Exams Are An Out-Dated Concept To Test For Ability And Intelligence

From someone who grew up as the 'top girl' in her class. 

For this article, ‘exam’ refers to educational exams that have regulations such as no talking, no help sheets, and a short time limit. 

I hold a large issue with defining intelligence based on memory recall. The education system is built on moulding capabilities on how to learn information for recall later on in high-pressure circumstances. 

A quick Google search under the term ‘Mental health and exams’ brings up multiple articles including an NHS page under ‘Mental health and wellbeing’ titled ‘Help your child beat exam stress’, and an Independent article from May 2019 that states:

“Exam pressure is affecting children’s mental health, according to nearly two in three parents surveyed for a new poll – with more than a third saying their children have lost sleep due to anxiety about results. […] More than one in 10 respondents, with children aged 13 or over, said exam pressure affected their own child’s wellbeing “severely” […] one in five parents of school-aged children said that their child has been in tears because of results pressure.”

When I was ten (Year 6) the BBC came to my school to film in our classrooms as our head teacher at the time was leading a campaign against SATs. My core memories that year include the BBC cameras, revision folders, and constant test papers. Feeling very stressed about the regulations, being silent and enduring timed assessments is overwhelmingly present in those memories. Ten years later, SATs have still not been scrapped and the final year of primary education still includes an immense focus on these exams, as opposed to nurturing individual abilities. 

Children are given a two year break before they are told to narrow down their options with GCSE subjects. The next two years are geared towards memorising and recalling information in a set layout to gain marks as a way to define ‘intelligence’. The pressure and the stress that comes with it is immense. The enjoyment of learning is stripped away as knowledge becomes contained and placed into a 2+2=4 layout. But what happens when you work in a 14-5a=4 way? What happens when you are able to learn the information but cannot crack the code in your answers to meet the criteria that is set by exam boards?

If you can't explain it to a six year oldyou don't understand it yourself.” ― Albert Einstein 

To truly understand a topic, you need to be able to break down the information and present it in a way that is teachable. I have held onto that thought for years now. I always ask the ‘but why?’ questions so I understand all the variations and in turn be able to teach it to someone else. Luckily, in some ways, I grew up as a student who was relied on to help their peers understand content, and I also taught outside of the classroom at my dance school. The method of breaking down information has proven helpful with my work in communications as it serves as a reminder to step outside of any additional knowledge I have and test if the content can be understood by the target audience. 

There are many other ways that intelligence and capabilities can be tested. At university for example, they brought in learning journals. The student wrote a reflective piece after each seminar to demonstrate their own understanding and knowledge as the module progressed whilst adding in their own thoughts to the general discussion. 

Open book exams remove the stress that memorising primary content can induce and more often than not, is met with relief from students. It allows more time to focus on their own analysis and properly understanding the content. Removing that intense stress level, which can snowball into a fight/flight/freeze response, enables the brain to take in knowledge and to truly process the information at hand.

Society teaches that exams are the primary way to assess success. Students are only really able to see a difference at college / university where the learning styles alter from the standard. Many career pathways celebrate practically understanding rather than fitting into a box designed for a huge cohort, and is definitely not talked about as much as it should. 

Pushing everyone to fit into a singular box is not always going to be beneficial outside the situation of memory recall. The mantra that the way a student may understand the world is not good enough because they don’t fit into the box, has the potential to demotivate. The idyllic solution would be to help the student find the area in society that they excel in and support them to blossom there.

“Our culture is teaching girls to embrace a version of selfhood that sharply curtails their power and potential. In particular, the pressure to be “Good” — unerringly nice, polite, modest, and selfless — diminishes girls’ authenticity and personal authority. 

The Curse of the Good Girl erects a psychological glass ceiling that begins its destructive sprawl in girlhood and extends across the female life span, stunting the growth of skills and habits essential to becoming a strong woman.” – Rachel Simmons, The Curse of the Good Girl

Striving for perfection and meeting criteria reflects the Good Girl model. The Good Girl is raised to be selfless, respectful, and polite. However, in being so, they are cursed into a position that reduces them. Good Girls are not risk-takers: there are few of them in the high-earning fields such as technology where that quality is rewarded. They are also primarily focused upon being liked, and therefore can compromise their self-identity to be likeable as opposed to making choices for themselves and their own gain. A female that follows the characteristics of assertive, decision maker and selfish, is branded as the Bad Girl and punished by society for it. The Good Girl character type teaches obedience, to listen to rules, and wait for feedback. However, even with feedback, the girl is so focused on presenting a perfect image that she can become unable to understand the comments to improve: trapping her in a stationary position which she is unable to move on from. 

The variation in how the sexes are brought up influences this as well. Males are taught to react differently to life compared to their female counterparts. From example, females are taught to protect themselves, internalising that they are weak and need protecting from the stronger sex. The submissive female is further produced through only exposing children to females in carer positions and males in positions that hold qualities of the Bad Girl, confirming that females follow and males lead. In order to break the ceiling, girls need to transition from the Good Girl to a Strong Girl with emphasis on the self; building credibility and respect over fitting in to be liked; and understanding how to manage conflict so instances of backing down to be polite are diminished. These limiting qualities are at the core of the current educational system which discourages thinking outside of the box.  

Education becomes ruled by memory cramming as opposed to asking the ‘why questions’ and further exploring content. I can recall many instances when I was met with ‘but you don’t need to know why to pass the exam, you just need to know this part, so only focus on that.’ The current system limits student exploration and in the long run can turn them against education as the lack of success is presented as a conclusive statement that they hold low intelligence. 

Whilst I understand that a system to test capabilities in certain areas is needed, i.e. for situations which require the use of memory with no further aid, the restrictions on how a diverse cohort is assessed do not sit right for me. Especially when revision gets to the point that it becomes ‘you don’t need to understand why the process is that way you just need to recall it’ - and I personally see no point to that side of education. The current system is also built to be ableist, neglecting students who need accessibility requirements for them to reach their full potential. However, due to the workplaces changes that have occurred as a result of the pandemic, I hold some hope that this attention to individuality can extend outwards into educational settings. 

If you require support for exam stress, follow the links below:

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/stress-anxiety-depression/coping-with-exam-stress/ 

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/education-news/parents-exams-mental-health-children-gcses-levels-sats-mumsnet-a8913406.html

For more information on ‘The Curse of the Good Girl’:

https://www.today.com/popculture/why-being-good-girl-can-be-bad-wbna32631120

https://sciencenorway.no/forskningno-gender-and-society-norway/why-are-we-so-obsessed-with-good-girls/1431050

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/24/opinion/sunday/girls-parents-boys-gender.html

https://www.forbes.com/sites/work-in-progress/2011/10/28/five-tips-to-solve-the-good-girl-curse/

https://www.psychologytoday.com/gb/blog/the-path-passionate-happiness/201802/5-ways-escape-good-girl-syndrome


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Written by Megan Siarey

Megan uses social media to dismantle mental ill health stigmas and open discussions about disability discrimination.

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