Team Testing for Individual Success and the Development of Interpersonal Skills Among Aspiring School Leaders 135- Team testing reduced stress and test anxiety.
- Team testing allowed for feedback from partners.
- Team testing forced students to think more critically about their responses.
- Team testing enabled students to talk about their responses before writing them.
The reason given by 1 of the 2 students who would not like to team test again was that he
“would rather rely on [him]self than take a chance of relying on someone else.” The other
student did not give a reason for not wanting to team test again.
The benefits of team testing listed by the students in the sample can be summarized by the
following:
- Team testing reduces stress.
- Team testing allows for collaboration.
- Team testing enables students to think out loud.
The drawbacks of team testing listed by the students in the sample can be summarized by
the following:
- Team testing may not work if one student dominates the discussion.
- Team testing may not work if one student is unprepared.
The only suggestion for improvement in the team-testing procedure was to allow students
to self-select partners. The self-selection option was given by 3 students in the sample.
DISCUSSION
According to Hancock (2007), “in higher education, professors owe their students the op-
portunity to learn and practice the skills of collaboration and cooperation necessary to succeed
in their future endeavors” (p. 225). Team testing provides these opportunities. The data from
this study indicate that academic achievement is enhanced through the use of team testing (d
= 0.53).
The survey data from this study also suggest that interpersonal skills, including collabora-
tion, communication, and consensus building, are practiced when participating in team test-
ing. Team testing therefore transformed a final exam from an assessment of knowledge alone
into an activity with the potential to develop skills.
The professional standards of the ELCC require that students have the knowledge, skills,
and dispositions to lead. Team testing allows for these skills to be practiced and assessed dur-
ing the administration of written exams. According to Murray (1990), “group work also
teaches students that management decisions are rarely the product of a single individual’s
thinking and that collaboration often produces better solutions” (p. 150).
To equip aspiring leaders with the tools they need for the front lines, instructors must not
only ensure that the content of courses is appropriate, but instructors must also work to
change classroom practice. Incorporating different assessment methods into instructors’
teaching is one way to encourage the development of necessary leadership skills.