Tests and exams are part and parcel of every child's life and while very few would claim to enjoy them, the vast majority of students see the benefits of buckling down and producing the best work they can on the day.
But what about the students who struggle under exam conditions? Students who achieve high grades throughout the year, but go to pieces once they take a seat in that dreaded exam hall? And what about the students who may not be academically-minded, but boast a whole array of other talents which simply aren't taken into account under a standardised testing system?
One teacher from the United States who sought to alleviate the fears and reservations of her students in an approach which moved pupils to tears has been lauded online after a letter she circulated to her class was discovered by a student's parent.
Reminding her students of their worth, the teacher, in a note which has moved thousands, began: "I know you hard you have worked, but there is something very important you must know. The ISTEP tests do not assess all of what makes you special and unique. The people who create these tests do not know each of you like I do, and certainly not the way your families do."
"They do not know you speak two languages, or that you love to sing or draw," she continued. "They have not seen your talent for dancing. They do not know that your friends count on you to be there for them, that your laughter can brighten the darkest day or that your face turns red when you feel shy."
"They do not know that you participate in sports, wonder about the future, or sometimes you help with your little brother or little sister after school. They do not know that you are kind, trustworthy and thoughtful... and every day you try to be your very best."
Reminding the students how important it is to put the results of their upcoming exams into perspective, she continued: "The scores you will get from these tests will tell you something, but they will not tell you everything."
"These tests do not define you. There are many ways of being smart. YOU are smart. You are enough!" she insisted in a letter which has garnered considerable attention on both Instagram and Reddit this week.
"You are the light that brightens my day and the reason I am happy to come to work each day. So, in the midst of all these tests, remember that there is no way to "test" all the amazing and awesome things that make you, YOU."
Finishing the incredibly moving letter with a note of encouragement, she concluded: "All I ask is that you do your personal best and do not give up. You have been working for this since Kindergarten and are ready! I believe in you!"
Commenting on the letter which her son told her brought him to tears in the classroom, Abby said: "We need more teachers like her, but also more people like her in the world."
We couldn't agree more.
