Timed Math Test – A destructive practice! - Zeenar Saleem

Timed testing is the part of Mathematics teaching and learning processes since time immemorial. The teachers and university admission cells are in practice to take the timed Mathematics test, since ages in Pakistan and around the globe. These tests are commonly known as ‘mental-math tests’. In these tests, students are asked to solve a mathematical problem within a minute. However, the complexity of these mathematical problems varies as per the age, for e.g. Six years old are expected to do the problems involving basic operations, whereas a high school graduate is asked to do more complex question including surds, exponents, algebraic equations, etc.  Hence, timed-testing in math, continues from early-year schooling to admission tests at colleges and universities. However, keeping in view the complexity of questions the time is extended from 20 seconds in class tests to 1 minute in college entrance tests. But the question to ask is, are these timed-tests beneficial?

The perceived goal of timed-testing is to develop mathematical fluency, so that the students are able to solve mathematical problems fluently. Nonetheless, this fluency is often associated with speed. Moreover, it is considered that ‘Good Mathematics is speedy Mathematics’. However, the opposite is true, Mathematics is about depth and not speed. Neuroscientists have suggested that Mathematics should never be associated with speed, because many mathematicians are slow thinkers. One such mathematician, Laurent Schwartz, a Fields medal winner, highlights that he considered himself to be ‘unintelligent’ during school-time, because he was slow in mathematical problem-solving. He further states in his autobiography that “At the end of the eleventh grade, I took the measure of the situation, and came to the conclusion that rapidity doesn't have a precise relation to intelligence. What is important is to deeply understand things and their relations to each other. This is where the intelligence lies. The fact of being quick or slow isn't really relevant”. Hence, he disregarded the importance of speed and re-shifted the focus from fast and furious solutions of math problems to in-depth exploration of mathematical concepts.

Research also suggests that when children encounter timed-tests, they feel anxious and stressful. This stress occupies the working memory. The working memory is the controller and regulator of information that the brain processes. When students are given less than a minute to solve mathematical problem, their working memory shuns and problem-solving aptitude and interest in subject diminishes. Researches also highlight that working on math problems don’t make children anxious, but problem-solving in timed situations make children feel vulnerable. The damage to working memory and anxiety for timed-tests expounds that there are some people who can handle math, while others can’t. This segregation deprives a larger population to think that Mathematics isn’t for them. Hence, they don’t take interest in mathematics and deprive themselves with a lot of professions that involve mathematics.

Beside creating anxiousness and segregating people into math-people and non-math people, these messages also discourage the students from deep thinking in mathematics and force them to memorize the facts and ‘tricks’ which could help them to ace others. Hence, the roots of rote-learning of mathematical formulas, tricks and procedures are laid down very early in the childhood and entrenched up-till higher education. Because of enculturation of timed-testing, students get the habit of using the learnt formula, rather than seek patterns to create the formula. Consequently, students are unable to solve complex problems when ready-made formula isn’t given.

To check whether the same anxiety exists in Pakistani context, I asked 29 pre-service teachers to elicit their experiences and feelings about timed math tests. Almost 75 percent of pre-service teachers stated that they felt scared, nervous, anxious and terrible while timed-math tests. However, some of them wrongly considered timed-testing to be beneficial in the development of mathematical fluency. Hence, teachers in our contexts have less awareness about recent developments in Neurosciences and Mathematics Education. Because of this, they pass wrong messages to the students about the nature of Mathematics and wrongly judge students’ capability. Resultantly, they deprive learners from exploring the beauty of Mathematics.

To eliminate this ingrained belief about the association of speed and Mathematics, there is a dire need for teachers and parents to study current literature. Mathematics Educators including Boaler and Dweck urge stakeholders to develop ‘number sense’ in students. Number sense implies the sense of flexibility of decomposing and re-forming numbers and explore number relationships. ‘Number talks’ is an important strategy to develop number-sense, by engaging students in the articulation of their thinking process. Other strategies include the explorations of a number-relationships using hundred charts, customized games, number-line, base 10 block, area model and so forth. These strategies would enable children to develop mathematical thinking and love for the subject.

Conclusively, this article pleads mathematic teachers, parents and university admission cells to stop terrifying the students in the name of ‘timed tests’ and help them unleash the true beauty of Mathematics. This wouldn’t be possible until and unless we wash out our previous beliefs about the usefulness of timed-testing in Mathematics, with new developments in the field of Mathematics education. Thus, to help students in discovering true Mathematics and developing love for it, teachers and parents must know that the timed - testing is a destructive practice, so we should give adequate time during tests.