Exams Aren't the Enemy: How Tests Can Help Low-Income Students

The recent cheating scandal in Atlanta is a reminder to teachers not to let anxiety over high-stakes testing diminish high-quality instruction. The idea that testing is incompatible with educating is nonsense. The idea that low-income students can't pass the test without their teachers cheating or "teaching the test" all year is just bad pedagogy. We must continue to be passionate and skillful teachers of critical thinking, writing and reading. And we must also continue to test our students. I am convinced that the combination of the two is what leads my students to success.