“Test Prep and Learning are Two Different Things”

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“Test Prep and Learning are Two Different Things”

March 28, 2011 Scott Fisher Leave a comment Go to comments

Image by Ewan McIntosh via Flickr

I just made,excellent use of the last 14 minutes or so of my time ,by watching TEDxNYED – Will Richardson.

Not long ago, I had the pleasure of seeing Will as a keynote speaker at a local technology conference I attended. I had heard and read a great deal about him. It was all true. His style made the audience feel very comfortable, very quickly. It was his content however, that was most impressive. Will Richardson presented very thought provoking ideas and observations, in a very straightforward manner.

I was unable to attend the TedxNYED on March 5th, in New york City. From the videos I have reviewed, it appears I missed out on some spectacular speakers and talks. Aside from Will, well known speakers such as Alan November and Gary S. Stager also provided unique insights during their presentations.

Will’s points were particularly poignant. As school’s around the country face financial obstacles and are forced to reduce the number of teachers, they are also being pressed to improve test scores. Schools are in fact becoming (or already have become) primarily focused on test prep and test scores. During his talk, he points out that “test prep and learning are two different things.”

We have become so driven to produce high scoring test takers, that we are not allowing our children to be creative or to learn in the manner that is best suited for them.

We need to stop the assault on teachers and focus on the needs of children. Children can do amazing things, if we encourage them and allow them to do so.