Sitting in a room full of students, you’re taking the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT). To get into your dream college you need a 1460, but you can’t focuse because that clock on the board is distracting you and bringing your stress levels through the roof. You don’t get to finish all the questions, but you’re sure if you had the time you could have gotten at least half correct. This is what happens to students because of timed tests. The debate is whether timed testing is truly showing whether a person is better known on a topic or not. Being a student at Emmaus High School, I’ve seen timed tests do not give an accurate presentation of a student’s academic ability.
All students when they get to high school will have to take timed tests unless they have a disability that gives them an Individual Education Program (IEP) or a 504 plan . Whether it’s in a regular math class, or state testing like the SAT or the ACT, students without an IEP or 504 plan will be required to have a time limit. The SATs and ACTs are used for college admissions and scholarship eligibility, but also could serve as a safety net for graduation in Pennsylvania. Having a fast pace on a test is seen as having greater comprehension or more knowledge of a topic, so educators make their tests timed to measure proficiency.
Having tests timed gives the false idea to students of speed over accuracy. Being taught throughout school to rush and get all the questions answered instead of taking your time to really think can carry over to your career in the work force. Wouldn’t you rather have a surgeon who takes their time to make sure everything goes smoothly instead of one who feels pressured and
stressed to do their job at a faster pace than is appropriate? Adults in the work force taught to do things with speed over accuracy can end up making them hurt customers and evidently hurt their ability to have a successful career.
On this topic, having students taught from a young age not to rush and to have a process that makes them able to know all the information, even if it takes time, can make students become adults that have a better idea of what needs to happen for them to be successful in a work force. When starting a new job you are taught to go slow and really indepthly learn the information and truly understand, instead of rushing and just memorizing the information. This should be taught as a student, so when you’re an adult you already have this skill and understand how it can help you.
Being timed while taking an important test can also cause a lot of stress. You begin to focus on the wrong things. You stress about running out of time instead of just focusing on the content. Wouldn’t you want a student’s main focus to be the actual test and not running out of time? This unnecessary stress is just hindering their ability to truly focus, thus hurting their grade.
Timed testing is implied to show who has a true understanding of a topic. I’ve had teachers say things like If you need more time than I give you, you don’t actually know what you’re talking about. This statement is just saying it’s not okay to take your time to come up with the best answer. This goes against the initial thought of having a deep understanding of a topic if you have to rush and not get your full thoughts out.
Timing someone’s knowledge on a topic isn’t doing any good for people or the society. It’s teaching speed over accuracy, not developing good habits, and increasing unnecessary stress.
