Graphic Orginizer

Graphic organizers are very useful not only for teachers but also for students. As demonstrated above a teacher could plan their lesson plan using this. Plan a different topic for each day. Or a student could use it to plan out their essays. I see a lot of value in graphic organizers. Essays, lesson plans, book plots, characters, or any thing else. Or a teacher could use it to divide the class according to groups based on a student's individual strength. 

Question

Are tests the best way to measure learning?

When I think about this question I think about many things. One of the things I think about are the students who cram and cram for a test the night before or the morning of. In my opinion these students haven't learned anything.  I know that a rarely remember tests that are multiple choice, or short answer. As much as I dislike to say it the tests that I remember the best are essay questions. I think the reason for this is because I have to plan it out several times, I have to think about the different outcomes and choose which is the best option. Another reason for this is because I remember the "stories" that have lead up to these essay questions.