Why Tests and Exams Fail Students, and Why Education Needs to React

[Shawn777]

With the current orientation of exams in schools, an accurate analysis of students’ excellence cannot be produced. Examinations are a test of memory and do not require the use of imagination or creativity which are also important markers of development. The pressures of examinations make children nervous, depressed and neurotic; and examinations only encourage competition and unhealthy rivalry among peers.

When someone is trying to remember something, most often they need some form of external aid to do so. They try to find an old picture of that particular person, or seek a book about that particular topic or something. Whatever method they use, it’s always a reaching out for something to aid in remembering what’s inside. This can’t be good. Why? What if there’s no particular thing around to help them remember? Yes some children can develop their memory recalling abilities to pass exams but not all children learn like that!

Take a boxer in the ring for example. He gets a huge hit and he’s down. The boxer will have to draw strength from within him if he wants to get back up. Prior to any tournament, the coach could’ve handed the boxer a book on how to fight, or give a lecture on what to do and when to do it but a greater emphasis is placed on the PRACTICAL progress that a boxer makes during training; because at the end of the day when a tournament comes, the strength has to be drawn from within the individual for any kind of success to manifest. Not lectures or books he may have read.

Undoubtedly those play a role but I believe the practical aspect is more effective. Everyone cannot learn one way, it is detrimental to teach an individual that THIS IS THE WAY TO DO IT, and all other methods are wrong. An artist that paints doesn’t follow a narrow thinking pattern because most artistic people are right brain thinkers whose mind is all over the place. So we need to take into account the fact that not everyone thinks in a straight line. Some of us take curves to reach our destination. Instead of scolding a child for not following a particular method expected, we can think about the possibility that probably this child doesn’t learn this way. That’s the first step, accepting that not all the time exams(or whatever it may be for that matter) work; after we do that we can explore the child’s personality a bit more and see what way of learning might be more compatible to the child and everyone is not only happier but smarter in the end.

Another important factor that has been observed by many in high professions regarding sociology, education and schooling is unnecessary pressure. We all know pressure makes diamonds and that’s a good thing right? Well is it a good thing when pressure is making your children nervous? Or depressed? I’m sure none of us like the sad, depressing look on our kids face when they are locked in their room for hours studying for a science exam or something of that sort. We know that their hard work will inevitably bring success but I like to wish that my child could do his hard work with a little less pressure carrying on his shoulder and a little more smile radiating on his face.

I mean, it’s not possible that ALL that pressure is necessary, now come on. Think about this for a minute; when children become enrolled in high schools in Jamaica, the ultimate exams these students anticipate is what is called CXC (Caribbean Examination Council) or CSEC (Caribbean Secondary Examination Council). The CXC syllabus allots 5 years for children to study the subjects of their choice. The minimum subjects recommended is 5 and we know how ambitious our children is nowadays; these kids are doing 8-12 subjects or more based on recent statistics of high schools throughout the Caribbean. A subject for example, like Physics which is so in depth and detailed requires huge amount of concentration, especially with other subjects beside it being studied.

So five years to study 5-10 subjects and then at the end , entering a examination room to remember everything studied in a maximum three hours! That’s the usual time given to students sitting their exams in the Caribbean. Does that sound fair to you? Does that sound fair to your children, to have them study for 5 years, multiple subjects, areas that may even go into great depth, whilst combating extreme pressure radiated from different channels of expectations? That’s A LOT to handle! I really don’t care if one child or another had been through it and succeeded so you’re gonna say it’s possible or its okay. Well just because something is possible doesn’t mean it should happen. Students should be able to learn just as efficiently without so much pressure. It doesn’t hurt to try something new now and then. After all, the children of today are not like the children of yesterday. Change is the only true constant, maybe we should learn to be consistent with it.

Lastly, I will take the chance of assuming that we all know how competitive the atmosphere of examinations is. One might say that competition can be a means of extracting excellence from one another. True, I can’t argue with that. What I will argue with is the fact that the competitiveness of examinations is inducing unhealthy rivalry between our students—between our children! Kids who were friends before have become separated or enemies even because he or she may have a lower grade or he or she may have a higher grade.

This competitiveness that examinations give birth to not only stirs excellence, it stirs up the self esteem of students. Emotions get involved and one child may think he or she is better or lesser than the other and this is not a healthy mental impression. This is creating status, caste; or to sweeten the tea even more, hierarchies in classes. I don’t know if you are agreeing to everything examinations bring to the table but I certainly don’t like it.

I would never force any child to be a part of a system that he/she is not comfortable with. If your child is not doing so well with exam-oriented institutions by all means find something that’s more compatible with your child. It may not be easy, it may. However long it takes the search and effort is worth it because your child would be learning with lesser risks, more enthusiasm and faster progress. And everyone is happy.

[meowcow]

Ah, so many things to say about this take. So much of your take is regurgitation from kids on the internet who hate school, and have little real world experience.

There's a reason why the education system does not change/react to the differences in learning by each student. No education system, or teachers, can be reasonably expected to create a customized class to cater to your needs. When the average classroom is about 30 students in high school, and each block is 60 minutes, that means a teacher could spend about 2 minutes per student for their custom session. You would learn nothing in that time.

I'm pretty sure that if you were a teacher, or an education administrator and you were given the task of creating a curriculum for the kids in your city (like 200,000 children), you are 100% certain to use a standardized teaching method applied to all kids. The prospect of you creating specific teaching methods for every child, in every grade, for every course would make you shit your pants and crawl in a closet because you know it's not feasible.

If you think school is a huge life stress, it probably means you have not been challenged in life and you are weak minded. Most adults would agree that the stress they had in school is nothing compared to the types of challenges and stress experienced in adult life. If you don't learn to deal with stress and challenges in your youth, you'll be crushed under the stress of adulthood and breakdown.

Trying to get good grades and performance in school is nothing, because the consequences are minor. Your parents might yell at you or take your phone away. Big whoop. As an adult, many people have trouble finding work. They have no money to pay for food. No money = the threat of eviction and living on the sidewalk. If you can't handle school stress, I doubt you'd be able to think rationally under the stresses that adults face.

Millenials are often criticized for being weak minded, feeble and useless. This is probably why. Living a luxurious life with a silver spoon up your ass, where your biggest stress is that people are teasing you on social media, does not make a strong-willed person. The coddled lifestyle you are asking for, where school is "fun", where you're being told you can do anything you put your mind to, and that everyone is "special" is exactly why you can't handle school stress.

[EllieLexis513]

My biggest issue with this Take is that it's extremely muddled and doesn't have a lot of research behind it. I can't speak for other countries or states, but where I teach, I have to teach to each child's needs, but I'm not allowed to tell other students I'm doing it. It's completely dumb, but I have to take into consideration IEPs, learning disabilities, age, grade level, ethnicity, reading levels, and even the community they live in. I'm mandated to teach using differentiation, a teaching strategy where students learn their own way. That could mean creating a lesson plan where we do things the same in class, but you get different homework assignments per student or giving students several options of how to pass their final exam.

However, I also teach 10th grade, which is the grade that takes the graduation test in my state. I can teach kids all different types of ways, but the tests are always the same for everyone, which makes zero sense. Most students with IEPs don't have to pass the graduation exam, either. I have kids that do extremely well in my class and fail the standardized test every time they take it because it's not created with them in mind, so I get asked why my class is easy, when it isn't, I just teach to the kids like I'm supposed to instead of teaching towards a test.

It's really annoying, but it's also the reason why of the 20 other English teachers who graduated from college with me in 2012, myself and one other person are still teaching.

[mir13]

High five for fellow teachers! The IEP issue is a real sticking point for me as well. They often struggle but are put in regular classes because the school gets more funding for "integrating" students with disabilities. The other issue is putting students in the next level class even if they fail the prerequisite class. Might work with some subjects... not with math.
California did away with their high school exit exam so it is currently a real free-for-all as to who knows what by the time they graduate.

Oh yeah, only too know only one person out of my credential cohort that is still teaching. The ones I talked to couldn't handle the nonsense coming from the top.

[EllieLexis513]

@mir13 I won't be doing it for much longer. I'm making plans to open my own bakery business and writing a novel and I'm going back to college for a Master's in something else, but I'm not teaching anymore. I'm tired of not getting paid enough to do what I do and then get blamed and ridiculed for things that are 100% out of my control, like state tests, and being formally evaluated 6 or 7 times a year. I don't know any other profession besides maybe a nurse or cop who has to go through the same shit I do and I'm not taking it anymore. I love my job and my students, but not enough to be miserable the rest of my life.

[mir13]

@EllieLexis513

I cannot say I blame you. Got through 3 years so far, will see how far I can take. The conditions are terrible, and respect is gone as a whole. Wish it was different as there is so much we can accomplish if only we were allowed to do what we know works.

Best of luck in your future endeavors dear.

[19magic]

The only thing that's different from where I'm from is there was no levels in our class it was always everyone do the same thing. In one class some people could be struggling while others have already finished. Many times in high school I was waiting around doing nothing for 10 minutes, while teachers were explaining the thing they told that student three or four lessons ago. When the classes are a hour long it takes 5 mins class settle down, 15 to explain, there was generally 1/2 tasks and an extention most of the time I've finished that with 20 mins to spare. What's it like on the other end: teaching and in California and the states.

[mir13]

It feels like this Take is meandering and a bit misinformed about the teaching practices. You are young, so I understand why you have such sentiments. Allow me to shed some light from a teacher's perspective.

1) It is impossible to create a system that creates the right amount of pressure for all students. The population is a bell curve, some are in the happy median, some are at the tail ends.
2) Teachers as a whole understand very well that there are multiple ways to attack a complex problem. Where students usually trip is not the methodology but the justification portion. Reaching a correct answer is meaningless if you cannot justify the steps you took to get there. I see that often with lower end math classes: students make several errors that negate each other and reach a reasonable answer.
3) Exams are mandated by the state. We hate them too, especially since they are written by people who are often decades removed from the classroom.
4) Rivalry is not unhealthy. To quote Derek Jeter, "competition eliminates complacency."
5) The real world does not care what you are comfortable or not comfortable with. Students need to learn how to deal with difficult situations before they reach the job market.

[ManOnFire]

This was a great Take. In fact it was written better than the one I wrote about the education system hurting our youth. What you've detailed are the same complaints I've even heard some parents talk about. It's definitely true.

One of my big problems with the education system is the persistence of algebra. Despite how much the mathematicians try to tell us it's necessary, that's still Bullshit. Algebra is not needed for our every day lives or how we use math on a regular basis.

Also really love what you said: "Well just because something is possible doesn’t mean it should happen."

[awesometjgreen]

You are true but I would like to point out two things. One, kid studies in their own way regardless of what a teacher says, but it is true that teachers should recognize that. Two, I don't think change is gonna happen. Because American teachers are either unqualified already and hate their jobs or do like they're jobs but are mad about the pay and aren't going to do anything extra or different. Change is gonna start when we get better teachers and actually TEST a new idea before we implement it into the classroom instead of one year using a new curriculum and when it fails changing it leading to our kids being fucked up. At least I'm almost done with school :-) I'm tired of these dumb fucking teachers

[ProbablyTooMature]

Equating general and practical education to boxing is laughable.

Tests SHOULD test memory, otherwise you haven't learned the material.

There should also be tests that test logic and problem solving (other than in math).

Additionally, the subject matter being taught is actually EASIER these days, yet people are whining louder than ever about how hard it is?
www.huffingtonpost.com/.../...-exam_n_3744163.html

Yes the public education system needs work, but this post is cringe worthy.

[DianaWest]

so what do you suggest we do then? would you like it if your cardiologist didn't have to pass any exams before he or she got their degree? yes, i hate them too, some teachers test on irrelevant material, but they are important. how else can they know what you know? essays and papers can be worked on with others, exams, not so much. i think to alleviate stress, teachers should narrow down their focus and stop expecting students to memorize a 600 page textbook. we are not robots with central processing units. even computers break down if you cram too much into their memory. but we can't get rid of exams entirely either.

[Wade888]

The joys of University "education", where you get failed on a paper because the professor didn't know as much as you know about the subject matter, or because they have a 4 question test in a math or science class, with three of the four problems being unrealistically complicated examples which will absolutely never occur on any job site in the real world. Why does an Engineering course have a three-dimensional pulley problem which is literally ten times more complicated than a General Relativity problem, and will never, ever occur on a real-world construction site?

Yes, they are "educating". They are "preparing" you for an actual career.

Oh, wait, no they aren't. They're just justifying their funding for their own personal research, and are invincible due to the idiotic tenure system.

Even Dr. Michio Kaku said he can't stand the way Education is done in colleges today.

[Wade888]

Oh yeah, even people like myself, with "Photographic memory," cannot literally memorize every formula in Collegiate level Math and Science; That is what text books are for: Reference. In the real world, you do not need to memorize every formula you will ever use. That's why digital texts and encyclopedias exist.

Besides all that, "Photographic Memory" actually works a lot better for pictures and sounds than it does for text, in most cases.

The education system, and employers who hire based on college degrees rather than merits and virtues, literally ruined my career options by promoting BS testing methods in University, and by hiring people who can pass those tests*, but don't solve real problems in the real world.

*If you talk to these people they can't actually do the test problem either. It is my suspicion they pass by performing sexual favors for the professors.

[btbc92]

The problem is not the education or type. Its the teachers who refuses to help children based on individual needs and the higher up who's sees children as a commodity for money. That is what the board is about. When kids fail and drop out of school and attend school less, guess what? No money or less money. Schools became jail cells then a place of learning in an safe environment. The level of education is also depending on the demand of companies and top careers and colleges who is looking for perspective students and employees. But they aren't teaching them any life experiences that can help students learn the way they need to.

I am mostly a visual learner, but can adapt to other learning methods. However one teacher may refuse to teach in a way that I can understand the lesson and the material, so I end up failing. I can't deal with frustrated teachers who refuses to help you. So I ended up transferring high schools, and my grades improved!

[mir13]

Unfortunately the practical side of things gets in the way here. When you stand across of 35 kids and only have 1 hour, it is impossible to account for all the individual learning styles. You take a broad stroke to catch as many as you can and hope that the rest can use their peers to catch up.

Teachers in general do not want to refuse help to their students. They are just against the clock (pacing and content that needs to be covered), and in situations where it is physically impossible to give individual instruction to all. We're not happy about it, but it is the reality we live in.

[btbc92]

@mir13 There are plenty of teacherspace that do. Not all, but plenty. That is how the board of education often runs. Children are commodities for money. I had a teacher who was the UFT. And he gave us the whole rundown of what's really going with the onesame in control of. And I'm talking about here in the US. I even came from a school where the principal broke the laws, as well as some teachers who were lazy at teaching, but still had a job. That is what I am talking about. And sadly the ones who are trying, putting an affordable, with kids out of control but nothing is being done suffers. All of a sudden they are not good enough.

In fact my closes friend was an IEP student herself. Since they never offered IEP help or classes, one of the teachers said she can't help her because it's not her problem and how it was her fault for not studying. This was years ago.

This isn't just class size, or class material. It's everything of who's in charge and the ones only teaching for money.

[mir13]

@btbc92 You hit on a couple of interesting points. Yes, there are some among our ranks that probably should not be in the classroom yet they are there due to tenure (among other factors). One can say that is the issue, but doing so is rather disingenuous and shortsighted as the practice also protects those of us who have standards from vindictive administrators trying to purge all who do not inflate grades. Principals answer to the superintendent only, and those are happy as long as the boat is not rocked. If the parents are content (kid gets the diploma), then the superintendent is happy and the principal stays. Vicious cycle.

Another reason why the not so good teachers are still there is... there are too few teachers period. The conditions are poor (you are the whipping boy of principals, parents, and politicians in general), and the kids are out of control nowadays. To top it off, the pay is insufficient and some cannot afford to teach in the communities they live in. (1/2)

[mir13]

@btbc92 (cont)... It is no surprise that most of the new teachers leave in their first few years. They come with high aspirations and get beaten down by the system until they say it is not worth it. As a 4th year teacher, I have seen it happen with my cohort. Only a few are still around, everyone else moved to jobs that pay more. Which is a shame, because many of those guys were brilliant and a real way with words and explanations. The pay is a real issue for math, science, and SPED as it takes many years to actually move down the pay scale. Many of us come out with thousands in debt and are forced into graduate credential programs that add even more on top of it. Ask anyone how easy it is to live on 45k in the bay area.

There are other issues and I can go on and on (space is limited though). IEPs are another can of worms that cannot be explained in 1000 characters either.

In short, to get better quality you have to create good conditions and pay well. No one is willing to do that.

[btbc92]

@mir13 Agreed. Thats another issue we had to deal with. If the teachers ratings aren't so great, the school loses fundings to help support the staff and its students. Been in that situation before, and let me tell you, it nearly caused me to God forbid fail high school and would have ended up getting a GED.

I have 4 friends who are looking to become teachers and already got their degree. It is not easy for them as well. And the exams they needed to take before volunteer work at a local school was extremely harsh. Those failed must take them again. The one thing I will agree on however is that the test and exams needs to be revised on a level that students can understand and pass. NYC Standardize test are horrid beyond repair. Many debate to great rid of them, but that's not the issue. Teachers need more training, but the big boys refuse to provide that funding, and schools overall pay the heavy price.

[ChromAzonyx108]

One area where schooling can be improved is to test for how well students apply knowledge rather than rote memory.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i9en6AcVkBo

[NectarOfPuss]

Tell me how factoring algebraic equations, geometry, trigonometry chemical analysis, physics are processes that require an intense amount of memorization. The fact is the sciences require problem-solving and intellectual endeavor. What ever the hell you're talking about is only a reflection of your inability to do well on tests. At age 18 I highly doubt you have any grasp of what you talking about

[crazy_eyes]

I wholeheartedly agree with you. The education system is outdated and is in some serious need of change, but honestly, I think it's going to take a few more years for the authorities to grasp this and do something about it.

[garyhill7447]

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[Anonymous]

My only qualm with the education system is that it exams shouldn't be done under timed conditions. For example for a 1 hour 30 minute paper the students should have prehaps a 3 hour slot and to be able to leave whenever they want. A grade is supposed to show your ability to know and understand knowledge and apply it when needed. Not your ability to keep time.

[BubbleBoy69]

People don't got time for you to figure out and collect your though when you are in the work setting. Got to be dong it fast and not like wait let me collect my thoughts and try and figure this out in 5 minutes.

[Opinion Owner]

@BubbleBoy69 in an office environment quite often you do have time to think things over. Even its its out of hours.

[BubbleBoy69]

Not all jobs are like that. You really think as a medical doctor your going to have time to recollect and ponder what to do while your patient is dying on the operating room table.

[Opinion Owner]

@BubbleBoy69 doctors gain that ability to make snap decisions from years of on the job experiance, not a few rushed papers they did at aged 18.

[BubbleBoy69]

Doctors train to make snap decisions while in med school dude not only from experience but while they are in school they are learning to think fast on their feet. As the saying goes time waits for no man and society is the same way.

[The_real_me]

If tests are just for memory explain why a person with the suckishiest memory of them all, me, has an almost 4.0 gpa :P.

[Anonymous]

I agree with you. I hate tests and exams. I don't learn anything from them.