The Weight of Testing Season

State standardized testing season is in full swing here in the great state of Texas. It’s been three years since I’ve administered a test, and I must say… I don’t miss it at all.

The weeks after spring break leading up to testing are a lot. Teachers and students are locked in on review (strategies, small groups, pulling data) everything is centered around preparing for these exams.

And honestly, it feels like a performance.

Yes, the goal is to assess what students have learned over the year. I understand that. But these exams in Texas are long and very rigorous. Reading and math alone can be around 40–50 questions, and they’re not just multiple choice anymore! There are short responses, extended responses (yes, in elementary school too)… it’s a lot.

And that’s just the state test.

That doesn’t include all the other assessments students take throughout the year—district exams, reading level checks, beginning, middle, and end-of-year testing. By the time students get to the state test, they’ve already been tested over and over again.

I recently had  a conversation with a colleague at one of the firms I work with. I had reposted something on LinkedIn that said, “Teachers and students are more than a test score,” and he asked me about it. He felt like tests were a good way to see what students had learned.

And I get that.

But when I explained what these tests actually look like (the length, the rigor, everything stacked on top of each other) his perspective changed pretty quickly.

Because it’s not just a test.

It’s the amount. It’s the pressure. It’s what’s attached to it.

The data from these tests gets picked apart every year, and now some districts in Texas are moving toward performance-based pay, where teachers are incentivized based on how their students perform.

And that’s where things start to feel… off.

Because what does that actually look like?

Grade levels that take STAAR are tied to those scores, but what about lower grades? What are they being measured on? And how is that fair across the board?

Not to mention the differences between schools within the same district. Some schools have more resources than others. Demographics play a role. Access plays a role. All of it matters.

So how do you fairly tie pay to performance in a system that isn’t equal to begin with?

And it just makes me keep coming back to this question:

Who is the test really helping?

Teachers are stressed and burnt out, constantly reviewing, trying to give everything they can. And sometimes, despite all of that, students still struggle or they just don’t engage. And somehow, that can still fall back on the teacher.

Students feel it too. The pressure. The anxiety. That feeling of “I don’t get this,” or “this is too much.” And sometimes the content just isn’t developmentally appropriate for where they are.

And in all of this, something important gets pushed aside.

Time to explore.
Time to make connections.
Time to just… learn in a way that feels natural.

Because learning isn’t just about answering questions on a test. It’s about conversations. Curiosity. Making sense of the world.

Sometimes I think about the people who design these tests, and I can’t help but wonder how long it’s been since they’ve actually been in a classroom. Or if they truly understand what teachers and students are navigating right now.

Because what teachers and students need isn’t more testing.

They need support.
They need time.
They need space to breathe and actually engage with learning.

And yet, it feels like we’re moving in the opposite direction.

A recent bill was passed that could increase the number of required state tests from 15 to 51 for students in grades 3–8.

Fifty-one.

And that’s honestly hard to wrap my head around.

Because if this is the direction we’re going, I can’t help but wonder what the classroom will look like in the next few years.