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well in my
school unless you really needed it than you really didnít go over anything
in the TAAS we did some things but not like the TAAS remedial class did
The test i thought was easy and it was every day classes that we had and
that was on the test.
Well since we took the TAAS test three times before they let us graduate high school, of course I have lots of memories. The first time we took it in the third grade was the best. The teachers were so anxious to get us to do well that they tried everything, from playing games, to giving us food to motivate us. When you are that young of course you will be kind of scared when that is all that is being emphasized and you feel the pressure.
The second time you take the TAAS is in junior high. So you have an idea of what to expect, especially since you spend half the time working on old TAAS tests that the teachers have stapled together to give us hours and hours of practice. Itís not as fun any more. There are no fun games. However they would bring snacks and stuff for the day of the test, they claim it will make us more comfortable. The pressure is really up there now because the teachers do expect so much from you since they have spent so much time on it.
The last and final time we take the TAAS is our sophomore year in high school, this is the big one. Now we are told that we cannot graduate unless you pass this test. They set up special classes for kids who need more help, boy did I feel bad for them there whole lives were TAAS. In my English class the focus was anything but TAAS, she expected us to be able to handle it. That was fine for the class, things were more fun we did not spend every class period working on old tests. But when the day came it sunk in I had had no practice! I was nervous but once I started I was fine.
Overall the
TAAS test is just a great way for the state to make sure each school is
doing the minimum. Though when a school is good it slows the students down.
I donít think it was a good educational experience, they are just basic
skills we would have learned anyway.
Well when I
was going to take the TAAS I was very nervous because I did not speak english
very well. I was in tenth grade and I had barely lived one year in the
United States. Before that I was in Mexico. It was hard for me because
I thought I was going to get a hard topic. But in ninth grade my teacher
had taught me very well the procedures of how to do a paper for the TAAS.
I thougt I was I going to have to do it several times. I was surprised
wen I got the results and passed all three portions. I would like to talk
more about this but I have no time.
Well when I
was in the third grade we started preparing for the taas test. From that
day forward all the work we did till my sophmore was all about how to prepare
for the taas. We started writing descriptive, how to, and persuasive paragraphs
in school. We probably had to write three hundred of those paragraphs.
Our school was based around the taas and its requirements. We even had
a class that was all about getting ready for taas. I think that the schools
waist a lot of time trying to prepare everyone for the taas format of testing
that they donít spend time actually teaching us information that we would
actually need to know in the future. I feel that the taas test has a lot
of stuff that is now being said to be wrong by my teachers. And all the
taas formatting that we spent so much time on is just waist of time because
I will never use it again.
Well, like
every other English class that wasnít special education, we didnít really
prepare much at all for TAAS. When it was coming up, we didnít even practice
write more so we could develop our writing skills. About the scoring, I
always did quite well but I know that many people did not. Public schools
do not prepare you for what they expect you to do. We never did any practice
work to help us get ready for standardized tests only the teacherís exams.
Sadly, this is not exclusive to high school. It goes all the way back to
elementary school. Very few children are lucky enough to have a teacher
who presses them to understand and be able to succeed at TAAS and other
standardized tests. I truly feel that they should be abolished just for
the sake of those people who donít take tests well. To have their entire
life based upon how well they did on SAT so they can get into a college
is a lot of stress and many people just canít handle it. I think itís cruel
for society to force them into minimum wage jobs just because they get
test anxiety. It shouldnít be the deciding factor in their lives. Even
with TAAS, if you donít pass, you donít even graduate. Thatís way too harsh
on some dumb test that does absolutely nothing to further our education
or test our knowledge.
Well, what
can I say about TAAS in high school? I really spent a lot of time studying
and preparing for this particular test, Especially for the TASP. I prepared
for the test by taking practice tests and answer tests on the web site.
I was physically ready for the test, but mentally I think I wasnít quite
ready because my results were bad. Over all, I think the test is a good
experience because you really know where you stand and where you need more
help and improvement. Letting the TASP test be some what like a college
extrance exam is dumb because many students at that time is scared about
going to college, tensed, feeling home sick already, etc. I think it should
be given in college, but should not have to be something you have to take
and without it, it is impossible to attend any University in Texas. It
should at least be given during college to see where everyone stands.
What was TAAS testing like for me? Well as you may already know we were the experimental age for the TAAS testing program it seemed as if almost every year they were changing the year to the next year as the year to take the TAAS test (again). This being the case we were always doing class preparations and practice tests to keep ourselves on track for the next real test.
My experiences
with the TAAS test preparation in my English class sophomore year the official
year to take the TAAS test was one of great memory. Most of our lessons
that year some how connected back to our getting ready for the TAAS tests.
We would write numerous timed writings based on past prompts and do SEVERAL
multiple-choice tests an average of about three days a week. I personally
feel that I was extremely prepared for the test and in turn on the writing
portion of the exam specifically remember getting a four. It however wasnít
quite as difficult as I thought it would be but it wasnít too easy either.
I know Iíve heard now that many people believe that the test has become
to easy and that they would like to up the standards so to speak. I believe
that they should, the writing portion of the exam could be a little more
dynamic and atleast one step up in difficulty. But then again I also greatly
enjoy writing and its my strong point whereas others may have done better
on the multiple choice section. Over all I never really had any problems
or issues with the test and my experience was beneficial, the real hard
part came next with preparing for the English AP test.
What was the
TAAS experience like for me? As a student in my sophmore english class,
Iím sorry to say that to me, it wasnít much and pretty boring. To me, they
should have had optional TAAS tutoring rather than waste half the english
class everyday, for months, just to prepare for TAAS. My high school had
block scheduling (1 hr class periods.) Forty-five minutes was a long time
to go over basic English principles. But we did, every day, for months.
But, in the end, I guess it paid off. Even though I didnít take it very
seriously, I did pretty well. During the test was the most gruelling. I
spent the time wondering, ìWhy didnít I pay attention in class?î When the
results came back I was prepared for the worst. Turned out I had no need
to worry. I had made a 4 on the written part and had gotten every single
question correct. A Perfect Score!
What was the
TAAS experience like for you as a student in English classes? Describe
your activities and feelings as you prepared for these exams, took them,
and learned of the results. Overall, was it a good educational experience
for you? In the weeks prior to examination my learning activities were
directed towards mastery of the TAAS. As I reviewed during class I felt
that the test would be an easy one if it was like the reviews. I felt as
if I was prepared for the test and that I would do well on it because our
teacher had prepared us so well. As I entered the testing room and began
my exam I felt confident that my results would be exemplary because I was
prepared for the TAAS. When I received the results they were as good as
I had expected them to be. My learning experience from the TAAS was good
because I passed the exam and did not have to take the TASP.
When I first
moved to Corpus Christi in 1997 I had no idea what a TAAS test was. I had
been living in Maryland for the past two years and only taken one standardized
test, the MSPAP, which stands for Maryland State something or other. In
my freshman English class the teacher was constantly referring to the TAAS
reading section, or the TAAS writing section, and what the graders would
be looking for, and how to get a four or a one, I forget which was better.
We spent all of freshman year and half of sophomore year doing this. When
test time finally came I was pretty confident that the TAAS would be like
every other ìbig, importantî test I had taken. I was right. The writing
prompt had to do with improving the lives of American citizens, so I said
we should put more money into public school systems, which earned me an
extremely high grade and academic recognition. I also did very well on
the reading section, but the math section was another story. I passed,
but not with the grade I had hoped for. I am blaming this on my freshman
math teacher, who, in my opinion, is the most wretched person on the face
of the earth. In the end I was satisfied with my scores and the fact that
I had passed. I donít feel that the TAAS is really that different from
other standardized tests, itís just that teachers and school officials
make such a big deal out of it.
When I had
to take the TAAS test it was stupid. All of my classes were dumed down
to teach the TAAS test. We had prompts to do every day to prepare us for
the types of questions that would be on the test. No one ever studied outside
of school for it because we got it beaten into our heads all day long.
After we took the test, my teachers had nothing else to do so we did nothing
except watch movies.
When I moved
to Texas last summer, my high school counseler had made a big deal about
me passing the TAAS. He put me in a TAAS Review class, a class that helpes
me prepeare for the test. Honestly It was a good refresher. I clearly liked
it because it reviewed everything that was basic, the degree of difficultty
I believe is nessary because I think it is good review. There is know point
reviewing something that is as difficult as the SAT. Really I think you
you can do without the TASP or the placement test.
When I read
the question of how I felt being an English student taking the test, I
was a little confused. I mean I know that English is a big part of the
exam, but I always did so well on that part. I did okay on the writing
part. One year I had such a great English teacher that it helped me so
much on the writing that I made a 4. Every time I thought of TAAS, I thought
of math because I am not good in math at all. I had 2 years of taas review
and still barely passed the math part. When I took the taas my sophomore
year in highschool I was over average on the english part.
When I took
the TAAS test I felt it was very stressful. The last time I took it was
when I was a sophomore in high school. They told me if I did not pass than
I could not move on to be a junior. So when they gave me the actual test
I looked at it as harder than it actually was. In my school we prepared
for it every day in English class along with our normal work. We had a
packet that we had to complete each class period until the test. I do feel
it helped me study. Overall the TAAS test was a stressful experience for
me.
When I took
the Taas test I found it not very difficult at all. Most of the material
on there was 8th grade material, so taking it in high school was pretty
much a waste of time. I think that the Taas should not have even been taken
in high school, it taught nothing nor helped us in any way.
When I was
faced with the TAAS, I had just moved to [X], TX and didnít have any preparation
for the test. I did not like the fact that you had to pass the TAAS to
graduate even though it wasnít really a big worry. My only problem with
the test was the math portion. That I felt I could have had more preparation
for just because I wasnít used to any of these exams. I feel that the TAAS
got me ready for the TASP, which was a good experience. I didnít have any
problems with the English section except that I ran out of things to talk
about. But pretty much for being from another state and not having ìoutsideî
help, the TAAS wasnít that challenging.
When I was
in high school all of the teachers were allways talking about the taas
and the act. They worked us and worked us on getting ready for the taas
and the act, and little or no time on other things. The problem arouse
when I took my first College algebra class. The teachers had spent so much
of our precious time teaching us the taas matterial that when the teacher
put something that was not on the tests on the board I was clueless. Not
knowing what to do; trying my best was not good enough because I just did
not know the matterial. So in the end I did pass the TAAS and the ACT but
at what cost.
When I was
in my English classes and the teacher made us keep practicing for the TAAS
over and over again, I started to get tired of it all. I would wonder why
do I need to learn all this stuff again when I already know it. It was
usually boring and I would most of the time fall to sleep. I would start
to complain about it all the time till the teacher got sick of it. I hated
when I would finish before time because then I would have to sit there
and wait for my friends to finish before I could talk to them. When I finally
did take the TAAS, it was so boring that I wanted to go to sleep. I finished
all the sections really fast and got to leave as soon as they let me. I
was so relieved that it was over with once and for all. When I got my results
back I was happy that I passed each section and didnít missed one on the
math section. I was mad that I wasnít excempt because all I needed was
20 more points.
When I was
introduced to Taas I never took it seriously until I failed. When I was
in a Taas preparation class is when I learned a lot. My teacher really
got us thinking about TAAS. I was nervous taking the TAAS because it all
depends if you pass or fail. But even if you fail you still have a chance
to retake the test and improve. Though I donít think the TAAS should be
taken in school. Even when we passed it we didnít get rewarded.
When I was in high school the TAAS test was on everybodies mind but mine. The day the test came around I went in there without a care in the world. I didnít think that the test was hard at all just boring. I didnít understand why this test was so important and why teachers and school faculty made such a big deal. I canít remember my score but if I remember correctly I mastered one section and was 1 or 2 points short a mastering the math. I never put any time or thought into this test. If I had maybe I would have mastered the whole thing. But I didnít and it makes me mad that people make such a big deal because a test made them look, to be blunt, stupid. When I saw the test it was simple math and the correction of phrases. If you know English I think anyone can pass. Being lazy is what makes a failure.
While I was in my English classes, they made the TAAS a very important thing. The teachers made sure that we understood the prompts and could write long enough to earn a four. In my opinion, it wasnít at all what they said it would be. I believe it was very easy and although I could have done better I have gotten a three on every one but a four on the TAAS in middle school. I never really prepared for the test or anything I just wrote on the day it came. It was a good educational experience but I wish that the teachers wouldnt have made it seem like it was going to help us forever. so far the stuff that they taught, hasnt helped in college.
With the TASP
it is a good way to judge the quality of ones skills. This enables the
education system to place someone in the correct class or field rather
than do it by trial and error. The one thing that makes me appreciate it
a bit more than most is that I did not have to take it directly out of
high school. I had a chance to take a break from the bombardment of test
taking and in that break I could reassess my feelings toward the test taking
process. While youíre in high school you really do not give standardized
test that much weight because of the fact that you have "more important
things on your mind." When I took the ACT I did not try to pass it I just
wanted to finish it and get out of there, it was a Saturday and I had more
important things to do.