Summative assessments fan have an overall negative impact on student self-esteem, resulting from the perception of inferiority that standardized tests can give test-takers. Students who perform poorly on standardized tests were found to suffer from lower self-esteem in situations where these same students had not previously exhibited signs of self-esteem problems, says Ann K. Boggiano in "Achievement and Motivation: A Social-Developmental Perspective." Even students who perform average or well on standardized tests can suffer from the failure to meet their own higher expectations. The result can be a reduction in educational motivation.
Teachers are often criticized for the process of teaching to the test, which is the teaching method that focuses on the specific areas that students will be tested on, often at the expense of other material. This method of education can narrow a student's exposure to important information and can produce gaps in a student's education in areas that are not specifically tested on.
For example, literature and fine arts are less emphasized because the specific information from these subjects is not assessed on standardized tests, where as subjects like algebra receive far more academic time and attention.
Students can face anxiety in preparation for a test, an anxiety that grows as the perception of the test's significance grows. Summative tests advise schools to commit to prolonged pretesting procedures and preparation classes, which can increase student anxiety.
In addition, some students simply do not test well, and the result is a testing procedure that fails to adequately assess the real talents of individual students, while a formative assessment would allow a teacher to evaluate these conditions and better assess a student's ability.
Summative assessments can promote an extrinsic motivation towards education and test-taking, where students are motivated by an actual reward, such as a free period if they succeed on the test or promises of later academic success. Extrinsic motivations do not support a positive educational environment after the test, whereas intrinsic motivation would teach students to motivate themselves through internal positive reinforcement.