What Teachers Really Think of Tests

By TRUE JARREL

Moapa Valley Progress

Along with the end of the semester comes finals week, which plagues the lives of students right up until the release for winter break. Testing isn’t any student’s favorite topic, but a lot of people neglect to look at the other side of the tests: teachers. How do teachers themselves feel about tests?

Donna Forrester, the art teacher at Moapa Valley High School, offered her view on the subject.

When asked about how she prepares her students for testing she said, “I am constantly using the vocabulary and forcing them to use the language, too.” She laughed after that and added, “Maybe force isn’t the right word, but in here, they have to understand the terms daily.”

When asked how she prepares to take tests, Forrester commented, “If it’s an essay type test I trust my writing skills enough, but if it’s a memorization test? Yeah, my old ‘clicker’ isn’t as great as it used to be!”

Finally, when asked what she dislikes about giving tests to students, Forrester explained, “A lot of students get test anxiety, and I really don’t think that’s a true reflection of what they know. I understand that we need some sort of rating system… but there’s also part of me that thinks we need other ways to make sure our students are retaining information.”

Jared Bushman, who teaches English, gladly offered his opinions on test-taking as well.

“Preparing to take tests is interesting,” said Bushman. “I would take rigorous notes from the textbook, and then the lectures, and then I would teach what we learned to my wife.” Bushman further explained that memorizing facts in this way led him to perform extremely well in his exams.

When asked about how he prepares himself for giving and grading tests, Bushman commented, “I think that tests need to be a reflection of learning, not memorization. When I’m giving tests I try and make sure that the knowledge is applicable.”

He added, “My semester exam for the ninth graders is a test that involves annotating and analyzing a video, because those are things that we’ve done this year. I think that multiple choice tests are pretty arbitrary; I don’t think tests should be an end, I think they should be a beginning.”

MVHS Spanish teacher Dallas Larsen added his perspective. He joked, “Usually I try and find the most irrelevant and miniscule facts as possible, and make sure that at least half of the class can’t actually answer the questions, and then that becomes the semester test!”

“In all seriousness, I look at what we’ve reviewed and what information they’ve looked over,” answered Larsen. “Then the test ends up being a bunch of questions that the students have probably seen before!”

When asked about how he prepares himself for taking tests, Larsen commented, “Don’t be a number. In college I always made sure to introduce myself to my professors and make sure that they knew my name and my face; then it becomes personal, and you can ask for help.”

Finally, when asked what his least favorite part of giving tests to his students is, Larson said, “Grading. I get like two hundred written tests to grade! It’s all so time-consuming!”

All in all, though the end of the semester is a busy time for both students and teachers, it isn’t all bad. Being able to learn good study habits and prepare for the next semester is important. Getting to go on break immediately afterward is a big bonus, too. Good luck with the rest of your finals, MVHS students!