Are standardized tests improving education in America? Do our schools effectively teach children to write?

While standardized tests have been a staple of  public education since the mid-1800s, their use skyrocketed – and they became increasingly controversial – after 2002′s No Child Left Behind Act mandated annual testing in all 50 states.

Do you think the increase in testing has helped or hurt our schools? Should teachers spend less time testing and more time reading and writing? What can parents do to help their children prepare?

Speak up and share your opinion at 11:30 a.m. this Wednesday during a Macomb Daily parenting chat about the pros and cons of standardized testing, called “Standardized Tests: Prepping kids for the future, or freaking them out?”

Join hosts, Maryanne Kocis MacLeod, Macomb Daily health and lifestyle writer Teresa Sandner, parenting education specialist for CARE, as they discuss the pros and cons with special guest Kim Lifton of Wow Writing Workshop at www.macombdaily.com. Can’t join in live? Transcripts remain available online, search term: “parenting chat.”

And let us know what you think by adding a comment below.