Michelle Gunderson hates standardized tests. The Chicago elementary school teacher thinks they steal “precious instructional time” and drive a wedge between her and her students.

When Gunderson is forced to administer one of the exams herself, “it is so different from my day-to-day interactions with children that I prepare them for it. I tell them that I have to speak the exact words in the book, and that it won’t sound like me. So in a sense, I hate that this test comes between me and the relationships I have with my students.”

Educators in Seattle have voiced similar objections. In January, teachers at Garfield High School announced they would no longer proctor the MAP test, a standardized exam they regard as flawed and detrimental to student learning, and whose implementation was marred by conflict-of-interest concerns.