Educating Beyond the Test

There are many big decisions that everyone is being asked to make on November 5th. One of them is a local ballot question asking voters to decide whether or not to eliminate the MCAS tests as a graduation requirement. Standardized testing in general has long been a subject of debate. Does it provide unfair advantages to students in better schools and wealthier districts? How much instructional time is being spent preparing for the test to achieve good results rather than teaching for the sake of critical thinking and exposure to new ideas? Most importantly, what are they actually measuring and how does the content they are assessing inform their success in high school, college, or life in general? Food for thought as you cast your vote.

Whether you choose to vote yes or no on Question 2, I can assure you that there is a lot of important content that cannot be addressed by a standardized test. Education is much more than just the transmission of knowledge and skills by a teacher to the student. Given that information is at our fingertips instantly, what kinds of experiences should students have when in school? Education must include the cultivation of critical thinking skills, creativity, problem solving abilities, and ethical decision making. Education must inspire students to become lifelong learners who are adaptable to the challenges of a rapidly evolving world. All of this can happen when a teacher feels that education is a calling, not just a job. The Greek philosopher Socrates said, “The purpose of education is not to fill a vessel but to kindle a flame.” At Epstein Hillel School, talented teachers create an environment where students are engaged, curious, and supported to take risks and keep trying when they face challenges.

The curriculum at EHS in every subject and grade level is grounded in two foundational concepts: enduring understandings and essential questions. Enduring understandings represent key concepts (big ideas) that students should grasp deeply and be able to apply across different contexts. Essential questions are open-ended, thought-provoking inquiries that drive student exploration to reach enduring understandings. You may be wondering, what does this look like? Here are two examples from social studies classes at EHS: In first grade, students have a unit of study about community. One of their essential questions is: What makes a town a community? One of their enduring understandings is: In a community, there are a variety of organizations that have specific duties, uniforms, responsibilities, and goals. Now consider an example from seventh grade American history. Essential question: Do conflicts from the Civil War present themselves in modern American society? One of the enduring understandings is: Due to the development of cash crops in the agrarian South, slavery became an entrenched institution in the economy of the South. During these social studies lessons, students are also learning skills like map reading, sequencing and summarizing, and discussion leading. EHS teachers are helping students to grapple with big ideas, to ask questions, and to draw conclusions. No standardized test can measure this type of education.

One main difference between public and private school is the freedom not to be beholden to a standardized test. The impact and excellence of an EHS education can be assessed by our students’ ability to think for themselves, analyze big questions, and use their skills, experience, and knowledge to make inferences and create new ideas and solutions. We’ve recently updated the curriculum section on our website where you can learn more. The world needs more EHS graduates whose contributions will always be greater than any score on a standardized test.