As students recover from midterms week and prepare for marking period two, another challenge presents itself at CHS: PARCC testing. The Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers test, or PARCC, is a state-mandated online test based on Common Core State Standards proctored to measure student achievement, according to the State of New Jersey Department of Education.

During the week of Nov. 16, students were required to partake in English Language Arts and/or Math PARCC testing, depending upon which classes the student has this semester. This is only the second year that PARCC was administered at CHS, and students are not welcoming it back with open arms.

Sophomore Brandon Kalika of Middletown, who took the Algebra II PARCC test on Nov. 16 and 17, said he believes the time he spent taking the PARCC was time wasted.

“I missed a lot of class time because of [PARCC] and, as a result, fell behind in important classes,” Kalika said. “It’s a burden to me and a lot of other students.”

Junior Alex Paredes of Atlantic Highlands, who took the English 3 PARCC exam, agreed, saying her first time taking PARCC was too time-consuming.

“I thought it was a little bit lengthy in terms of essay writing,” Paredes said. “I don’t want to take it ever again.”

Freshman Leah Kazenmayer of Wall took the PARCC in middle school last year, as well as the English I test at CHS this year. Despite being somewhat accustomed to the PARCC exam, she still said she believes that PARCC takes too much valuable class time away from students and distracts teachers from actually teaching.

“[Teachers] are preparing you so much, because it’s all based on grading the teachers,” Kazenmayer said. “They’re so focused on you succeeding on the PARCC that they don’t teach you what you’re supposed to learn.”

Although MCVSD administrators have no choice in adopting the state-mandated test, students at CHS have said that the PARCC testing system has its flaws.