Groans fill the classroom as a teacher relays the news: It’s time for another Discovery Education test.

The computerized tests, which occur three times a year, are designed for administrators to monitor data and help students. All students taking an end of course exam at the end of the year are required to take Discovery Ed in that subject.

“It helps identify student achievement levels when it comes to certain content areas, such as math, biology, or English,” principal Mr. Maclin said.

However, many consider the tests to be less than perfect.

“I think they’re too frequent,” English teacher Ms. McKenna said. “Students get burned out, so we don’t always get the most accurate results of where they are; I feel like students shut down when I set them in front of a DE.”

Freshman Raven Bullard admits that she is one of those students.

“I don’t take Discovery Ed seriously and I’ve got perfect scores on all my EOCs,” Bullard said.

However, the rest of the school shows a different trend, according to administrators.

“Our Algebra 1 scores doubled, and our Biology scores tripled. We saw increase in English, also,” Maclin said.

Bullard argues that the tests are poorly written and not related to students’ educations.

“Half of the stuff you see is new stuff, so we wouldn’t know it anyway, and the stuff we see never shows up again, so it’s not relevant,” Bullard said. “The people who make the test don’t know what we’re learning, they’re not with us.”

Bullard is not the only student that is unhappy about the tests.

“It takes a lot of time out of class, a full period,” sophomore Mia Hicks-Thomas said.

Bullard also thinks Discovery Education is part of a wider problem affecting students.

“The school seems more worried about our test scores and accreditation than actually letting the students learn,” Bullard said.

Despite their different views, both sides can agree that Discovery Education could be made better.

“Any assessment has flaws,” Maclin said. “Maybe the probes that are there could be improved, but for right now, most school districts are using it and having some success.”