When Grades Become the Point and Learning Gets Lost

“I still have nightmares now about it being the day of an exam, and I haven’t revised.” 

Wise words from my dad that I can still hear as an adult. Words that many can relate to. 

This is normalised and wide-spread trauma – but is it justified? 

Standardised testing has become so central to a state education, that many might (understandably) describe the resulting grades as being “the point of school”. 

Here are some of the main flaws with standardised testing (from one of my favourites, Alfie Kohn): 

1)     Superficial Learning – high test scores often reflect rote memorisation and shallow understanding, not deep or creative thinking

2)     Misleading Measurement – test results are strongly correlated with socioeconomic status and reveal little about teaching quality or individual learning

3)     Damages Motivation - Exams sap students’ intrinsic motivation to learn, replacing curiosity with anxiety and compliance

4)     Harmful to Equity – standardised exams disproportionately harm low-income and minority students, increasing educational inequality, focussing on testable skills rather than real learning

5)     Narrow Curriculum - Testing pressures drive schools to narrow their curriculum, encourage ‘teaching to the test’, and promote drill-and-skill activities at the expense of rich, engaging learning experiences

The negative impact of standardised testing is no secret – around 80% of private schools refuse to take part, opting instead for more meaningful assessment methods, geared towards supporting meaningful learning and tracking real progress.

Want your child to escape the negative impacts of the state school system? 

If the idea of doing things better appeals to you, sign up for our waiting list now on our Admissions page.