Tests: the necessary evil of the education world. Every kid's nightmare, and every teacher's dream—at least, until they remember the grading that comes after.

So the nightmare is really for everyone.

 

This is the stuff of dreams—er…nightmares.

The most common tests administered in schools are achievement-based. They are used to evaluate students' skills and to give teachers and parents a look at their kids' strengths and weaknesses. Tests are used to help assign grades, motivate students, and get a broad look at how the school is doing. Not so bad, right?

But…even though achievement-based tests don't have choke holds on students or teachers, some standardized tests do.

[Cue dramatic lightning flash.]

And so we must ask ourselves: are we testing too much?

In America, terms such as "testing overload" and "high-stakes testing" are becoming commonplace. Students and teachers report feeling anxious about the amount of testing and are worried about the consequences of low scores. The "testing flu" is a new term for kids who stress themselves into a tummy ache (headache, eye-ache, cramped hand, bubonic plague) on standardized testing days. It's Ferris Bueller syndrome, but test-specific.

Yeah, it's a thing now.

As teachers, we gotta know that empathy towards students who are over-tested goes a long way. You know this because you are under similar stress. Not to mention that there are gobs of tests to fret over. Students are mandated to take district, state, and federal assessments that can affect school funding and teachers' jobs. Yikes.

Let's look at it stat-style: on average, students take more than 60 standardized tests by the time they graduate high school. Some assessments even determine whether a child will pass or fail a class. That's enough to give anyone the "testing flu."

Some schools are under so much pressure to pass or excel on high stakes testing that students are tested with weekly tests to test for tests.

Eyes stinging yet? Good. That should look like a lot.

How Often To Test?

Now that you know our nation may be testing the life out of kids, what's a teacher to do? While we aren't suggesting that you light district assessments on fire in front of the principal to make a point, there are other ways to assess student learning in class without adding to test-stress.

How often to test students in class is kinda up to you as the educator. Some teachers test after every lesson unit. Some give quizzes throughout. Some give tests because—let's face it—kids are just quieter. Experts generally agree that a more creative approach to assess learning should be a priority.

A few alternatives to get you going:

Encouragement. Okay, this one isn't even an alternative: it's just good teaching practice. Sometimes grade-motivated kids need a little reminder they are worth more than their assessment scores. Build up kids who are internally motivated. And the ones who aren't? Hey, maybe they could use a boost from time to time too.

Essays. Some kids rock at filling in test bubbles, and others do not. Which is why it shakes things up to use essays and creative writing assignments as assessment tools. Check out these tips on encouraging writing as assessments.

Exit slips. If your students want out of class, they have to know their stuff. At the end of the day or before a break, have students fill out an exit slip. In other words, the students must demonstrate their learning by answering a specific question before you let them escape. You can assign grades to this, but usually holding kids hostage at lunch is enough to help them recall what they're supposed to have learned.

Graphic organizers. For the visual among us, graphic organizers (e.g., charts, diagrams, and other sorts of visual displays) can be an awesome assessment. Plus it feels a bit more creative than writing or bubbles.

Self assessments. Think of self-assessments as preemptive strikes. These assessments allow students to reflect on their own strengths and weaknesses. Students who filled out regular self-assessments have been shown to perform better on state and federal tests. And we say that's not the main thing we're out for, but hey, it doesn't hurt.

It's really a win-win here. These alternatives will give your students a big ol' sigh of relief that they're getting a break from regular testing days, but most of them will still assess and build knowledge on the road to the test itself.

And that's filling in two bubbles with one number two pencil.