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TEST MONSTERS IN THE NEWS  
The front page of the Metro section of the January 10, 2006 edition of the New York Times featured Partnership with Children and its groundbreaking test preparation curriculum. But instead of focusing on math drills and reading lessons, Partnership with Children’s curriculum, Taming the Test Monster, concentrates on easing test anxiety.
Three weeks before state-wide standardized testing commences, Open Heart-Open Mind social workers visit classrooms in order to help students identify feelings of stress, anxiety and nervousness. They then discuss how these feelings manifest themselves physically – sweaty palms, beating hearts – and how they can be controlled. After some deep breathing exercises and positive visualization, social workers distribute monster templates to students and ask them to write or draw their feelings about taking the test inside the lines. The class is then instructed to crumple up their test monster and they are all locked away in a secure box which is wrapped in tape and hidden in a closet. Students are reassured that all of the negative feelings and emotions they had about taking the test are with the test monsters and won’t be able to come out until after the test. Students also receive hearts which they keep on their desks throughout the test and serve as a reminder of the love and support of their families and teachers. In the January 10th article, education journalist David M. Herszenhorn writes: “Educators say that easing pressure is not just compassionate. Because anxiety hurts academic performance, too much stress can reduce scores – not a good result when schools that fail to make progress face federal sanctions.” Indeed, independent evaluations of Partnership with Children’s Open Heart-Open Mind program repeatedly list improved test results as one of the positive impacts of the program. To view the New York Times article, please click HERE . | |||||||||
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