Multiple choice: The most popular testing style in school. Students get their scantron and a test sheet, then go through the questions and bubble the right answers.

Many students might think that this is a perfect way to take a test, since the answer is already on the sheet and they don’t have to think too hard, but that is exactly the problem.

Multiple choice tests simply demonstrate how well you can guess or memorize. In my opinion, school should not be about how well students can score on a test but about how well they remember and can use their newly learned skills.  Students may not be afraid of taking multiple choice tests because they are easier, whereas in other countries students sometimes get a phobia of taking tests because they are so difficult.

In class, run on multiple choice tests can be used for practice. For actual tests it would be more effective to write because it requires students to organize their thoughts and demonstrate their knowledge. If all teachers would discuss the test with the class after taking it so students would know what they did wrong, then they would be able to remember the right answer. Most teachers do not do this, which is why students keep the wrong answer in mind and do not learn from their mistakes.

School should be preparation for our upcoming life, and I promise that students will not be bubbling letters later but writing sentences, solving math problems and using what they are learning in school. In high school, the focus has shifted to grades, however what students learn and know afterwards is much more important.