Opions diverge on what are the most effective testing methods in schools these days. It is a widely-held belief that written exams is not a decent approach to evaluating students’s. From my standpoint, I contend that there are certain drawbacks to utilizing paper exams to test students’s grasp of knowledge.
On the one hand, ——traditional exam method is partially efficient in assessing learner’s memory of a subject and instilling them with some crucial skills. First, paper exams assists students in consolidating knowledge and encourage them to actively participate in the learning process.Written exams test students without the aid of techonological devices, which shows their abilities of memorizing and grasping different concepts in the lesson. Also the pressure of having to take an exam motivates students to study hard to perform well. Additionally, “pen and paper” exams fosters critical skills. Taking a test within a limted period of time forces students to manage their time well and to be punctilious in avoiding making silly mistakes; this, as a result, trains good time-management skills and great attention to details. These skills are of great importance for future jobs.
On the other hand, there are some limitations to using paper tests. An important flaw is that paper exams fail to develope long-term memory and deep understanding. Students mostly use rote-learning to pass exams and this does not help them in fully understand the lesson. Only by applying knowledge to practical situations will students be able to grasp it well and really utilize it to solve real-life problems. Moreover, paper exams are incapable of developing all needed skills for their work such as communication or teamwork. These skills can be achieved with other methods like doing research, a project or a presentation.
In conclusion, although there are various disadvantages of paper exams, teachers can promote a balanced intergration between tradiontal testing methods and modern approaches which entails active participation and deep understanding such as doing collaborative activities, doing reasearch or holding a debate on the topic. This harmonious combination will perhaps optimize student’s development of memory, understanding and skills.