The Limitations of Testing

 Let's face it.  Students today have to undergo a lot more testing than we did as children.  There is i-ready testing, COGAT testing, TTCT testing, SBA testing, Benchmark Assessments, fluency assessments and end of unit assessments to name a few.  There is so much data being compiled for our little ones, that it is staggering.

This data can paint a picture, but it does not paint the full picture.  In i-ready math,  we assess for accuracy and the right answer.  We don't assess the process so we are going to find children who are good and efficient at getting the correct answer, but they might not understand why an algorithm works, how to communicate their knowledge to other people, draw models, or use vocabulary correctly.  

I am finding that my students can solve equations really well but need work on the math practice standards.  For example, one of my first grade students has memorized her multiplication times tables but has no idea what multiplication is.  I have another young student who knows how to add three digit numbers with other three digit numbers but doesn't understand what it means when you are placing a one in the tens digit or hundreds digit when adding.  The understanding of place value underneath the process is missing.

It is really important for our students to go deeper with the math and understand why algorithms work, rather than just memorizing how they work. Therefore, the students can learn to think logically, reason critically, and problem solve rather than memorizing.  With the advent of AI, the need to calculate is limited.  But the important skill of working with people, reasoning logically, and explaining thinking is more crucial than ever.  

It is important for teachers and parents to ask, "When my student is faced with an unknown problem, can they work through it without giving up and really problem solve? Or are they just coping what a teacher showed them a minute prior?"

We need to give students challenging problems that push their thinking so they have to learn something new.  We have to allow students to fail and try again so they have work ethics when they are older.  They have to talk about their thinking and reasoning and that is the opportunity I hope to bring to my students in SAGE and PEP this year.