With the aim to ascend students’ academic performance, many individuals have considered using exams with competency, while the others debate that those will result in undesirable stress, and propose other types of evaluation alternatively. After analyzing the pros and cons of both viewpoints, this essay ultimately agrees with the replacement of exams, with my rationale below.
On the one hand, the traditional form of exams could be a straightforward and applicable way to help students revise. School institutions will make tests consisting of learned topics, and assess students abilities based on their performance. Theoretically, these tests will motivate students to take notes, listen intensively at school, and brush up on lessons in order to get higher grades. Students adopting these methods will have a considerable understanding of the units and accomplish their curricula. However, competitive exams will also give rise to rote learning, memorising information without actually gaining any actual value, this is less laborious and more ideal to those with inappropriate time management and procrastination habits. Many of the time, this method works. This will consequently lead to students with shallow, impractical knowledge. Furthermore, constant source of stress is remarkably detrimental, and could undermine a student learning capability
On the other hand, the drawbacks of these standardized tests is giving birth to many other alternative versions, allowing more control and versatility over each classroom. Each of the versions fit each teacher’s style. The lecturer might choose to teach each individual based on diagnostic assessment, or could evaluate their ability depending on overall performance throughout the semester. This can bring immense benefit to both students and educators, as students can unburden their stresses and pressure while retaining their capability and intellect, while school institutions can focus on improving other academic facilities and quality rather than divided attention on organizing tests every while.
In my viewpoint, standardized tests, while regarded as the more formal, more professional and might offer a higher medium, I still stand to reason that a combination of many of the available alternatives are more appropriate.