Ode to the MAP, From Edudiva

Edudiva comments on districts’ MAP test preparation in a post titled “Ode to the MAP.” The issue is not drilling students in facts and test-taking strategies, which most people associate with test prep, but the cheerleading, banana-feeding, and other last-ditch efforts to motivate students.

Other students were encouraged to write poetry about their feelings.

Standardized tests aren’t fun, and this poem creatively captures that feeling. But I’m amazed that students can harbor so much hatred for a test in elementary school that doesn’t take up much time, and the results of which won’t affect them one way or the other. Can you imagine Singaporean students writing poetry like that about the TIMSS in English class? (If you can, check out Two Million Minutes and think again.) I think there are two possible causes: Either schools are turning what should be a routine test into a traumatic event (unlikely, since lots of them give out candy and have pep rallies beforehand), or all the bribing and coaching is actually making students more anxious about the tests.