42-421-2002
The thing I
remember most vividly about my TAAS experience was the excessive amount of practicing
and preparation we were required to do. Every year months before TAAS time we
would begin doing practice problems and passages. We also learned many things
to do when going through the reading passages including numbering paragraphs
underlining key points and writing notes off to the side. In my opinion most of
these methods were unnecessary as I could do fine by just reading through the
passage. As long as I understood what was going on I'd have no trouble
answering the questions at the end.
From what I
remember about the writing part of the assessment was that the prompts were
usually not very interesting. I often found it difficult to find much to write
about any of the prompts I was given to choose from. However once I got into
the writing I tried to expand on my ideas as much as I could even though
sometimes it was a little hard to elaborate.
After it was
all done I was always pleased to find that I had a good score. Despite all of
the excessive preparation students went through at my schools it was a good
learning experience. It helps kids practice their writing reading and math
skills which are very important and essential to a good education.
42-422-2002
The week of
the TAAS test may have possibly been the easiest week of school in my entire
life. I did so well on the TASS exit exam that I was able to exempt the TASP
test.
42-423-2002
The writing
segment of the TAAS test can be considered as positive or negative. Many who
score a satisfying percentage tend to consider the writing segment a valid
scale on judging a students abilities in the class room. Yet there are students
who had difficulties with the specific writing segment of the test. Those
students tend to slant by stating the test can obscure the students true
potential.
I scored well
on the test and I do believe the test can judge ones writing skills. I believe
Texas in on the right track on improving test scores and the overall
intelligence of our future leaders. Yet I do believe that many student are not
good test takers and could be viewed as a below average student when he/she
could be actually incredibly intelligent.
All in all I
believe TAAS's writing segment is a valid and accurate form of scaling a
students potential in writing. Thank you.
42-424-2002
Though the TAAS
test wasn't any fun to go though or tolearn about I had a decent experience
with the TAAS test. Through the TAAS test I was TASP exemt which was absolutely
wonderful for me. I didn't have to go through any of the difficult entrance
experiences that some people had and I didn's have to stress before an exam to
see if I was going to get into college classes.
The TAAS test
also helped prepare me for larger tests like the ACT and the SAT. I think that
it is a good thing to start students off early in these standardized tests.
Without taking these tests early I would have never known what to expect with
the larger tests to come.
42-425-2002
Through out my
early years of TAAS we studed real hard for the test until about the ninth grade
when we hardly studed. To me studing for the TAAS was real boring. I don't
think though you should base a test on whether you gradute or not becasue some
people are not test takers. Overall it was an ok experience becasue it did give
us questions I feel that everybody should know but I also feel that it was a
little waste of time.
42-426-2002
Throughout
high school TAAS testing became the dominate focus of all my classes. In
English we would literally spend months of class time practicing writing techniques
reading techniques and learning how to identify the correct answer in a
multiple choice question. While the teachers may have been focused on teaching
the proper way to use a comma myself and my classmates generally viewed this
period as a waste of time; we were free to do basically whatever we wanted
because none of us feared failing the low-skill compulsory test.
When we
actually took the exam it seemed that we the students were right; passing the
test didn't require months of practice - simply common sense and the ability to
write a coherent sentence. The teachers however were convinced it was their
preparation of us that rendered these good grades. Having taken the test though
I am forced to believe that any child with adequate reading skills could pass
it.
Overall the
TAAS test was not a good educational experience for me. The time spent on
preparing for the TAAS could have been used in a more useful field perhaps
learning how to form express and write our own ideas and opinion - something that
would still be applicable today.
42-427-2002
Throughout
school I wasn't to pleased with the idea of having to take the TAAS test. The
readings were always really long and especially boring. Some readings were
interesting but still way to long. These long readings would really exuast your
mind. I have to say I did do good and passed my TAAS test. The one thing though
that I really dred was the writing section. On the Punctuation and grammatical
error section I did good on but I really didn't like to write on the prompt.
The prompt was never interesting. They give some topic you've never dealt with
or are interested in and are expected to write on it. Yes it does make you mind
get creative but come on you need to at least put some type of an interesting type
of prompt for modern students. In a case like that maybe the kid would write
better because they would know what their talking about. Overall yes this was a
good educational experience for me but I wish it would of been just a bit more
interesting.
42-428-2002
Throughout the
first two years of high school our English classes studied for the TAAS. TAAS
is not a fun test it is ling and boring. In class we would write practice TAAS
prompts to prepare for the writting portion of the test. To prepare for the
reading we took old TAAS tests. At first all the reviewing for the TAAS seemed
pointless but in the end it helped me prepare for the SAT. Overall I believe
that the TAAS test was very useful because I can now apply what I have learned
in other writting assignments.
42-429-2002
To be honest I
did't take the TAAS test I was exempt. So I can't really tell you much about
what I experienced. But I know that many of my friends thought it to be easy.
This could be because we went to a Catholic school although I personally don't
think that it trained us any better than public schools. It was a waste of
getting up early on a Saturday morning because as far as I know every one
passed it. I'm really sorry that I couldn't help you out more
42-430-2002
To me TAAS was
not a real big concern I mean we have all kinds of test during high school
there wasn't a real big difference this one they just put more 'emphasis' on.