31-211-2002
In high school they tried to prepare us for TAAS test in English
class. It was mainly a review of things we had learned a while ago and was quite
boring. The TAAS test was very easy and not challenging at all. I wasn't
nervous or concerned about TAAS because the state has dumbed down the test so
much to let schools get higher scores. The main reason for us taking the TAAS
is so that our school could get its funding. I felt it was a waste of time but
I realize it is necessary.
31-212-2002
In high school we were required to take the TAAS test I personally
didn't care if we took the test. Some people on the other hand get nervous when
it comes to test taking. They may be really smart but freeze when it comes to
test taking. Me I just may be lucky I don't get nervous. To me I think it was
pretty easy. Some people stay in high school just because they can't pass the
test but have passed all the curriculm the high school requires to graduate. I
think the test shouldn't be adminstered some people just have different
personalities.
31-213-2002
In high school when we prepared for TAAS in several classes it wasn't
all that difficult. Our teachers would pass out handouts at the beginning of
class and usually those handouts were multiple choice questions that were
fairly easy. Some of the handouts were ridiculously easy that sometimes we saw
no point in handing them out because we felt like we didn't learn anything from
it. When TAAS week came around most of students in my class we pretty certain
that it was going to be easy. When we finally took the TAAS every portion was
actually very easy. Our entire sophomore class passed the TAAS test with flying
colors. I think the TAAS test should be a bit more challangeing but maybe to
some people it's very difficult.
31-214-2002
In my English class during junior year my teacher always had us to do
different exercises that dealt with the SAT. We did things like analogies
definitions synonyms/antonyms. Sometimes she even gave us practice SAT
questions and we went over the answers and we discussed each answer choice.
That helped when I took the actual test.
31-215-2002
In my experience standardized testing is a fine idea that is
impossible to implement. The idea of having a standard that everyone must meet
is a good one but in practice it falls apart. The tests I have taken were
either too hard for anyone to meet or were so easy that anyone could meet them.
Thus they most often are not a honest reflection of a student's intelligence or
thier academic achievements. Also we spent a lot of time in my school preparing
for the tests going over sample questions and practice essays. All we were
doing was learning the bare minimum to do well on the test not truely learning
the material. We simply memorized the facts necessary to get us through the
test. Again this does not truely mean we learned anything or absorbed knowledge
for longer than it took for us to pass the test. Finally I feel that when a
school's funding rests on it's ability to get students to pass a test the focus
of the entire school changes for the worse. No longer do administrators care
about the students as people they simply want the student's scores to rise so
they can get back thier funding. Schools with the lowest scores need the most
funding not vice-versa. Standerdized tests are a fine idea but in practice they
simply hurt schools.
31-216-2002
In my freshmen and sophomore English classes we did many of practice
tests. We would go in to class and start taking them and then discuss the
answers after. We discussed main ideas how to write a good paper and basic
readings on a particular story. I feel that my experience with TAAS in high
school did however prep me for the test and I think that it was a good idea. I
felt that it was a test to see how much you have learned in class throughout
the years and by preparing for it in english helped you write a better paper.
After learning and reviewing for what would be on the test it made it a lot
easier when you actually had to do it. I feel that TAAS was a good experience
for me overall.
31-217-2002
In my opinion I did not like the TAAS because I don't think that a test
would or will prove your capabilities and prove if you are ready to graduate. I
am a very poor test taker but I made all A's and high B's yet I could not pass
the TAAS and I had to take the math section three times before I passed with a
high 70. Like I said before I do very poorly on tests that I know can alter my
future.
First its TAAS then its TASP then ACT or SAT's then once you get into
college they give you a math placement test. In my opinion if your passing the
class then obviously your ready to move on.
31-218-2002
In my opinion I think that the TAAS test was a very educational
experience. In all of my english classes in school we always did TAAS exercises
to prepare us for the actual TAAS test. One of the exercises that we would do
to prepare ourselves is our teacher would give us a writing prompt and we would
have a certain amount of time to write an essay about the subject. I think that
this was a very big help for most of us because some of these prompts were
actually real prompts that had been used on the test. We would also do
exercises where we had a sentence with an underlined word and then choices of
words that followed. We would have to choose the correct choice to replace the
underlined word and that was one way that we prepared for the TAAS. Taking the
TAAS test was a very good learning experience. I think that the day of the test
I worked myself up over it and I thought that it was going to be pretty hard
and when I actually took it it really wasn't as hard as I had expected. Especially
when I wrote the essay. I just let my thoughts and feelings flow and I thought
that I ended up with an overall good essay and good test.
31-219-2002
In my opinion the expectation level of TAAS testing especially for the
great state of Texas is sad. For a state that prides itself on being so
economically rich powerful liberal and influential in America our TAAS testing
is an embarassment. I realize it's a minimum skills test but I think it's time
for the state to increase the bar on expectations from teachers who care enough
to teach kids the bare minimum they should know and from students who don't
enough to learn it. I know that some students struggle with the TAAS because of
learning difficulties but they can get help from teachers (that's what they're
paid for) and from tutors if necessary. For the vast majority of students
however the TAAS test is nothing short of a nuissance. Teachers emphasize the
importance of passing the test every year kids stress about whether this year's
test will be harder than last year's but the end result is that students come
out of the testing room laughing about how easy it was (which alone should
indicate something). That was middle school but even in high school nothing
changed. I went to a large high school of about 2 000 students and every time
we had to take the TAAS the students wouldn't even care anymore. Some wouldn't
show up, some would rush through it in a few minutes so they could “have more
sleep time” waiting for everyone to finish, and even the ones who took it
seriously wonder why they had even worried about such an easy test in the first
place.
An alternative way of testing in my opinion could be to have all the
students take an average-level TAAS in 6th and 7th grade. Then identify the
students who're having difficulty the ones who're in the middle range (probably
the majority) and the ones who scored exceptionally high. Then in 8th grade and
further years the students who're struggling can take one or two remedial
courses to catch up with the rest of the students. The middle and high range
students can proceed to take a harder test that will CHALLENGE them (like the
SAT's).
We've had the same low-level TAAS standards for years in Texas and I
think it's about time to make a change towards more progress.
31-220-2002
In my opinion the TAAS test is a total waste of time. I never had to
worry about taking the TAAS test test throughout middle and high school. I
always felt as if I were being tested over material that I had learned in two
or three grades prior to the grade I was in when taking the TAAS. I had plenty
of experience taking the TAAS as well. From what I had heard students were
supposed to take the TAAS every other year. I had to take the test every year
because supposedly the state kept switching the grade at which the test was
administered. I practically aced every TAAS test that I was given therefore I
feel that the TAAS was worthless.