Should the Grading Standards Be Lowered for the C-BASE? I was sitting in the auditorium of about fifty people, nervous to take the C-BASE. I knew I did not have to score very high but I still wanted to try my best. My palms were sweaty and I felt like my whole body was shaking. The proctor gave us the exam and when I began taking the test, I knew it was going to be a long four hours. The people I talked to that had already taken the exam said that it was easy but they were wrong. Why did they boost my confidence? Was it to set me up for failure? I understand that we were all trying to get in the same program but come on. Everyone in the auditorium was so calm and knew what they were in for. Me on the other hand, I did not really know what to expect. My mind was preoccupied throughout the test with other things like reciting my social security number making sure I put it down correctly. At that moment, my social security number and everything else that jumbled my brain was the last thing I needed to worry about. I got done with the test feeling pretty good about it considering my mind was distracted. Even though I felt fairly confident, there was a part of me that knew I would have to take the exam again. I was not too excited about taking the C-BASE because I am a really bad test taker. I have talked to people who have already taken the exam and I mentioned that the requirements were no longer the same as when they had taken it. They were a little discouraged because they had to try harder than those who have to take it now. It seems that the people in charge are not expecting much from future teachers. Even though lowering the requirements gives students an equal opportunity, it also makes it easier for them to get accepted into the program and lowers the expectations for future teachers. The College Basic Academic Subjects Examination is a criterion-referenced exam taken by all education majors in order to get in the College of Education. It measures how a student masters a set of skills. The way the C-BASE works is there are four sections: English, Mathematics, Science, and Social Studies. A writing portion is also included. Each section of the C-BASE required a score of a 235 or a 265 depending on the student’s ACT score until recently when the requirements changed. Everyone who wishes to be accepted in the College of Education now has to score at least a 235 on the C-BASE within two years of taking it the first time.
Making sure students pass all sections in a timely manner, the exam is given multiple times throughout the state of Missouri. To an extent, this can be beneficial but the test is not intended “to predict what an individual is capable of doing in the future or a student’s success in college, but it is designed to reflect what the individual already knows or can do at the time of testing” (C-BASE) not how well they can do the second, third, or even the fourth time. Why lower the requirements for the C-BASE if it is given multiple times a year? I am sure the exam is given multiple times for those who cannot make the previous test dates but if the student cannot pass it by the second or third try, then obviously they are not mastering the appropriate skills given on the C-BASE. Not many people are good test takers. According to Kendra Cherry, a writer for About.com, students who worry about taking tests often develop depression, low self-esteem, anger, and a feeling of hopelessness (Cherry). I know what it is like to have all of these developing symptoms and I can say first hand that they do not only occur in those with test anxiety. By pin pointing those specific symptoms of test anxiety, Kendra Cherry makes it seem like it is a disease. Everyone at some point or another is depressed, has low self-esteem, angry, or feels a sense of hopelessness but that does not mean that testing requirements should be lowered. Yes, having the requirements lowered gives those students a chance to not think about