The National Association of Head Teachers in the UK has issued a report calling for the National Curriculum tests, the British version of the No Child Left Behind regime, to be scrapped. The group fears that the continuous batteries of tests that have made their students (pupils, as they say) the most tested in the world, are putting undue pressure on the students and limiting the effectiveness of teaching. British students are given compulsory exams at ages 5, 7, 11, 14, 16, 17, and 18, with optional tests at 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, and 13 just for funsies. And you thought American students were testing their brains out.
The NAHT would like the current system to be dumped in favor of a more informal process by which students are evaluated intermittently. Results would be communicated to parents instead of being published in tables. The group worries that teachers are simply teaching to the tests, and that students believe they are the only thing that matters in school. The general secretary of the group, Mick Brookes, told the Telegraph that, "Teaching to the test is having a disastrous effect on the curriculum and on children." Sue Palmer, an author who wrote a book about the British testing regime said, "I've spoken to many children who are convinced that their performance at the age of 11 on a batch of papers will determine their future chances of happiness." Despite the rigorous testing, the UK has dropped out of the top 10 rankings in math, reading, and science internationally.
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