren, JR and Grodsky, E. (eds.). (2009, May). Exit exams harm students who fail them and do not benefit students who pass them. Phi Delta Kappan, 90(9). Retrieved from http://sks.sirs.com/cgi-bin/hst-article-display?id=SVA1628-0-5416&artno=0000294152&type=ART