3 ms·

Re: test anxiety I see this line of argument more and more over the last decade and it makes me feel heartless for my opinion. But if you know the material bu

Re: test anxiety I see this line of argument more and more over the last decade and it makes me feel heartless for my opinion. But if you know the material but cannot apply it in an examination then you either don't actually know the material or don't have the emotional (for lack of better term) control to apply it in critical situations. Both are valid reasons to be marked down.

dns_snek 9mo ago
> don't have the emotional (for lack of better term) control to apply it in critical situations No, not really, it just means you couldn't apply it in this one particular anxiety-inducing situation. If someone finds it easier to display their knowledge in a certain way then school should strive to accommodate that as best they can (obviously there are practical limitations to this). Mental health should be left to mental health professionals because you won't achieve anything by punishing students for their mental health struggles, you just make them hate you, hate school, and make their anxiety even worse.
- falcor84 9mo ago
  I would argue that "knowledge" is an almost meaningless concept on its own. What assessments measure is a more complex form of "competency", and the competency of being able to write an essay on a topic is different from the competency of passing an MCQ quiz about it and both are different from being able to apply it in the field. I don't have a clear solution, other than to have the assessments depend on what we're preparing people for. As an extreme example, I don't care how good of an essay a surgeon or anesthesiologist can write if they can't apply that under pressure.
duped 9mo ago
You're replying to something I didn't say. But on the topic of test anxiety: I think intentionally causing emotional distress to children for the purposes of making a bad evaluation of their studies is cruel. It's a kind of cycle of trauma - "I did this, so you must to." We use grades to make value judgements of the quality of our children, when what we should be measuring is the ability of our schools to educate them and not how well-educated _the kids are_. The system is backwards, basically, and the fact it causes distress as a side effect is something that _should_ be managed - not ignored. However anxiety exists and teaching children not to manage it is also bad. One of the really good things I've seen locally is that my school districts (the same that I went through as a child) focus on emotional education at the grade school level much more than when I was a kid, and I notice that the kids have much better emotional regulation than my generation.
- DiggyJohnson 9mo ago
  Apologies I must have misinterpreted what you were getting at. > I think intentionally causing emotional distress to children for the purposes of making a bad evaluation of their studies is cruel. Is this ever the intended purpose?
- Shorel 9mo ago
  This is mostly on the parents. Children should and must be allowed to fail. In fact, failure is the default outcome most of the time. I wish I had learned in childhood that doing my best was enough. Not being the best, just doing my best. But no, this is a lesson I learned from sim racing, as an adult, during the COVID-19 quarantine, as there was not much else to do. What did I learn from sim racing: — If I make a mistake, and I keep thinking about that mistake, I will just make more mistakes. Mental recovery, and not punishing myself, is a must. I must go back to mental clarity as fast as possible, to avoid making another mistake. — Sometimes, doing my best is not enough. It can even be worthless. Other people make mistakes and that will ruin your race. In a long season, this can be offset by consistently good results. “It is possible to commit no mistakes and still lose. That is not a weakness; that is life.” — Jan Luc Picard — I should not respect this driver because he has a famous last name or so. But I must respect that he did 600 laps preparing for the race. And my respect should be that I also practice as much. Preparation is important, we can't just go to a new track and expect to win. The winner is usually the best combination of general experience and event preparation. — Nothing feels better than a victory that's hard-earned, against a talented group. Easy victories just feel cheap in comparison.
Shorel 9mo ago
I'm kind of the opposite, and it concerns me. Not much, just a little. I react very well in tests and work tasks if I have some level of anxiety. What I want, is to do the same but feeling calm and happy. I don't want increased cortisone levels to get excellent results.

dns_snek 9mo ago

> don't have the emotional (for lack of better term) control to apply it in critical situations No, not really, it just means you couldn't apply it in this one particular anxiety-inducing situation. If someone finds it easier to display their knowledge in a certain way then school should strive to accommodate that as best they can (obviously there are practical limitations to this). Mental health should be left to mental health professionals because you won't achieve anything by punishing students for their mental health struggles, you just make them hate you, hate school, and make their anxiety even worse.

falcor84 9mo ago
I would argue that "knowledge" is an almost meaningless concept on its own. What assessments measure is a more complex form of "competency", and the competency of being able to write an essay on a topic is different from the competency of passing an MCQ quiz about it and both are different from being able to apply it in the field. I don't have a clear solution, other than to have the assessments depend on what we're preparing people for. As an extreme example, I don't care how good of an essay a surgeon or anesthesiologist can write if they can't apply that under pressure.

duped 9mo ago

You're replying to something I didn't say. But on the topic of test anxiety: I think intentionally causing emotional distress to children for the purposes of making a bad evaluation of their studies is cruel. It's a kind of cycle of trauma - "I did this, so you must to." We use grades to make value judgements of the quality of our children, when what we should be measuring is the ability of our schools to educate them and not how well-educated _the kids are_. The system is backwards, basically, and the fact it causes distress as a side effect is something that _should_ be managed - not ignored. However anxiety exists and teaching children not to manage it is also bad. One of the really good things I've seen locally is that my school districts (the same that I went through as a child) focus on emotional education at the grade school level much more than when I was a kid, and I notice that the kids have much better emotional regulation than my generation.

DiggyJohnson 9mo ago
Apologies I must have misinterpreted what you were getting at. > I think intentionally causing emotional distress to children for the purposes of making a bad evaluation of their studies is cruel. Is this ever the intended purpose?
Shorel 9mo ago
This is mostly on the parents. Children should and must be allowed to fail. In fact, failure is the default outcome most of the time. I wish I had learned in childhood that doing my best was enough. Not being the best, just doing my best. But no, this is a lesson I learned from sim racing, as an adult, during the COVID-19 quarantine, as there was not much else to do. What did I learn from sim racing: — If I make a mistake, and I keep thinking about that mistake, I will just make more mistakes. Mental recovery, and not punishing myself, is a must. I must go back to mental clarity as fast as possible, to avoid making another mistake. — Sometimes, doing my best is not enough. It can even be worthless. Other people make mistakes and that will ruin your race. In a long season, this can be offset by consistently good results. “It is possible to commit no mistakes and still lose. That is not a weakness; that is life.” — Jan Luc Picard — I should not respect this driver because he has a famous last name or so. But I must respect that he did 600 laps preparing for the race. And my respect should be that I also practice as much. Preparation is important, we can't just go to a new track and expect to win. The winner is usually the best combination of general experience and event preparation. — Nothing feels better than a victory that's hard-earned, against a talented group. Easy victories just feel cheap in comparison.

Shorel 9mo ago

I'm kind of the opposite, and it concerns me. Not much, just a little. I react very well in tests and work tasks if I have some level of anxiety. What I want, is to do the same but feeling calm and happy. I don't want increased cortisone levels to get excellent results.