Testing and Grades; Purpose?

Matthew Smith
May 16th, 2007


Paul Goodman raises some good thought and questions with grades. I must agree way to much emphasis is put on the grade, but this is a problem that begins way before college and Mr. Goodman fails to recognize this in his writing. A reduction in competitive grading needs to begin at the elementary level. young students have it ingrained in their head so early that only A's and B's are acceptable. Go to your local kid's pizza place or arcade; what grades do they give the highest amount of tokens for? As parent's (yes, I'm guilty) we reward our kids for A's and B's at the earliest ages. You just can't expect competitive grading to suddenly end at the college level, as with many things, the earlier you begin the higher the success
I do have to say that I believe in timed SAT tests. You have to be able to hold every student to the same standard. I will say that the overall given time of the SAT could use an overhaul. Mr. Gardner fails to recognize that yes, while there are few tasks in life that depend on your ability to read or do mathematics quickly; being able to work under a deadline is something that is going to be expected of anyone entering any job field. Mr.Gardner makes the suggestion that it would be of benefit for students to have access to dictionaries and the Internet; this I can't disagree with enough. If a student has access to the Web while taking a history exam, where is the motivation to learn? How are you going to measure that student's base of knowledge?
Diane Ravitch believes that pretty much all test serve a purpose. I couldn't AGREE with her more. Testing is a necessity of our society and culture. From ensuring that students are competent to advance to the next grade level to making sure our Doctor's are competent. I do believe that we can examine the types of testing for certain academic material and move more away from multiple choice and true/false to short answer/essay type tests. The essay format for testing allows for more individuality with an answer, while still being able to measure their knowledge of the material.
I think it's important to keep in mind that testing and grading are two very different area's. While restructuring of both is very thought provoking, to completely eliminate either one would prove more damaging then beneficial.