Racing against the clock during math quizzes and feeling the pressure mount with each passing minute — many students are familiar with the feeling. But why does the math department time quizzes in the first place? Are time-constrained quizzes necessary and beneficial for students, or are they harmful?
For students without extra time accommodations, math quizzes are typically restricted to one 75-minute single period or a 120-minute double period. However, the math department has considered providing unlimited time to all students instead.
Some teachers feel that unlimited time would be a logistical challenge and fail to sufficiently test students’ fluency in math. On the other hand, a study conducted by the National Library of Medicine suggested that untimed tests yield more accurate assessments of students’ understanding.
“It really brings up [the question]: what is the purpose of testing?” said Director of Learning Services Rachel Herbert.“I think resolution of this would come from an agreement about what the test is actually for.”
Math teachers go back and forth on this question too: should the focus of math quizzes be ease and fluency, or deep thinking and reasoning?
“In terms of actual problem-solving math, most [teachers] don’t actually care if you can do it fast or not,” said Math Teacher Laura Hawkins. “And yet, there are some [skills] that we … do want to come fairly automatically — [students] shouldn’t need to figure out sine and cosine in calculus.”
But Urban’s math quizzes evaluate more than basic skills — they aim to push students to apply mathematical ideas in a more complex context and include challenging questions to help reach this goal.
“We’re trying to assess whether or not there is a deep understanding of the concepts,” said Math Teacher Kenny Daniels. “And to do that, we present students with new problems to tackle things from a slightly different perspective.”
This process of deep thinking takes some students more time than they are allotted in a quiz period. “A lot of students … approach the ability to think deeply and hard about some of these problems, but they do it slowly,” said Daniels. “I’m not a big fan of timing [quizzes].”
Arlo Sears-Bicknell ‘24 also supports having fewer time restrictions during quizzes, suggesting that this would allow students to do more elaborate work. “[I wish I could] feel comfortable sitting with problems and applying my knowledge in a thorough and well-measured way, rather than just trying to solve them as quickly as possible,” they said.
The focus on timing stresses some students out, resulting in poorer performance. “[During tests, I’m] like, ‘Oh, I have this number of questions and this little amount of time,’” said Lucy Sylvester ‘26. “And then the panic sets in, and … I’m not going to be able to complete it because I’m all freaked out.”
“Test-taking can bring up an emotional response which clamps down on the brain’s capacity to use its prefrontal cortex,” said Herbert.
Sylvester said that when she took a quiz with lighter-than-usual time restrictions, she was able to demonstrate her understanding more effectively. “I performed much better on that quiz. … I was really able to share my knowledge,” she said.
Math Department Chair and Teacher Parisa Safa said that providing unlimited time would be difficult given the finite time in a school day.
“The reality is [that] we live in a world limited by time, so there is no such thing in life as unlimited [time],” she said. For this reason, having timed quizzes at Urban can also better prepare students for taking tests in college and throughout the future.
Additionally, it would be challenging to figure out when more time for quizzes could be given. Quizzes would have to continue after school or during lunch periods, which would not be equally accessible to all students. “There will be [students] who have to go to another class, who have another commitment or who have to commute,” said Safa.
According to Hawkins, this lack of equal access would pose a problem. “You have to be equitable,” she said. “If kids can work into … a break, then you need to [offer that to] everybody.”
Quizzes remain timed across all math classes, but the math department continues to discuss this topic. “Some of us have gone back and forth,” said Hawkins. “We have all of these conflicting desires. … It’s just a vexed issue.”
