Jesus' only pass/fail test

I know we are in the middle of Mahi Toi - and the whole school is immersed in creativity and imagination, but this week I have found myself thinking about some of the ways we put ourselves to the test. 

I love our arts festival. Of course, part of that is my love of imagination and creativity. Part of it is my Catholic educator's heart, delighted to see aspects of our Creator's whole person emerging in all sorts of surprising places. And part of my delight is my teacher's satisfaction watching young people put themselves on the line: testing themselves to see if they can face their fears and stand up in front of their peers and perform - or not.

I have always been a fan of high-stakes assessment - a fan of students preparing for a pass/fail test, sitting the assessment on a particular day at a pre-set time, for a limited number of minutes - and then passing or failing.

There is plenty to learn about ourselves and our gifts from passing or failing, and what we learn is much more important than what we studied. The lessons last a lifetime - and they are often more potent life-lessons than we learn from internal assessment which teaches us more about teamwork, following instructions and perseverance. Nothing wrong with that - but there is something special about an important timed exam with no second chance. 

We will practice that in an academic environment next term, and do it for real in term 4 - but this week we also see it happening with individual students fronting up to an audience and putting their work and talent on the line. Succeeding, but risking failure and ridicule.

Jesus (and I) believe in high-stakes pass/fail assessment - but his truly was life and death. He presented us with only one test.

Jesus' only high stakes assessment, his only pass/fail test for us (with more than feeling ridiculous at stake!) is outlined in Matthew 25, 42-46 where he clearly sets out the criteria for passing and failing.

I was hungry but you would not feed me, thirsty but you would not give me a drink; I was a stranger but you would not welcome me in your homes, naked but you would not clothe me; I was sick and in prison but you would not take care of me.’ 

Then they will answer him, ‘When, Lord, did we ever see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and we would not help you?’ 

The King will reply, ‘I tell you, whenever you refused to help one of these least important ones, you refused to help me.’ 

These, then, will be sent off to eternal punishment, but the righteous will go to eternal life.

Fail or pass.

He sets no other assessment that allows failure. That passage is why we keep providing opportunities for us all to grow in awareness of social justice  - and opportunities to make a difference. It is a more important test than any school can offer. It is an assessment we must allow no-one to fail. All that schools can do is create awareness of social justice issues - and build our individual confidence of success when we test ourselves.