Page 28 - ELG2404 April Issue 489

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COMMENT

The argument against exams

Are exams really a necessary evil? Fabio Cerpelloni speaks to teacher
and YouTuber, Christian Saunders, to get his take

Q: Christian, you have some strong difficult, time-consuming and, in some cases, mean; I was doing all of the typical things
views against language exams and tests. impossible to measure. that you do when you first start putting
What’s the reason for that? So, if I want to produce an exam that can be yourself out on social media. I know this is
To start, it’s important to divide the people administered in an automated way to millions of not related, but if you want to be successful
who are taking exams into two groups. people at the same time, I am extremely limited on those platforms, some of what you have
One group take exams because they have in the kinds of things that I can measure with to do is follow the algorithm. That can lead
to; they might need it, for example, to get it. The fact that it’s a mass-produced product you to talk about things you don’t really
a visa or a degree. As a teacher, I see this makes it a terrible product by its nature. That’s want to talk about. And that’s what I used
group completely differently from the way essentially the problem I have with exams. to do. ‘If everyone’s doing exams,’ I thought,
I see the second group, which includes the There’s plenty of empirical evidence that ‘I should make content about exams too!’
people I’m trying to reach with my ‘anti-exam’ there’s not any good correlation between exam I wouldn’t recommend watching those videos
content on YouTube. These are students who results and academic outcomes. I spoke to I made. They’re terrible and probably give
have been conditioned to believe that passing Professor Jennifer Jenkins about this issue; she’s terrible advice as well.
an exam will give them some useful measure a researcher who’s investigated problems related
of their language abilities. But I believe exams to the use of native-English-oriented tests to Q: You claim to have created the most
cannot do that. Exams don’t provide any assess the English of users from diverse first accurate English test, which people can
useful measure, certainly not in the way that languages. She’ll tell you this. It’s not just me. take on your website. I took your test
99% of students believe they do. but discovered it was not a real one as
Q: On your YouTube channel, which it’s impossible to get any of the answers
Q: What makes you say so? is currently followed by over 370,000 wrong; all of the answers to all of the
Language is an extremely complicated thing. subscribers, you used to upload videos twenty-five multiple-choice questions are
And being proficient in a language is not only to help IELTS test takers. Now you’re correct. Why did you create a test that
about being able to use the right words in against international exams. What looks authentic on the surface but, in
the right order at the right time. That’s only happened in between? reality, it’s not?
part of it. Language learning mostly involves When I started my YouTube channel, I was I designed that test hoping that whoever takes
things that are either extremely difficult or still the teacher who had a Union Jack it will have an opportunity to change their
impossible to teach. Some are also extremely hanging on my wall, if you know what I mind about exams and test scores. As of today,

28 April 2024