It's "ELA day" for New York students in grades 3 through 8 who are taking the state standardized reading tests. After weeks filled with practice tests, skill assess ments, and endless sharpening of number 2 pencils, students sat down today for the first part of the state English Language Arts exam. At PS 172 in Brooklyn, students routinely ace the exam despite economic, language, and even dental challenges, thanks to their longtime principal's approach to test prep: "Teach, assess, teach assess."

In our last poll we asked you how your school handles test prep. The largest percentage of you-- 41% -- feel that your school spends too much time on it. A student teacher concurred with the plurality, commenting that too much test prep causes kids to be "burnt out, anxious and frustrated" and forces teachers to "alter their instruction in order to teach to the test."

Only 16% of voters believe that their school spends too little time on test prep, while a satisfied 28% of you feel that the amount of test prep was "just right."

A small, but laid-back percentage of you -- 14% -- voted for "tests? what tests?"