What is 'standard' anyway? Some kids are better academically and some are better mechanically. And some are free spirits that look at the world differently than that! Same with adults! My mother-in-law used to say that she was terrible at math. She had a full life without 'being good at math'. There are so many aspects to math anyway. My daughter (now 27) was TERRIBLE at spelling. She was a good reader (turns out they're not really related). She's very good at what she does (horse care and production) and is an excellent cook and baker. I'm gonna guess she would do terrible on a standardized test. What does that say about her? Hmmmm. BTW, she loves spell-check (wink) and she's better at spelling now.
I 'get' why someone would want to use 'standardized tests' to put people side-by-side to see if they may thrive in an academic environment. I gotta say, I know people who have oodles of degrees from colleges and universities and they feel they are incompetent to do some basic household things (like fixing a plugged drain under a sink). I have a good friend with 2 Masters Degrees and I tease her when we're doing something basic she doesn't get yet. 'How many Masters do you have again?' We both laugh. Yes - she has a lot of formal education. She regrets (some of the time anyway) the time and money she put into that education rather than learning 'real world skills' like plumbing and general home stuff.
If I were ever stranded on a desert island, I'd want someone who could figure things out - not caring how they learned it or if they could pass a 'standardized test'. But that's me. And I doubt pretty much that I would ever be stranded on a desert island anyway.
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