Most of us know that feeling of looking over at our bubble sheet and seeing all the empty questions, only to look up at the timer to watch it slowly tick down. Time always seems to move faster in those moments doesn’t it? You’re on a time crunch, many feel they’re not being tested on their knowledge, but how fast they can cough up.answers. Not everyone may be as affected by time limits during tests, but saying it has no effect is entirely untrue.
When students are asked about how test timers make them feel, the reactions are overwhelmingly negative. “It gives me more stress.” Senior, Maissaa Fettouha says. “When I work faster my answers aren’t their best.” Students seeing time constraints is causing them overwhelming stress, making them not do as well as they could’ve. “I feel like I stress myself out more knowing I have limited time.” Senior, Samantha Abraham says.
And it seems, most teachers think the same when it comes to test timers. “Students struggle with time management.” English teacher, Ms. Caraballo says. “So when you put a time on something, it causes a negative reaction.” AP Chemistry and Game Development teacher, Mr. Ahmed, agreed. “Students are very different, a lot of them might not perform well under pressure.” Teachers have seen it first hand when being proctors for exams. The numbers range of how many stressed out students teachers have reported in their exam rooms, but the numbers are still scary. “A quarter,” “A good third of the class,” “About half the kids in the room.” Teachers Mr. Ahmed, Ms. Caraballo, and Mr. Shammas respectively, have said.
Even when searching the internet, you seem to get similar responses. Online resources agree that giving a timer to students hurts their performance on tests. “Time can’t facilitate your knowledge. Even the smartest people couldn’t solve a test problem in less than five to ten seconds, so what makes school boards think students can?” This NY Times article goes on to talk about a lot of other students who feel similarly about timed tests.
However, there are still some reasons that people believe timed tests are good for kids. “It teaches us time management.” Abraham says.
“It provides structure and helps you improve time management, which helps out in the real world.” said Ms Caraballo.
Though a majority of students and teachers seem to believe timed tests are bad, there are still some things that can be considered pros of timed tests.
What do you think?
