Is testing too testing?

England young 'among most tested'

Interesting article which raises questions about the way in which schoolchildren are tested in the UK... but it also raises questions about the way in which qualitative and / or quantitative testing affects those within the system. The more measures and standards there are in place, the more testing there is in place to generates the numbers needed. But quantity of education, as another related report notes, is not the be all and end all and it doesn't generate the quality of results desired: "The Primary Review, taking an overview of the evidence, suggests that there is no clear link between quantity and quality in education." (BBC, 2008).

It's a fascinating area. Does insisting that quantitative analysis must be able to be performed in education damage the quality of that education in the long run? Is everyone encouraged to become complicit in a system that just isn't working in the interests of the participants? Would I want my children educated in the UK as it currently stands? Not really...