PARCC Exams Feel Stuck In Park

Student taking computerized test

Student taking computerized test

The PARCC assessment is a national exam given to students in certain subjects to see their overall knowledge in a class they have taken. PARCC assessments involve Algebra 1 and English 10. There are also HSA’s which stand for High School Assessment which are given to students in certain classes as well.

Most students have to take at least one of these tests every year, and most are not looking forward to it. The reason they don’t like it is either the fact that it is a very long and boring test or that if students fail, they have to retake the exam until they pass or they will not be allowed to graduate.

The PARCC stands for “The Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers”, but sophomore Aaron Heller states it should stand for, “ People Attending Really Crappy Classes.” There are many students like Heller that dislike the PARCC, but there are also a lot that like the PARCC.

Even though a lot of students do not like the PARCC, a lot of students have mixed emotions towards it. Sophomore Kayleigh Nelson said, “ I think it is good, us students need to show mastery in the things we learn, this is the way to do that.”

I think when we take these classes we should need to be tested on what we have learned, but some students believe we are being tested on things we didn’t learn.

Heller stated, “Algebra did not have content I learned or could understand.”

I feel like many students did not like the assessment just because it was very long, but some students like Nelson thought the amount of time given was appropriate and thought there should even be more time. I honestly don’t think the amount of time given affected the students results, but there are a lot of students that are very different test taking techniques, so you never know.

One big concern I have with the PARCC is that it is computerized and it limits my ability to work out problems. Math is a subject where you can show the correct answer in many different ways, but with a computer it limits those answer options and I think that affected my score.

Sophomore Emma McGrath said, “I did not like the fact that it was all computerized, I found it was difficult to take and focus on the computer, Also there were not many tools so I would have preferred to have hard copies of everything.”

There are always two or more opinions to one topic, sophomore Joshua Naymik argued. “ I like the computer, it is easier to go back to questions, and I can review faster,” Naymik added.

The fact of the matter is there are many different types of test takers, so for something that decides if someone graduates, I think the test has to many negative opinions towards it. I like the idea of the test, but don’t like the actual test itself.