I was recently asked to write a letter to the editor. I chose to write about the science classes on Miami University's campus. As a student in that field, I have found the assessment system disheartening and extremely worrisome. My letter to the editor was therefore written to discuss the depressing context of the assessments and how detrimental it can be to its students. |
To Whom It May Concern:
This letter is in response to Carolina Bax’s article in the Oxford Student, “We deserve a fifth week break, not blues”. One quote stuck out to me. Bax stated, “… there is also no denial that there is a very significant difference between high standards, and standards which in turn are ignorant of student wellbeing.” Though I don’t necessarily agree with her about the need for a fifth week break, I do strongly agree with this statement in terms of how high the standards on students are today at Miami University in the science field.
Speaking as a science education major on Oxford’s campus, I realize just how detrimental the harsh instruction and large-scale, all-or-nothing examinations are. The science classes at Miami only test student knowledge through one form of assessment: an exam. These courses are always lecture-based and they do not allow the students to learn through any other instructional methods. Students learn through being engaged in the content, not through the regurgitation of facts they memorized in lecture. Two or three exams are not enough to insure that the student actually retained the information, nor are they able to determine a student’s true potential in the science content.
Such high stakes testing is also detrimental to student mental health. The stress of only having a couple grades determine one’s final in the class is a ton of pressure. The science department needs to come together to work out a strategy that promotes different instructional methods other than lectures and a different way to assess these students. The students’ mental health and learning development depend upon it.