education (de)montage

Human Montage Poster: Standardized Testing & Society

"Over the past century, educational researchers have been attempting to develop, perfect, and, in most cases, speed up the process of standardized testing. This hastily graded and overly generalized form of testing creates many standards that in theory are meant to provide better-tailored educations for children. However, it may leave many children prematurely and perhaps erroneously sorted into “academically gifted” and “academically challenged” labels.

When exploring this concept of grading and standardization, I kept returning to the idea of farm animals, which are put through quick, general tests and then given a quality grade of A, B, or C. Chickens especially seemed to have many similarities with students. Hens are graded based on the eggs they produce, much like how children are graded based on how well they test, not necessarily on a personal level of their potential. In the montage, I wanted to draw visual and conceptual ties between the henhouse and the schoolhouse. The elements cross reference, such as the eggs (students) in the schoolhouse and the pencils that hold up the henhouse.

The use of eggs is important to show that the eggs are being classified even before they hatch, as children are tested before some begin to realize their potential. Students often are harmed by this quick decision between smart and challenged, assuming these roles and consequently lowering their expectations of what they can accomplish."

The Demontage is an ancillary website that further expands the concept of grading and sorting.

 

 

Poster Details