81 interstate Parkway

Bradford, Pa 16701

8 April 2016

Mr. Tom Wolf

Governor
Bradford Area School District
150 Lorana Ave.
Bradford, PA 16701

Dear Mr. Wolf,

The Keystone test should not be mandatory in schools. We are tested

to check and see if we are retaining the material for guidelines of the state. I
believe between the GRADE testing, quizzes, chapter tests and the SATs or
ACTs, as a student body we are put under a lot of pressure. I am a senior at
Bradford Area High School and was forced to take this unneeded test
because it was a "requirement" to graduate.
It did not better my schooling because my learning was postponed just
so I could learn the material on the Keystone tests and pass, then if we had
spent more time learning material that challenges our minds, not studying
for a test and saying, Oh we know that material and forget it within the
next week. I honestly hardly remember the material that that test was on
and not to mention, these tests "highlight key areas", but for the major Im
going for in college it has no effect.
Im going to be a physical therapist and I need chemistry and anatomy
classes to be focused. Biology did help, but I should have the choice to

choose my classes to better my career, not be forced to waste two years not
including the Keystone prep classes to let the school get grants.
Colleges also do not require Keystone scores; they need your SAT
score. The Keystones are only looked at and glanced over as if they did not
matter. Colleges want your grade point average and SAT scores to determine
whether or not you are qualified for their curriculum. When I went on a
college visit, I asked to see if they knew anything about the Keystone tests
and he said Yes, but for our school it shows as volunteer work just to make
your transcript look pretty So I indeed think that it is a waste of time. You
may say, " But the state needs a way to check students progress in school". I
do not believe a test shows this.
In my opinion, the Keystones are a waste of money for the school and
we should protest the test because when my parents were in school, they did
not have these tests and they turned out just fine. My mom went to college
and became a certified nurses aide and then became a United States postal
worker. My father joined the military and then became a gifted carpenter.
These tests were not needed back then and so why are they needed now?
The only thing they are good for is wasting trees with the amount of paper is
used during these tests. They do not benefit us as students in any way
except to waste a perfectly good tree. This is why I believe these tests are a
waste of time and are a joke to the school system. This letter is important to
me because I am an angered student speaking, asking these questions, and
hoping for a response.
Sincerely,
Mike Butler