Students try to stay motivated during MAP testing

By Armani Colvin 

News Reporter .

Schools are familiar with MAP testing as a tool for checking student progress; however, some students complain that their test scores do not actually represent their knowledge. There is a tendency among some students to justify not giving it their best shot on the test by pointing out that their grades on report cards do not depend on it.

Student Adelaide Brier checks her MAP score. Photo by Ontarrio Randle.

Teachers, on the other hand, are concerned about students’ progress since they can use the test scores for that purpose, but the students themselves are not really convinced of the test's effectiveness when there is hardly any motivation.

"I really don't believe MAP testing is completely pointless, but most of the students just don't really take it seriously, " junior Kareem Nardi said. "Similarly, people just pick random answers because their grades won't be affected."

Disregarding the significance of MAP testing is a common thing among students, as it doesn't have any direct impact on their class grades. In the absence of such a measure, some spend only a little time on the test, so that, if done, the results might not be as accurate for both students and teachers.

"That's why most of the time the test results don't really reflect the knowledge of the majority of the students, " Jemari Johnson explained. "But if students were more interested and it really had a meaning, then it could be a very good method of learning."

For some, MAP testing is just a necessary chore rather than an academic development opportunity. Students mostly invest their time and energy in those tasks and exams that are going to influence their GPA, thus leaving standardized tests at a lower level of their priorities.

Freshman James Robertson expressed that probably no one really cares about MAP testing. He justified by saying students only really care about those tests and assignments that are graded, and which affect their grades directly. Whatever a studentś result is in the test, it's still possible to do well in your classes. A great number of students don't really put in any effort, he pointed out.

On the other hand, not all people regard MAP testing as a negative thing. Some even think that if handled properly, it could become a useful tool. They highlight the teachers, by analyzing.

The results of MAP can have a clearer picture of a student's strengths and weaknesses, which, at the end of the day, impacts the guidance of the instruction.