On the third Wednesday of every month, there is a Gadfly Cafe that happens at Bakersfield College. A Gadfly Cafe is “Informal, roundtable discussion of social and political issues concerning our campus, community, and nation”, according to the email that was sent out to the BC students from Reginald Williams. This month’s topic was about thoughts on standardized testing. The event kicked off with Williams explaining the main ideas that are discussed when talking about standardized testing to help the audience broaden their understanding about the subject.

It quickly turned into a respectful conversation with students firing off their opinions, questions, and personal experiences with the matter. Gadfly Cafe is a discussion that is “ Helping people realize that we are all human, and that we all have perspective, and that we all need to be heard,” Stated Williams.Although students had different opinions about the subject, this conversation allowed them to see a different perspective.

Most people came in with strong opinions about standardized testing, and if you were there, you would most likely leave with even more questions and knowledge than you thought you had. This is an engaging, open, and respectful conversation that leaves you wanting more than an hour to dive deeper into the topic.

Gadfly Cafe happens every third Wednesday in the Levan Center and there is always a different current topic that is going on. If you’re hungry for information and have a desire to challenge what you think you know, check this event to do just that.