Standardized testing in schools mainly measures how well students memorize facts under time pressure, not their actual problem-solving ability or creativity. I've tutored high schoolers for years and watched bright kids freeze on multiple-choice questions while thriving in project discussions. Are we really evaluating learning, or just sorting students by their test-taking stamina and ability to guess what the examiner wants? The pressure to align curricula with these tests also squeezes out critical thinking and arts, which many educators privately regret but feel powerless to change.