With the start of March, the dreaded PBA season is creeping up on Sunnyslope. For the previous months, students were already overwhelmed with practicing PBA’s, pressure from teachers because doing well is crucial, and while juggling all this, students still have other assignments from different classes.
At Sunnyslope, PBA’s are regarded as an important test due to the fact that you have to put everything you learned over the year into practice. Teachers stress that you do your best on this test because it is a district issued exam that not only grades your skill on said subject, but the instructors who teach the subject.
Freshman Jewelles Hernandez said, “it weighs more on me because the teachers make such a big deal about it and takes longer time to prepare than it does for regular tests.”
Getting told from the get-go is one thing, but when the added pressure to perform at your highest level under a short amount of time undoubtedly strings along a sensation of urgency added to your writing process, it has negative effects on your final draft.
Freshman Olive Jones-Harter said, “I get a little more messy, and it’s not organized or my best work.”
Though on the contrary, Freshman Josephine Crafton and Hernandez are on the other end of the spectrum, and feel that the time limit has no effect on their writing abilities. In fact, it’s not the pressure of time, but the pressure to use graphic organizers.
Hernandez said it “slows me down” and gathering quotes is enough for her to start the final draft.
Along with the English writing PBA, world language PBA’s accompany them. This assessment includes two parts: Speaking and writing.
The unanimous consensus comes from Crafton and Jones-Harter agreeing that, “if you can already write, then you can obviously speak the language.”
However, having two tests in your world language class isn’t just seen as a nuisance to
students—requiring both written and spoken PBAs adds unnecessary stress.
Freshman Lanie Troxel said, “I don’t think it’s necessary to have two tests, because as long as your pronunciation is fine in class there shouldn’t be a need to speak into a computer that stresses you out more than the writing itself.”
With all this being said, the drawbacks of PBAs are really just bumps in the road that are a part of a bigger picture. Students assume that this assessment only tests how they as a student are doing, but that’s not true at all. Teachers use this assessment as a comparison to what and how they’re teaching their students.
English Teacher Natalie Parker said, “I think it really unifies the teacher’s goals across the board. It makes sure that all teachers are on the same page, and then we’re all teaching the same thing.”
Therefore, students doing their best is very important because it reflects their instructor’s skills as a teacher. Sure, PBAs bring out students’ nervousness, Parker wants the main takeaway to be students gaining confidence in conveying thoughts and claims in response to the writing PBA prompt.
As PBA season ramps up at Sunnyslope, it’s clear that students are feeling the weight of expectations from all directions, teachers, deadlines, and the pressure to perform. While some students manage to push through with ease, many feel overwhelmed by the amount of demands coming from these assessments. Whether it’s writing under pressure, speaking in a second language, one thing is certain: the PBA process could use a closer look. At the end of the day, it’s not just about measuring knowledge, it’s about making sure students are truly supported in showing what they’ve learned.
