A former student of mine was doing a research paper for an education class she’s taking, and one of the prompts that she had to deal with was the following statement:

"Testing is the best way to measure a students potential to succeed"

So she asked me what I thought about the quote… here’s what I wrote back.

Tests don’t come close to measuring potential. At best, a test measures what a student can repeat back, what content a student can demonstrate at a moment in time. But a test often doesn’t even measure knowledge or ability because it is too often based on the assumptions and biases of the test-makers.

But the problem is even deeper than that. With a test there is a right answer… a finality. Cram for the test, take the test, forget the test, and once the answers are right, what more is there to do? But in project-based learning, the student must find their own entry into the material, their own path and their own end. There’s no such thing as a 100% on a project, because there is always room for revision, reflection. There’s always another question that research creates. Project-based learning can measure the snapshot of what skills and content a student has mastered in a moment better than a test, but more importantly, project-based learning allows students to see learning not as something with an end, but an ever-expanding journey.

What do you all think about the statement?