英语美文：说考试

Do Examinations Do More Harm Than Good?

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On Eggs and Exams

Ive been acting like an egg striking a rock. What is this egg? Its the campaign against the old-fashioned way of teaching . And what s the rock? It s the old-fashioned way of setting exams. So long as the old type of I.R. examination remains in force, the campaign against the old method of teaching I.R. cant win. Its like an egg striking a rock. Many people agree： Yes, this old-fashioned I.R. (OFIR) is certainly intensive; it calls for most intensive work by the students. But it doesnt teach them how to read. The more intensively the students study, the fewer books they read. And OFIR doesnt teach them language well either. Learning a language means learning to use it. OFIR doesnt do that. It teaches mainly about the language.

Well, if so many teachers and students agree that OFIR doesnt teach people how to read, why arent they willing to give it up? Because of that rock - the rock of the old examination system. If that rock is not smashed, the egg is smashed. The campaign against OFIR cant be won.

Many I. R. exams, until now, have actually includec reading material studied during the term. Does that examim how well the students have learnt to read? No. It examine how well they have learnt by heart the reading texts and the explanations the teacher has given them. A student might ge high marks on such .a test without having learnt to read much better than before she took the course. A true test would consist of unseen passages. That would show how well a studew could read and how much she had learnt.