Charlotte Mason Exams
“The schoolboy ‘crams’ for an examination, writes down what he has thus learned, and behold, it is gone from his gaze for ever: as Ruskin puts it, ‘They cram to pass, and not to know, they do pass, and they don’t know’ ”
- Charlotte Mason, (Vol. 1, p. 155).
In the Charlotte Mason world, exam formats do not include true or false, fill in the blank, or multiple choice. Instead, exams reveal what ideas have become a part of the child's life.
He is to regurgitate everything he remembers from the specific topic. This approach to test taking is actually harder because it requires the child to pay attention to the lesson. Exam questions should be open-ended narrations like:
- "Tell the story of..."
- "Describe..."
- "What have you noticed about...?"
Exams are typically given on the twelfth week of the term. Preparation for the tests are not as stressful because we are not teaching to the test or cramming for the test. They just have to be able to tell the full story of the topic.
In my experience the one are that has been stressful for me is to put together a test. One can make up the test yourself or use prompts from the curriculum one is using. Either way a lot goes into putting an exam together.
That is why I cam up with these exam booklets. These exam books are tailored to each form with fill in the blank prompts, helping moms bring down the stress of putting together a test by simplifying the process. I used Form I exam book this last term and it was so much more tranquil.
If putting together a test is time consuming and something you don't look forward too, then definitely check out these exam books only found in my Amazon shop.
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