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At my school the TAAS was important to the faculty but not for the teachers and the student. So the TAAS test was not too important the important thing was to graduate. Of course we all needed to pass the TAAS to graduate are teacher told us that what we learn in the past years were that we need not to study for it. It should be simple we were told it was like doing third grade homework all over again. As for the TASP only some were informed of the test to enter a college those were that they knew they go to class. So you can say that I did not know the about this test until my cousin told me and lucky he did. I never really prepared for them I was told that they cover on what we learn on our 12-year education tour. So I myself was not worried about studying before I would wake up and just went to take them with nothing on my mind but what I was going to do after I took the test. I really do not care for them I feel there a waist of time but I still put up wit them even though I think there stupid. I mean what were they thinking except for the ACT and SAT other colleges in other state require all theses test just get in and we are the one paying for it. When learned on the result I did not know what to think or how to read. My school said you passed and I was going to SIX Flags Fiesta Texas and that was all and that was graduating. No it really wasn’t because I do did not care for these test that the way I feel I am not going to lie and say that they were fun or I enjoyed the experience I think Texas should reconsider the new era and rid the test.
At my school we were discriminated by other schools because we were located on the bad side of town, so my principal really tried to make our school have the highest academic grades then any other school in town. We had something called Buc Vision at our school which they showed on t.v. every morning, and it would go over taas questions with the whole school. Our principal would also give the school incentives if we reached a certain percentage with all the people that were taking the test. They helped us a lot.
Back at my high school TAAS was the most important event to my principal, until you’ve taken it which is your sophmore year. The teachers I had didn’t really care about us, it was more about them. If we got exemplary they got praised and a raise, but if we did bad then they would get called in and questioned as to why we weren’t successful.
As a freshman and part of your sophmore year you take a TAAS class making it the only activity offered to help prepare us. As for when it came around to English TAAS we really did nothing that would help us prepare for the writing part. We mainly worked on the basic grammer making it easier for my teacher. As for writing essay’s the teacher would write out a topic giving us our introduction and conclusion to get us started. In reality she wasn’t helping us, she was babying us. I found this preparation method pathetic, because it did no good to me. I know and learned what I know because I would practice with my room. My results were good in all subjects, but I have no one to thank other than my mom.
Overall I feel this wasn’t a good educational experience for me at all. As for another comment I feel the TAAS test is kind of worthless because there is no way that test prepares you for college. This test has no relation to the future. I think the students in high school need to be better prepared for the shock they will face their freshman year in college.
Basically that is what all High School was, just a big camp preparing you for TAAS. And it wasn’t just English ether, every class for about the first twenty minutes that is what all of our efforts would go to. So by the time the TAAS finally came around, we were ready to take it and get it away for us. When we got the results back, I got a “academic requisition” on a few of the sections. My opinion is that we put to much effort into the TAAS. That time could have been better spent on things like college preparation, job searching skills, or preparing for test that matter like the ACT & SAT. Because when it all comes down to it, no one will care what you made on the TAAS, but rather your job skills and college experience. Plus in college applications, no one ever asks for your TAAS results, but rather your ACT & SAT scores.
Before graduating High School I was forced to take the TAAS test numerous times. Our school was big on the TAAS test, therefore every day we were assigned practice problems. I dreaded going to class because I knew the first 15 minutes would be practicing problems for the TAAS. I would drag into class, put down my books, and look at the worksheet on the desk. Usually the worksheet would have a short story and questions at the end. Then, I would take a big sigh and begin reading. I would eventually get done answering the questions and be so relieved, keeping in mind that I would have to do the same thing all over the next day. Then after months of preparing, it was time to take the actual TAAS test. I had convinced myself that I was ready. All the practice problems that I had disliked would finally pay off. The day of the TAAS test, I went in with a good attitude, knowing that I would do good. The test was so easy and when I got my results in I was very proud of myself. I received academic recognition for the reading part of the TAAS and was glad that my teacher made us do all those practice problems that I disliked. Overall, 98% of my junior class passed the TAAS and I was satisfied with my grade on the TAAS.
Being a student in Texas, that is all you heard about from the first grade all the way till sophomore year of high school. TAAS was a big part of my educational experience. Throughout the whole year we were prepared for TAAS. Teachers would give us worksheets with practice problems and had us write practice stories to prepare us fore the TAAS. But being a student, this became very annoying. Because every school year teachers would stuff as much info about the TAAS into or heads.
Even though we began hating to hear about the TAAS, we still had to take it seriously. In elementary school and Middle school, the TAAS test was almost like a placement test. The score you got on it would determine what type of class you would be in the following year. That’s why it was very important to do well, so you could be in the top classes.
But it was different for High School. In high school TAAS was even more important, for if you did not pass the TAAS you could not graduate. So being a freshman you were prepared greatly for the TAAS test. Fortunately for me I passed the TAAS test the first time and never had to worry about it again. In fact every year I would score very well on the TAAS test, which allowed me to be in the top classes.
Don’t get me wrong the TAAS test was not a bad test and the classes did prepare me for it, but we had taken the practice test every year and it drained us out. Starting from the 2nd-12th grade we had been taking it. Every time we heard the TAAS everyone would get all depressed and mad. I was just tried of taking the TAAS test. I think that test just holds people back, when you can be learning other things in school. We had to stop everything we were learning just for the TAAS. We even had a TAAS class at our High School. It was a childish test. It was so easy.
During my freshman year TAAS wasn’t to much of a big deal. We rarely talked about it in class, but we all knew it was there. During the course of my sophmore year, my English teacher preached and preached to us about how to write a GOOD TAAS essay. We wrote countless essays and did tons of worksheets. We were all really burnt out and were sick of the preparation. However, when the testing day finally arrived, all the worksheets and essays seemed to pay off. I know that all that “stupid” work gave me the ability to breeze through the test. The test was very simple and I felt good because I knew it but felt like I was being condescended by the state gov’t b/c it was so somple. When I got my results back, I was very happy b/c I was TASP exempt. But I would have to say it was a good educational experience for me.
During my high school years I took my TAAS testing my sophomore year. At first I tried not to make a big deal about it because ever since I can remember I have been preparing for TAAS. I remember my sophomore year we wrote so many papers on so many prompts that I was going crazy. We also went over a lot of English terms for the English part of the TAAS; that wasn’t as boring. Although, I can’t seem to recall making the math part such a big deal. After probably months of preparing, I felt I was ready, for at least the writing section. The night before I was a little nervous, but of course what could I do, I already practiced as much as I could. I couldn’t study, I could only wait until morning.
During the test I was a wreck; everyone is. When it came to the prompt, I couldn’t understand the question at first. I think nervousness does that to you. I was trying so hard to understand it that it began to make no sense at all. I calmed down eventually and took my time.
My results were good enough for me. I was proud of myself, but feel that one test can’t tell someone how smart they are, or where to be placed or anything. SAT’s and ACT’s are the worst. Everyone is under so much pressure to do good in order to get into college that they end up doing bad on some occasions. I did horrible on the SAT’s, but much better on the ACT’s. I know that the SAT is supposed to be a harder test, but I think it all depends on the person. If you are sick, or having personal or family problems, you are bound to do worse than you would if you were fine.
As far as a good educational experience, I would say it did me some good. I don’t like the fact that Ms. [X] and every other teacher I have talked to at this school says they don’t want five paragraph essays, and that they need to be longer. All we did in high school and middle school, all we prepared for and were taught was to write five paragraph essays. I am not complaining about writing more paragraphs, as you can see I have no problem doing so. But why was it so important to have exactly five, an introduction, three body paragraphs, and a conclusion?
During my sophmor year in high school is when i has the taas test. during that time in english all we did was prep for the test untill we took it. wee practiced writing the different types of papers and worken on our grammer. basically thats all we did that year since our school was really wanted to get good scores. but that year was alright i guess since we got to write stuff that we wanted to wright about.
During the first two years of high school, the TAAS test was highly emphasized in my classes. In English we would concentrate on all the little things of writing. We worked on the mechanics, the form, and cutting down on grammatical mistakes. Learning how to organize the typical three paragraph essay format of the TAAS essay was also a big thing. In all honesty, these classes that focused on TAAS were just the biggest waste of time. I’m one that can’t stand taking those tests. First off, I’ve had to take those tests what seems like every year throughout grade school. When I realized the only one that even counted was during the sophomore year, I wondered how much practice can a person need to write a three paragraph essay over who you’re role model is and why. I have to say I was well prepared for those tests. For those tests to be as important to where if I weren’t to pass a section, I wouldn’t be able to graduate just isn’t right. I never worried about the results. Without even knowing my results of the TAAS test I took my sophomore year, I had exempted the TASP test with my scores from TAAS. That’s a good thing because we haven’t spent six years preparing for the TASP test. As far as the test being a good educational experience, I’m just not so sure. I didn’t agree with taking up as much class time as we did to do old TAAS tests. We used TAAS tests from the past, and did the entire thing for practice. We did that more than once. I feel sorry for those who still have to take them. I think they are adding subjects on to it, and making the test harder. Looks like more classes will be forced to emphasize TAAS instead of teaching material we could be learning instead.
Ever since I was in elementary school there has been some type of testing that I have had to participate in. The one that was most common was that called the TAAS test. It was one only given in the state of Texas. I have taken it every year since the first grade. Finally, my sophomore year in high school I was finished.
Having to take the TAAS test every year was one of the biggest hassles, even at a young age. Every year my teachers would tell me that this would be the last time that I would have to take this test and every year I would end up having to take it again and again. I hated it and it made me feel as though I wasn’t learning enough. The questions and contents of the test were so easy. I usually aced everything on it. I felt that it was a waste of my time because it seemed to only reflect what I had learned the year before.
In addition to the test being a waste of time the preparation for the test was also a bother. For at least two months before the students in my school were scheduled to take the TAAS test my teachers would teach nothing but curriculum for the test and nothing else. They didn’t bother teaching what we should’ve really be learning. They were only worried about the students having excellent test scores and gaining recognition for the school, not making sure that that the students had learned what they were supposed to in that grade. Even in high school, the teachers and the school district were more concerned with getting the students to pass the TAAS test and getting them out of the school then getting the knowledge they should have for that grade.
Overall, the TAAS test was nothing but a huge problem for me. I felt that other students and myself that did extremely well in school should not have had to take the TAAS test. The curriculum I was learning in my classes was beyond that on the test. This was proof that I had learned the requirements for the test plus extra and would have obviously done well. I believe that the TAAS test should be a standardized test for those who aren’t doing well in their school work and should not determine whether or not you are able to move on to the next grade or graduate. Instead it should be used to pin point what areas the students need help in. Hopefully standardized testing won’t be such a huge part of peoples’ school lives in the future but, that they will be able to get the education in that they deserve and really need.
Every year leading up to my last year when I had to take the TAAS test english classes were built around TAAS. The things we did at my school were basic and simple. TAAS has a major impact on todays students and what they should learn.
All of the activities were basically handouts. The handouts consisted of grammar, spelling, punctuation, and an essay. All of my english teachers told me to write a five paragraph essay. The first paragraph being an introduction. The second, third, and fourth paragraphs were the body paragraphs. Each of the paragraphs consisted of eleven sentences each. My last paragraph was my conclusion, which I had to sum everything up that I had stated earlier.
Taking the test was nothing new or surprising. You have studied and taken so many other exams like this to help you pass the TAAS.
Taking the TAAS was rather boring to me. It gets old looking at something you have looked at your whole life. It really sank in that I wanted to pass the test the first time. I made this decision because I didn’t want to review and take the stupid test again.
As I learned of my results, they didn’t surprise me. I aced everything overall in the english department. After all the practicing and studying who wouldn’t. TAAS is just a big hype that teachers in high school teach. The test doesn’t really prepare me for college like I thought it would.
Far me, preparing for the TAAS was very frustrating. To me it felt like the teachers were not teaching us how to write, but how to take the test. Instead of recognizing creative merits and individual styles in student’s papers, teachers only looked at the technical aspects, such as grammar and sentence structure. I believe they did this, because the TAAS is essentially an objective test. To give a grade to thousands of students, it must be. To prepare for the TAAS, fellow students and I were asked to respond to a single writing prompt given at the beginning of each class. This seemed simple, but when this class is “Art” or “History,” it seems like a waste. Students were not enthusiastic about this, and I feel that affected our writing, for the better papers will be because the student generally felt they could and should write about the subject. Overall, I think the weight the TAAS put on both teacher and students was negative. I think that instead of teaching how to pass a test, teachers should be teaching how to get the most out of the material they are teaching. Relating everything to how a standardized test will grade your responces is not the best way. Every student is different and writing styles, especially, are different. I don’t feel you can judge everyone’s writing on a universal scale. People can do beutiful things with words and sentence structure that might not be grammatically “correct,” and saying that this may be wrong does not build the confidence of a student. I don’t not think the TAAS is a waste of time, only that something be done to recognize that it may not be best for every student in the state of Texas. There is nothing in this world that is universally beneficial for so many people. I think in the future there should be different sections to recognize the different ways students learn, wether it be visually, or from listening, or from hands-on experience.
For as long as I can remember I have taken the TAAS test. Every year except for my eighth grade year I took the TAAS. In English class we would prepare ourselves by doing practice-writing essays. I remember very vividly my fourth grade year my teacher, Mrs. [X], made us write a descriptive essay on a picture of the these two little kids opening their presents on Christmas morning. I hated it. I did not like it when people told me exactly what to write about and pretty much what to write. That year, eventhough I practiced every night I still only received a four on my writing. I was told that my description was too vague. Needless to say Mrs. [X] was slightly disappointed in me. Every year after that it was the same thing, teachers would get sample writing prompts and make us practice every day. I never really saw the point in TAAS testing. It was like every year day in day out we all we would do was prepare for what was going to be on the TAAS test. To me that does not seem very beneficial considering that the TAAS is not very practical and most of the stuff on it we do not use in day to day living.
For as long as i can remember, taas was always nerve racking for me. I always got nervous before I took it, but when it was actually time to take it, it was so simple. In my opinion, it is a waste of time. Teachers waste their time teaching it when most of the time students don’t even care. I never studyed for the taas because I already knew what was going to be on it. Every year it is practicely the same thing so just over the years you just remember it. I think its smart to take when you’re younger, but once you get into high school it is stupid. Teachers should be concerned about teaching students how to write essays, like college essays, not HOW TO’s.
For me as a student in English, the TAAS experience was really easy. My teachers would prepare us about one month ahead of time and I could get help whenever I wanted. The actual test was easier than the practice tests I took. The only ways my teachers prepared us for the TAAS was by giving a lot of practice tests. When we would finish them we would have a class discussion about the right and wrong answers and why they were either right or wrong. At the time, I felt these tests were a waste of time since I already knew how to read and edit. The only thing that I found to be beneficial was the sentence structure and the practice writing prompts. To this day I still need help in these areas. When I took the TAAS I felt confident about the actual test and felt I deserved the score I received.
For me the TAAS test was so boring. My class was treated like the ginny pigs ever since Jr. High. We always had to take the test every year. Our freshmen year we took the practice test like 3 times and by the time we took the real one our soph. year it was like we were tired of it. We all passed and everything but it was like not really challenging. If it was harder, then the practice test would of ment something to me.
For me, TAAS was a complete waist of time. I think that I was part of the class that got screwed and had to take it like every year. I can only think of one time that I missed maybe more than 4 or 5 questions and didn’t make at least a three on the writing. I took it only because I had to--never enjoying it. Except for the time that [our teacher] bought us tacos for breakfast. It was a bunch of b/s basically. Spoon feeding TAAS to a bunch of kids who had already eaten more than they could handle. They always said that taking a test is like regurgitating information. I think back and remember all of the stupid vocabulary games that we would play, the countless worksheets on grammar, the horrific amount of math problems. When taking the test for the last time I though to myself, “This is it, the last time you will ever have to take this damn test!” So I was very happy to hear a few weeks later that I had CONQUORED all objectives and kicked the writing prompts ass and got a 4.
Looking back on it, I don’t think that I would change taking it, just spending countless hours worshiping it like the Bible I myself have grown up in [my school district] so I am very well informed about TAAS. I feel it’s a good test to take because it does test your basic knowledge of skills, but at the same time I found it to be very easy. That’s just my personal opinion and it may in fact have been harder for others to take.
My teachers in high school thoroughly prepared us but I felt they were too mechanical in their instructings. They focused too much on how the writing was supposed to be formatted and even told us how we should write our conclusions (thoughts, ideas, etc.). To me, I thought that babied us way too much. It wasn’t until my junior year of high school that there were other methods of writing and that you didn’t have to stick to just one style in a very basic format. The only reason I got that experience though was because I took AP English classes. So basically I was taught well and did very well on the TAAS, but I was taught too basically and wasn’t enlightened to other methods of writing.