The Problem with Testing
Let me make one thing clear: testing itself is not bad. Tests and assignments are ways of gauging an individual’s progress towards achieving their learning goals, however, the improper use of testing to evaluate one’s worth which is hurting the newest generation of students. According to Michael Mulligan “We have raised a generation that is plagued with insecurity, anxiety and despair.”1 Much of this anxiety and despair can be attributed to the societal pressure to attend one of the Ivies, like Stanford, which now accepts only 5% of applicants. With so many qualified applicants, a more quantitative, algorithmic approach is used to accept candidates for review; without near perfect scores, one is rejected. Because of this, testing has changed from a measure of a student’s progress to a measure of a student’s worth, meaning that learning becomes secondary.
There is a significant amount of pressure on schools to focus on teaching students how to take tests, and to achieve perfection in all areas of their academic life. What parent wants to send their student to a school that doesn’t have high acceptance rates from the best colleges? Sarah Blaine, a mother, former teacher and full-time practicing attorney, writes: “The fact that test prep works is what scares me as a public school parent, because as a parent I know that my child’s standardized test scores tell me virtually nothing about whether she’s actually mastered the academic skills she needs for a successful future.”2
So where does all this testing end? While removing tests completely from the equation seems tempting, it’s not the answer. Tests are a very good tool for providing feedback. The way we think about testing, and the emphasis we place on perfection needs to change though. Everyone learns at their own pace and has different aptitudes, meaning a more personalized approach could be more fitting.
