Employers don’t want standardized testing in college
Today’s Inside Higher Ed has a story on a newly-released survey of employers conducted by Peter Hart for the Association of American Colleges and Universities. The money quote from the executive summary:
Employers’ emphasis on integrative, applied learning is reflected in their recommendations to colleges and universities about how to assess student learning in college. Again, multiple-choice testing ranks lowest among the options presented, just below an institutional score that shows how a college compares to other colleges in advancing critical thinking skills. Faculty evaluated internships and community-learning experiences emerge on top. Employers also endorse individual student essay tests, electronic portfolios of student work, and comprehensive senior projects as valuable tools both for students to enhance their knowledge and develop important real-world skills, as well as for employers to evaluate graduates’ readiness for the workplace.
So let’s have no more nonsense about businesses’ insisting on standardized testing as accountability for higher education.
