Using the Internet while taking a test: Yes or no?

The article which discusses the possibility of students being allowed to have access to the internet was very interesting. I agree with Starr's argument that we should not let students use the internet while taking a test, because it really will be like handing them the teacher's edition of a textbook. I can remember always being handed worksheets by teachers when I was in K-12, and the assignment would always consist of flipping through a textbook, and filling in the blanks with the answers the book provided; I hated these assignments! Unless there was a lecture that followed these assignments, I never really learned much other than how to look up things in the glossary or in the index. Handing a student a list of questions and then handing them the answers is a waste of time and does not allow for any skill growth.The consequences to allowing students access to a giant source of information such as the internet would take away from students developing and practicing good study habits which are helpful everyday life and in higher education institutions.

Cash's part of the article which argues for the encouragement of students using the internet as a test taking tool does not provide good examples as to why we should allow students to use the internet while taking tests. Cash argues that students would be limited to being tested on pure facts and dates which is not necessarily true because students are expected to express their creativity and perspectives in written assignments (essays), in class presentations, and various other activities. When composing any kind of essay or presentation we automatically expect students to use many resources which includes the internet to support their arguments. Additionally, I believe that when we do test on hard facts, the only thing that the student will learn is how to whip out their phones faster if they are permitted to have access to the internet.

We begin to teach students how to express whether they like, dislike, agree or disagree with events in Elementary school. Tests are designed to help teachers assess the amount of information which was retained by the student and to help determine whether clarification is required. I have absolutely no problem with someone disagreeing with a fact as long as they have good reasoning to do so, and even if they don't agree with (say, that we evolved from primates), they should still know the facts which are on the other side of the argument; this is what determines whether or not a student is able to think critically, not whether or not they can find an answer on Google. The internet is a wonderful source of information which has opened many doors for students; unfortunately, doing a simple search on the internet will not challenge a student in any way to use their minds, it will only make them lazier.