Bursting the Bubble (Tests)

I read an Op-Ed the other day in the New York Times by professor E. D. Hirsch, Jr.  The article supported the value of the fill in the blank bubble test.  He asserted that while the current format is faulty, there is validity to the data and reliability of the test.  Dr. Hirsch made some valid points including:

the key to comprehension is familiarity with the relevant subject. For a student with a basic ability to decode print, a reading-comprehension test is not chiefly a test of formal techniques but a test of background knowledge.

While this may be the case, and we must assess our students on relevant materials.  That does not mean that bubble testing is the answer to the question of assessment reform.  Bubble tests have been around since 1938 and like the lecture only classroom, is seriously outdated.  In an era in which we know that students learn in many different ways, we must reconsider how we assess our students.

In his article, Beyond the Bubble, Bill Tucker argues that we can assess using the technology that are relevant to our students

Using multiple forms of media that allow for both visual and graphical representations, we can present complex, multi-step problems for students to solve, and we can collect detailed information about an individual student's approach to problem solving. This information may allow educators to better comprehend how students arrive at their answers and learn what those pathways reveal about students' grasp of underlying concepts, as well as to discover how they can alter their instruction to help move students forward.

I find this argument interesting.  I am not saying we should not assess.  I simply believe that with the understanding of differentiated learning styles and multiple intelligences, we must shift our understanding of teaching and assessment and disrupt the current model.  Bubble testing does not effectively represent what and how our students learn.  In the 21st century, our students are learning differently, interacting differently, and we must assess differently.

Assessments are a core part of preparing our students for the global marketplace but in an interactive and connected world, do bubble tests really prepare students for what lies ahead?

In utilizing the concepts of differentiated learning, we can to develop a form of assessment that takes advantage of the available technology and supports the skills the students must master to succeed in today's world. This will take some time and effort but to do justice to our students and their future we must burst the bubble tests.

Photo Credit: Thant Zin Myint