When a measure becomes a target, it ceases to be a good measure.
– Goodhart’s Law
In our context, English test scores are measures. They are intended to measure a student’s language ability. Language competence in and of itself though, may not yield much utility in the real world. From 2025, a primary school student who has obtained an AL1 grade in PSLE English, could be assumed to have (to the extent which can be reasonably expected of someone his age), become an “empathetic communicator, discerning reader and creative inquirer” (EL Syllabus, MOE, 2020).
As you can tell, these learner outcomes are very broad and it may be difficult to see how a score of 13/15 for the Cloze Passage component in English Language Paper 2, could be an accurate measure of how discerning a reader he has become, or how a score of 13/15 for Situational Writing shows how much of an empathetic communicator he has become.
Someone who subscribes to Goodhart’s law might tell you, that a high score in Situational Writing does not mean the scorer is an empathetic communicator. He would be right in his observation if all we do as educators is teach to the test. Teaching to the test refers to a results-oriented approach, which focuses solely on exam techniques, grammar and vocabulary. If one scored full marks for Paper 2, solely on impeccable technique, grammar and vocabulary, would you be able to, with absolute certainty, pronounce him a discerning reader? It is not implausible in this scenario that his score ceases to be a good measure of how much he has developed.
Yet, these are very important outcomes of English lessons in school. After all, the purpose of education is to be effective and successful in the real world. Is there any point in getting an AL 1 grade if one is not empathetic, discerning or creatively inquisitive? Sure, one might get past the gilded gates of his dream school but the gate which matters is the one which is guarded by corporate managers who are in charge of recruitment in every industry. Can one cross with only the grades and without the qualities these grades are assumed to reflect? Even if he were to eschew corporate life and strike out on his own, would he survive without these qualities? If the Ministry of Education says these are worthy goals, educators should take note.
Teaching to the test alone, would make grades a bad measure. We need to show students the relevance of what they are learning in the real world to achieve these learner outcomes.
If we teach to the test, let it be to the only test that matters, the test of life.
The Brain Dojo
