We now live in a relentless, evidence based race to brilliance…  or so some would say. If you can’t measure progress, current rhetoric holds that progress didn’t take place!  ergo… If you can’t test it,  don’t teach it…  some say.

Others reject regular progress testing…  but who is right?

The recent debate about a Singaporean logic/math question has highlighted the difficulty in applying and interpreting tests.  Whether Cheryl’s birthday is in July or August has become a real debate.

As it turns out,  there’s more than one way to answer this question!!  (click here for the alternative solution).  And although I am a fan of diagnostic baseline testing – this does give us an enjoyable and vital reminder of the limits of testing and the importance of looking beyond the test.

Perhaps it’s best summarised in the words of learners…

If we are to meet the challenges facing tomorrow’s scientists, then we’re going to need a little more flexibility and creativity in our education.