The anxious GPS

Tests are hard on both students and teachers. Students are anxious to present themselves in the best possible light, and often they are anxious about inadequacies they think should be kept hidden. Teachers are anxious to set tests which accurately evaluate students’ knowledge, understanding, and skill; and are anxious again about accurate and timely marking.

Despite the anxiety which they provoke, tests focus everyone’s mind on what’s happened and what should come next. Students are plainly shown where they’re strong and where they’re weak; teachers are shown which lessons went well and which failed to engender the necessary learning. Students learn which of their academic behaviours are successful and which need revision or replacement; teachers learn where remediation is required and which lessons should come next.

Since students and teachers are partners dedicated to student success, tests serve them both: it’s hard to progress on your journey when you don’t know where you are. Tests are hard on both students and teachers, but they’re a GPS without which both would be lost.