All students can agree that whether it’s a test or a quiz it’s stress! Photo illustration courtesy of Kai Liwanag.

  Math tests and quizzes influence San Luis Obispo High School student grades and could be considered the most important part of school. 

  Why do math teachers give tests and quizzes, and how do they affect student grades?

  First, what is the difference between summative tests and formative quizzes?

  Formative means the quiz is capable of alteration by growth and development, implying that quizzes shouldn’t be used for harsh analysis, but rather as stepping stones to enhance student learning.

  Meanwhile, summative, with a similar meaning to cumulative, should be the opposite: high stakes and final test assessments should represent the  cumulative knowledge of students.

  “Tests bring me more stress than quizzes because they cover more material, stuff that may have happened further back in the year,” said freshman Brendan Forester.

  Tests and quizzes are an important part of learning in school and help teachers understand where students are in their learning.  

   “I remember more from quizzes because they’re more frequent,” said Forester.

  SLOHS math teacher Scott Rosenblum, who teaches Algebra 2 and AP Statistics, supported Forester’s claim.

  “There should be about two quizzes for every summative test. They will take a unit quiz and then a group test which is a tool for preparing for the individual test,” said Rosenblum.

  Rosenblum also added that, though tests are worth more points and probably give students more stress than quizzes, he likes to make them about the same in difficulty, that way quizzes adequately help students prepare for summative tests.

  Rosenblum, along with math teachers Kevin Woodward and Nicole Linman, all have a similar format for giving tests and quizzes. They all have a format involving a quiz, group test, and individual test to analyze each student’s progress.

  This mindset may be the key to a less stressful test.

Source: merriam-webster.com