Blog Stage 8- Fill in the bubble?

First of all, after reading a blog from GovChatStew I would like to say, this is a topic that is very near and dear to my heart! I am so glad that this was brought up, and that I know at least ONE OTHER PERSON OUT THERE IN THE WORLD is also thinking the same way.
Tests. Fill out the bubble either a, b, c, or d. If you get these answers right, congrats! You can move forward in life! But what about those that aren't good at taking tests, and can show their smarts in ways other than a tiny fill-in-bubble.
My mother has worked in literacy for her entire adult life. She teaches adults to read, to teach them to read to their children, and to help struggling inner-city students with tutoring. When George W. Bush explained that we can't just let these kids file through school, I agreed with him. But the path to their success in MY mind v. what Bush was thinking in HIS mind are quite different. It is so important to educate these kids and give them the proper outlet to show how they have learned.
I remember sitting in the gym in high school and middle school surrounded in silence by 30-100 of my students all taking the standardized tests. "These tests will indicate to us how much you know" they say. "There is no way to prepare" they say. So on one hand you have some kid-o's that are fine test takers, and then you have the other students, that this is their worst nightmare.
Our students need to learn the material and given proper ways to share their intelligence. Is filling in a bubble what you want to predict your future?