April twenty-sixth through thirtieth was TAKS, or Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills, week at RHS. There were mixed opinions from people around campus about the test. Some thought it was easy, others felt as though it was more difficult. Many people believed that the time length allowed to the test takers was long enough, however, some felt differently. “Some people aren’t good test takers, so the TAKS is not a good way to determine if they advance.” said student Toni Schmidt.
The TAKS test decides whether or not a student can move on to the next grade. This is considered fair by some; student David Carley believes that “It is a good way to tell, because TAKS is the basics of school learning. If you don’t pass it, you are definitely not ready for the next grade.” Others, however, feel otherwise. “It’s not fair, because you could have a bad testing day, but still be a straight A student.” argues Rayna D’Andrea.
So how is TAKS different from finals? For one thing, TAKS is over fewer subjects. Sophomores at RHS took a Math, Science, and World History TAKS while the freshmen class took a practice Science, real Math, and then a practice Social Studies. Finals are also often times longer and harder, and there is one in every subject.
The TAKS test is considered fair by some, however, some students, such as Jorge Mena say that “I don’t think a test should tell what you know. It’s not really fair.” Lauren Hammond agrees, “I think if you pass all of your classes you shouldn’t have to take TAKS.”
However, others disagree. Leslie Tate’s opinion is that “It’s the state’s responsibility to make us take TAKS.”
Louis Bonilla agrees, “TAKS is a great way to measure your abilities.”