UNIT 15 ISSUES RELATED TO THE

PRESENT EXAMINATION
SYSTEM
Structure
Introduction
Objectives
Evaluation
15.3.1 Educational Evaluation
15.3.2 Evaluation of Pupil Growtb and Examinations
Status of the Present Examination System at the School Stage
15.4.1 Model of Industry
15.4.2 Mudaliyar Commission (1952)
15.4.3 The Kothari Commission (1964)
15.4A The Yasbpal Committee
15.4.5 The National Policy on Education (1986)
15.4.6 The Acharya Ramarnurthy Committee (1990)
Shortcomings of the Present System
Innovation in Examination System
Let Us Sum Up
Unit-end Exercises .
Points for Discussion
Answers to Check Your Progress
15.11 References

INTRODUCTION
You have studied the theory of evaluation in great &tail in an earlier module. In this unit we
will take a critical look at the examination system prevalent in our country. As you know,
examinations are vital in any education system. Examinations have, in fact, become the most
important aspect of education, particularly the public examinations conducted by the State
B o d s . Whether we like it or not, the future of all pupils depends on their performance in
these examinations.
' In the fitst section we will try to understand the concept of evaluation in general and examination
as a~toolof evaluation. This is by way of reinforcement of what you have already read in an
earlier module. We will go on, in.the next section, to discuss, in detail the status of the present
examination system and particularly its shortcomings. At the end, we will learn about certain
innovations being introduced in the area of examination reforms.
This unit will be of great practical utility in your work as a teacher. As a teacher you have
to evaluate the performance of your pupils. Examination is the most commonly used tool,
though it is not the only one, for evaluating students performance. Ideally, you should not
depend solely on examinations for assessing your students, but in the prevailing circumstances,
where you have large classes to deal with, examinations become the most convenient means
of evaluation, perhaps at times, the only practical one. Hence the importance of this unit.

15.2 OBJECTIVES
After going through this unit you will be able to:
define educational evaluation; 21
Indian Education System: a recognise examinations as an important tool of evaluation;
Some Issues --%

a describe the present examination system;

a list the shortcomings in the prevalent practices in examiliation; and
a discuss some innovations in examinations.

15.3 EVALUATION
To evaluate something is to appraise its quality. We evaluate hundreds of things every day.
Does our food look good enough to eat? Does that book look interesting enough to buy ?
Is it too warm to wear a sweater or does this sweater look good on me ? These
everyday evaluations, no matter how informal, are efforts to appraise the quality of
something.

15.3.1 Educational Evaluation

In education, too, we encounter myriad instances of informal evaluations, ranging from a
teacher's determination of whether a child needs extra help in studies, to a School Principal's
estimate of whether a particular teacher is doing hisher job well.
But all the fuss in education about evaluation is not focussed on these informal evaluative
acts. The kind of educational evaluation that everyone is concerned with is formal or systematic
educational evaluation. There are decisively different schools of thought regarding how
to define evaluation as it applies to education. One meaningful definition is :
"Systematic educational evaluation consists of a formal appraisal of the quality of educational
phenomena."
Bu using the phrase 'systematic qducational evaluation', we are clearly trying to divorce our
focus from the informal, everyday evaluative acts referred to above. For that reason, the
definition asserts that systematic educational evaluation is formal. The heart of the\definition
involves an appraisal of quality or, in other words, a determination of worth. The eudcational
phenomena that are to be appraised can include many things, such as the outcomes of an
instructional endeavour, the instructional programmes that produced those outcomes,
educational products of educational efforts, or the goals to which educational efforts are
addressed.

15.3.2 Evaluation of Pupil Growth and Examinations

Our concern in this unit is with the evaluation of student's growth. The first step in this task
of evaluation of student growth is the derivation of statements and definitions of objectives.
The second is to develop and provide learning experiences through natural or devised learning
situations. These teaching-learning situations are probably the most important aspect of the
total curriculum plan. They will constitute the total instructional plan of formal and informal
education comprising what a child can receive from the various sources, viz., the school, the
home, the peer group and the immediate physical environment. Though we mainly concentrate
on the efforts of the school, we certainly cannot neglect the other potential sources from
which the child receives education.
The teaching-learning situation in the formal education of schools which we can afford to
manihate according to our needs are mainly made up of instructional materials (like textbooks,
reference books, worksheets, charts, maps, diagrams, filmstrips, apparatus, and other materials),
and of instructional methods (like lectures, discussions, group projects, experimentation and
excursions). The school environment, the teachers and the available amenities are all important
ingredients that make up the learning situations.
After the experiences aimed at the achievement of objectives have been provided, we come
to the task of devising or selecting evaluation techniques and tools and of using them for
locating the degree to which the learning experiences (which were designed for achieving the
objectives) have been successN in their purpose. For this, a variety of techniques and tools
of evaluation are required to be employed if we want to effectively measure the various
aspects of student growth - the scholastic as well as the non-scholastic areas. Examination,
as we know, is one of those many tools of evaluation.
 1
Issues Related to the Present
Check Your Progress Examination System

Note: a) Space is given below for your answers.

b) Check your answer with the ones given at the end of this Unit.
I 1. Define evaluation in s i m ~ l eterms. 1

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2. How will you define educational evalution?
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15.4 STATUS OF THE PRESENT EXAMINATION SYSTEM

AT THE SCHOOL STAGE
As you are aware, the pattern of education at school stage followed in our country, after the
recommendations of the Kothari Commission, is the 10 +2 system. This includes 10 years of
general education and two years of diversified education, where students can opt for different
streams - HumanitiesISocial Sciences, Commerce, Science or Vocational. The ten years of
general education are divided into eight years of primary (5 years lower primary and three
years of upper primary also called the middle stage) and two years of secondary. At the end
of classes 10 and 12, there is a public examination conducted by the various Boards of
Secondary Education. In certain states, namely, Haryana, Punjab and Himachal Pradesh, there
is a public examination conducted by the State Board at the end of class 8th also, known as
the Middle examination.
When we talk about the examination system, we generally refer to the Board Examination
System. Of course, there is an examination system at the school level also, where there is, by
and large, formative as well as summative evaluation. The board examinations, as you are
aware, are only meant for summative evaluation at the end of a particular stage. You
are already familiar with these terms having read about them in an earlier module on
evaluation.
The present system of examination is certainly not fool proof and has lots of shortcomings.
There is also a constant effort on the part of educationists and educational agencies concerned
to improve upon the system.

15.4.1 Model of Industry

You have learnt in an earlier module that during the he-British, Pre-Colonial era, our education
system on the whole, was very different kom what it is now. One of its main characteristics
can be said to be the personalisation of instruction and evaluation as opposed to the modern
depersonalised mass education. The modern Indian education system, with examination as an
important institution within this system, is borrowed Erom the industrial model of society in
Europe. Of course, we are aware that the system was imposed on us by the British. It may
be questioned whether our society is predominantly industrial or agricultural, but ttiere is no
doubt that the model .of our public examination system characteristically reflects the model
of industry. The principles of mass production, uniformity in the product, standardization of
uniformity in the product, standardization of the manufactured material, labelling of goods,
classifying the manufactured goods in terms of quality, impersonal relation of the manufacturer
with the manufactured material, etc. have all been transferred to the education system through
the instrument of examination.
33
Indian E~WPGOIISystem: Our public examination machinery at the secondary and university levels can be compared to
Some Issues
any big industrial organisation. There is a full-fledged bureaucracy in every University and
at the Board of Secondary Education to conduct examinations. In some Boards the number
of examinees taking a simple examination is more than a million. Even small Universities and
Boards admit lakhs of candidates for a single examination or a group of examinations. Tbus
there is a mass production of certificate and degree holders. Besides the central bureaucracy
of the examining agency, a large number of part-time workers, variously termed as paper-
setters, examiners, invigilators, centre superintendents etc., are employed. They get their
wages either on the basis of time spent or amount or work done. There are also rules of
operation and conduct. Labour problems found in industry may be observed in the examination
system also. However, since all the employees are part-timers, they do not have labour-
unions. On the other hand the candidates who are the products of the educational industry also
cause unrest. Sometimes the labourers and the products both join hands (e.g. for using unfair
means to pass the examination) but usually the two are in two opposite camps.
Quality control is expressed in terms of whether students pass or fail. Different grades, marks
and-divisions reflect labelling of goods. There is impersonal relationship between the examiner
and the examinee, because the producer is generally denied the right of evaluating hidher own
product. It is always feared that if the producer evaluates hisher own products, helshe makes
an over-assessment and the quality suffers.
Now let us take a look at what various Education Commissions and Committees have to say
about the present examination system.

15.4.2 Mudaliyar Commission (1952)

Reviewing the defects of examinations at the secondary stage, the Secondary Education
Commission, also known the Mudaliyar Commission after its chairperson, noted:
"The examinations today dictate curriculum instead of following it, prevent any experimentation,
hamper the proper treatment of subjects and sound methods of teaching, foster a dull uniformity
rather than originality, encourage the average pupil to concentrate too rigidly upon too narrow
a field and thus help him to develop wrong values in education. Pupils perceive education in
terms of success in examinations. Teachers recognising the importance of the external
examinations to the individual pupil, are constrained to relate their teaching to an examination
which can test only a narrow field of the pupil's interests and capacities and so inevitably
neglects the qualities which are more important though less tangible."
It recommended (a) the introduction of objective type tests; (b) school records for assessment
of all round progress; (c) symbolic marking to replace numerical marking: (d) one public
examination and a final comprehensive certificate including school tests, school records and
the public examination, and (e) a system of compartmental examinations.

15.4.3 The Kothari Commission (1964)

In 1964, the Education Commission under the chairmanship of Dr. Kothari made the following
suggestions:
(a) Treat classes I-IV as an ungraded unit to enable children to advance at their own pace.
At the higher primary stage, written examinations and oral tests, simple teacher-made
tests for diagnostic testing and cumulative record cards should be a part of evaluation.
At the end of the primary course, for maintenance of standards, refined tests prepared by
the State Evaluation organisations is advisable because, common examination at the end
of the primary stage, using the standardised refined tests could have more validity and
reliability than school examinations. Certificates should be given by the school.
(b) External examination at the end of the secondary stage should be improved by raising the
technical competence of paper-setters, orienting question papers to objectives rather than -
knowledge, improving the nature of questions, adopting scientific scoring procedures and
mechanising the scoring of scripts and the processing of results. The certificate at this
stage would be awarded by the State Board of Education and would contain the student's
performance in different subjectsbut without making any reference to pass or fail. Another
certificate should be given by the school mentioning the record of internal assessment as
in the cumulative record card.
(c) Experimental schools should be started in which the school assesses its own students and '
h u e s Related to the Present
holds its own examinations though the Board issues its certificate on the recommendafion . Esambatiun System
of the school.
(d) Provision for internal assessment should be comprehensive and should evaluate all aspects
of a student's growth. It should be descriptive and quantified.
#

(e) An examination at the end of high school need not be insisted upon if all students have
to appear for an external examination at the end of their higher secondary course.
(f) Regarding higher education, it was conscious of the fact that in the present system "when
the future of the students is totally decided by one external examination at the end of the
year, they pay minimum attention to the teachers, do little independent study throughout
most of the academic year and cram desperately for the fmal examination." One line of
attack could be the abolition of set syllabi and the external examinations based on them
and replacing them with a system of internal and continuous evaluation by teachers
themselves, as it happens at the Indian Institutes of Technology and Agricultural
universities. If this is not possible then:
(i) undertake more frequent and periodic assessment so that there is no undue emphasis
on the final examination as the sole determinant of success; and
(ii) reform the evaluation techniques, for which therequirement is not just of knowledge
will, courage and perseverance to work out its implementation.
(g) Grading or classification of examination results is to be done on absolute rather than
relative bases. "In our present system, 80 per cent in mathematics, for instance, does not
convey the same meaning as 80 per cent in History or English. Again, an 80 per cent
mark in one year, does not mean the same thing as 80 per cent in another year, because
of different examiners and other variations. A system of grading must bring out whether
the student belongs to the top 20 per cent. Also it is important to know the relative
grading of a student, say on a 5-point scale."
(h) The payment of remuneration to teachers should be abolished. Evaluation is a part of
teaching and teachers should be williilg to undertake it as a part of their duties.
The recommendations of the Kothari Commission carried out by the NCERT contributed to
a further programme of examination reform, which Dave and Srivastava have classified into
two aspects as follows:
(1) Academic:
(a) improving questions by making them specific in terms of objectives, content and
language;
(b) improving question papers by giving proportionate weightage to objectives, content
areas, different forms of questions, limiting options, etc.;
(c) improving scoring 'procedures by developing a marking scheme with suitable
instructions to examiners;
(d) improving interpretation of scores by providing data like state average percentile
rank and other derived scores;
(e) extending the techniques of evaluation to oral examinations, observation, check
list, rating scales, etc.,
. (f) bringing about concomitant changes in curriculum, text books, instructional material
and methods.
(2) Administrative:
(a) framing suitable rules for admission to an examination;
(b) appointing paper setters with proper qualifications and experience;
(c) developing mechanics of conducting examinations scientifically; and
(d) evolving suitable methods about declaration of results, their publication, and issue
of certificates.
Indian Education System:
Some Issues
15.4.4 The Yashpal Committee
The Yashpal Committee has described the examination system as follows: "Much has been
written by various official committees on the ills of our examination system. The major, well-
understood defect of the examination system is that it focuses on children's ability to reproduce
information to the exclusion of the ability to apply concepts and information on unfamiliar,
new problems, or simply to think.
The public examinations taken after classes X and XI1 have assumed the importance of major
events which have a set character or culture of their own. The awe they generate, the responses
they trigger, and the kind of preparation they demand have all got so entrenched into the
social lore that minor improvements in the style of question papers do not make difference
to the dominant influence that the examination system has on the processes of learning and
teaching. The influence is so strong that schools Start holding a formal written examination
several years prior to Class X, indeed, in the primary classes in many parts of the country.
And children receive the message almost as soon as they start attending school that the only
thing which matters here is one's performance in the examination.
Both the teachers and the parents constantly reinforce the fear of examination and the need
to prepare for it in the only manner that seems practical, namely, by memorising a whole lot
of information from the textbooks and guidebooks. Educated parents, who have themselves
gone through examinations, and the uneducated parents, whose knowledge of the examination
system is based on social lore, share the belief that what really matters in education is the
score one gets in the final examination. This belief is undoubtedly rooted in social or market
reality. Percentage of marks obtained in the high school, higher secondary, or BA/B.Sc
examinations is what ultimately matters in determining a student's chance of being called for
an interview for admission to a university or for employment. Since the examination score
is what a candidate carries with him or with her as the key authoritative record of schools
or college performance, higher level institutions or employing agencies understandably rely
oneit. It is a process in which no beginning or end can be meaninghlly established. Changing
the system or examination in a structural or even in a merely procedural sense does not
require that a source outcome or cause-effect relationship be established; yet, the examination
system goes on, apparently with the help of energies or rationales located in the system of
education itself."

15.4.5 The National Policy on Education (1986)

The National Policy on Education (1986). reflects on the subject, under the title, 'Examination
System'. In a system in which everything has been subordinated to examinations and grading,
it maintains "the characteristics of quality (functional and social relevance, mental ability and
physical dexterity, efficacy and exercise, initiative, innovation and experiment with new
situations - and a value system conducive to harmony, integration and the welfare of the
weak and disadvantaged) will receive no attention unless these too are evaluated and credits
are also awarded to them." It goes on to say that "it appears self-evident that the present
system of annual examinations will have to be modified since these, more than any other
factor, have contributed to the deterioration in quality. A stage has now been reached when
neither those who conduct examinations nor those responsible for teaching and academic
management are scandalised by the very poor grades and pass percentages in examinations."

15.4.6 The Acharya Ramarnurthy Committee (1990)

In 1990 a committee under the chairpersonship of Acharya Ramamurthy was set up. In its
perspective paper, released to elicit nation wide discussion, it advocated a social orientation
to education, developing the individual in harmony with the collective human resources of
the country. On examination reform, its stand was: '"The imposition of a Centralised Public
Examination at the end of various stages of education, primary to tertiary stage, tends to be
discriminatory in effect. Examinations have failed to evaluate the students or the system.
Instead, they have tended to corrode the educational system by distorting the very purpose
of education. Examinations are also far too many in number and highly expensive. The
Universities are also far overburdened with the conduct of examinations throughout the year.
What is needed as a matter of immediate attention is a process of modularisation and
semesterisation with the conduct of examinations throughout the year, and entrustment of the
function of evaluation to the teachers. Students are to have the freedom of choice of modules
rather than whole course packages. Provisions are to be made for credit accumluiation and Issues Related to the Prrsent
facilities for Uansfer of credit from one institution to another." Examination System
.

Check Your Progress

Note: a) Space is given below for your answers.
b) Check your answer with the ones given at the end of this Unit.
3. Which one of the following is the structure of education in vogue in India today?
(a) 8 + 3 + 2 (b) 1 0 + 2 + 3 (c) 8 + 3 + 3
(d) 10 + 2 +2 (e) 10 + 1 + 2
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4. Which 3 State Boards still conduct a public examination at the middle level?
(a) ........................... (b) ........................... (c) ..:........................

15.5 SHORTCOMINGS OF THE PRESENT SYSTEM

Some specific shortcomings of the present examination system are discussed helow:
a) Memorisation
The ever increasing practice of asking questions which demand only the recall of information
rather than higher mental level operations has resulted in over emphasis on cramming or
memorisation. As a consequence, there is a noticeable tardiness in the development of higher
mental abilities.
b) Scholastic-Oriented
The present system lays emphasis on the growth and development of scholastic aspects while
the non-scholastic aspects are almost ignored. This results in frustration in the efforts to bring
about all-round development of the students.
c) Validity of a Single-stroke Examination
At the secondary and senior secondary stage of school education, the students have to put in
10 and 12 years of studies respectively. But they are made to appear for the terminal examination
where they are sub.jected to three hour testing based on a limited course content. Not only this,
their sustaiiied efforts of so many years are evaluated by the examiners in a short span of a
few minutes. This raises a question mark on the entire system of examination because it does
not take into cognisance the work done throughout the year in terms of projects, assignments,
tests and class work, etc.
d) Creation of Fear and Tension
In view of their vital importance in the career of students, the examinations create psychological
fear and tension amongst them. As a result, the students resort to all lunds of malpractices to
pass the examination.
e) Low Quality of Question Paper
The question paper is one of the most vital components of any examination system. Though
considerable improvements have taken place in its design, blue print and content coverage,
there is still lot more to be done to make this tool more reliable and valid. The preparation
of the scoring key and marking scheme requires more attention in order to reduce the element
of subjectivity in marking the script.
f) Prevalence of Essay type Questions
The examination does not remain a valid measure of student achievement because essay type
questions lead to limited sampling of the course content and pronlpts the students to do
selective study.
g) Subjectivity in Marking
There is a lot of inter-examiner and inUa-examiner variability in marking and as a result of
that reliability of the examination suffers. 37
 C
I
1
k h) Limited Application of Assessment Techniques
i
Indian Education System:
Some Issues
The system as such takes recourse to only restricted techniques of assessment thereby leaving
t
little room for the applicabon of multiple techniques of assessment. This affects both the
I
validity and reliability of the examination.
i) Mismanagement of Examinations
We often come across the startling news about the leakage of question papers, mishandling
of answers scripts, mismatch of roll numbers, egors in marking and totalling, awarding of
grace marks,wrong declaration of results etc. Most of the examining agencies still appear
to be " technology-shy" and are hesitant in adopting the latest techniques of computerisation
and optical scanning.
a j) Inappropriate Interpretation of Raw Scores
Raw scores do not reflect the true ability of the student, yet they are used for the purposes
of classifying them. Moreover, the marks of one subject are added to the marks of the other
subject on the basis of the myth that marks in different subjects can be equated, e.g., 60 marks
in English and 60 marks in Mathematics are alike. This is not technically true.
k) Non-application of Scaling Techniques
The marks secured by candidates in an examination do not truly reflect the acquisition of
ability because they suffer from lot of errors some of which are identifiable. This does not
allow us to ensure the comparison of scores within the subject and across the subject. Scaling
techniques can rectify this, but they are rarely used by teachers or boards.
1) Numerical Marking System Versus Grading
The current practice of awarding numerical marks is highly unreliable due to many
shortcomings, i.e., spread of scores in different subjects is different. In view of this, the
numerical marking does not give the right picture as it gives unrealistic assessment of human
potential. This can be overcome if the students are placed in grades, say on a five-point
grading system indicated by A, B, C, D and E.
m) Awarding of Grace Marks
The awarding of grace marks is not based on any scientific rationale. In almost all the cases
the phenomenon is arbitrary and unscientific. The practice currently followed is not to
consider the passing probabilities for deciding the award of grace marks.
n) Predominance of the Examination System over the Teaching-learning Process
When examinations determine a child's advancement through school and hisher later life's
opportunities,parents understandably put pressure on teachers to ensure that their child succeeds.
The ill effect of this public expectation from teachers is that teachers adjust their teaching to
what the examination will cover to ensure that their students score the highest marks. This
restricts the teaching-learning process to what is taught and learnt in school and thus it does
not promote "mastery learning". So efforts are to be directed to usher in the healthy practice
of examining what is taught rather than teaching what is generally examined.
o) Lack of Credibility of Public Examinations
The modus operandi of a terminal examination is a public examination conducted by a Board
at Class X and Class XI1 stage for the purpose of certification and promotion. However, with
all the drawbacks of these examinations, there has been a recession in its credibility. As a
consequence, the institutions of higher and professional learning have started conducting their
entrance examinations. The ultimate victim IS the student, who, starting from the time of entry
into schooling, is constantly subjected to examinations galore. Helshe suffers from the'
examination syndrome all through hisher education career.
A student passing Class XI1 is plagued by the trauma of appearing for a number of entrance
examinations for admission to institutions of higher and professional learning. This not only
results in financial burden on the student but also turns the student into a nervous wreck.
 Issues Related to the Present
Check Your Progress Examination System
Note: a) Space is given below for your answers.
b) Check your answer with the ones given at the end of this Unit.
5. What are the shortcomings in essay type questions?
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6. What are the benefits of grading over numerical marking system?
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7. What are the ill-effects of excessive emphasis on marks?
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15.6 INXVATIONS
IN EXAMINATION SYSTEM
The National Policy on Education W E ) , 1986 postulated that the examination system should
be recast so as to ensure a method of assessment that is a valid and reliable measure of student
development and powerful instrument for improving teaching and learning. Whether we need
the present form of examination or we need some other form of examination is an issue which
calls for an immediate debate. However, there have been attempts at innovations. Some of
which are described below.
a) Semester System
Semester system has been introduced by several universities at the post graduate level. The
greatest advantage of this system is that it reduces the load on the students and inculcates
regular study habits in them. Since the academic year is divided into two semesters, it also
has the advantage of providing upward mobility. The students can clear the backlog even after
moving to the next semester. It also enables the students to learn at their own pace.
' b) Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluation (CCE)
The present mode of assessment does not take into account the assessment of both cognitive
and non-cognitive learning outcomes and this encourages lop-sided personality development.
The one shot written'examination is not an effective measure for gauging all the abilities nor
does it promote the application of multiple techniques of assessment. The scheme of CCE is
inspired by the idea that it is the teacher who knows the pupil best, and it is through the
teacher that we would get to know how the learner is progressing with reference to hislher
own earlier achievements, with reference to hisher peer group as also with reference to the
expected levels of attainments set by the teacher. You have already read about it in an earlier
module in detail. Boards like CBSE and the State Board of Jammu and Kashmir have introduced
such a scheme.
c) Question Banks
In order to improve the quality of the question paper, there is a need to generate quality
questions of different types measuring various objectives, of varying difficulty levels and for
39
Indian Education System: all stages of education. The facilities of the question banks should be made accessible to the
Some Issues teachers who can use them for making various tests and to students who can use them for their
own drill and practice. This has been done by several' universities and some Boards. The
Association of Indian Universities (AIU) has also come out with college level Question Banks
in different subjects.
d) Re-evaluation and Returning of Marked Answer Scripts
There has been an appreciable movement in the direction of returning the marked answer
scripts to the examinees in the interest of accountability, credibility and transparency in the
evaluation process. The greatest dilemma is whether such a scheme would be administratively
feasible especially in Boards which handle and process the results of hundreds of thousands
of students.
It is the right of every student to be evaluated as accurately as possible. With a view to
ensuring objectivity and transparency, most of the Boards prepare and supply the detailed
marking scheme for the guidance of the examiners. If the answer scripts are marked
conscientiously and the Boards ensure the adherence of the examiners to the marking scheme,
the need for re-evaluation should not arise. However, in some cases lapses may occur and
ideally any request for re-evaluation of such students should be acceded to for not only
providing natural justice but to make the process more transparent and tangible. Re-evaluation
is different from rechecking and retotalling. It is reassessment of the answer script. This has
been introduced by Boards like the one in Karnataka State. The Karnataka Board also gives
photocopies of scripts if a student so desires.
e) Multiple Sets of Question Paper
In order to combat the menace of mass copying the CBSE introduced the system of multiple
sets of question paper in the year 1992. This has resulted in curbing malpractices and unfair
means in the examinations. Some State Boards like the one in Punjab have also adopted this
measure.
f) Open Book Examinations

This is another innovation that has been conceived of in order to make examinations more
reliable and valid as also to make them a real test of ability and not mere memorisation.
However, setting a question paper for open Book examinations is a very difficult task. Therefore,
this innovation has remained a theoretical possibility in India.
g) Credit Accumulation and Credit Transfer
The systems of credit accumulation and transfer ensure that students can learn and qualify
examinations at their own pace. Also, it results in students being able to utilize their learning
for getting certificates or accreditation of their need. The practice of credit accumulation and
credit transfer is very much a reality in advanced countries like USA, but in India these
innovations are restricted to open learning systems mostly in the Open universities and the
National Open School (NOS).
Check Your Progress
Note: a) Space is given below for your answers.
b) Check your answer with the ones given at the end of this Unit.
8. What are the advantages of semester system?
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9. How is re-evaluation different from rechecking?
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 Issues Related to the Present
10. What are the bases of CCE? Exammation Systent
I

15.7 LET US SUM UP

\In this Unit, first of all, we discussed the concept of evaluation in general and educational
evaluation in particular. We saw that examination is an important and probably one of the most
used tools of evaluation of pupil growth.
We went on to discuss the status of the present examination system at the school stage. We
discussed the similarity between the examination system and industry. We further took a view
of what the various Education Commissions and Committees had to say about it. This included
the Mudaliyar Commission, the Kothari Commission, the Yashpal Committee, the NPE, 1986
and the Ramamurthy Committee.
We probed in detail some of the shortcomings of the present examination system and then
went on to discuss some innovations in this regard. The innovations discussed included the
semester system, continuous and comprehensive evaluation, question banks, re-evaluation and
returning of answer scripts to students, multiple sets of question papers, open book examinations
and credit accumulation and credit transfer.

15.8 UNIT-END EXERCISES

1. What is evaluation?
2. What is the difference between examination and evaluation?
3. Describe the present examination system at the school level.
4. How is the examination system comparable to an industry?
5. Discuss the views on the present examination system of any one of the Commissionsl
Committes/Policy given in this unit.
6. Discuss the shortcomings of the present examination system.
7. Discuss the important innovations in examination.
8. Give your views about the present examination system. What steps would you take as a
teacher to improve it?

15.9 POINTS FOR DISCUSSION

1. Role of teachers in improving the examination system.
2. School-based evaluation and how to make it effective.
3. Role of the Central as well as the State Boards in improving the public examination
system.

15.10 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

1. .............to appraise the quality of something.
2. "Systematic educational evaluation consists of a formal appraisal of the quality of
educational phenomena."
 Indian Education System: 4. Haryana, Punjab and Himachal Pradesh.
1 Some Issues
i 5. They lead to selective study by students due to limited sampling of course content.
6. Numerical scores are absolute and their spread in different subjects is different. Grades
are relative as they provide a range of marks making comparisons easy, and providing
realistic picture of human potential.
7. Excessive emphasis of marks puts pressure on the teachers to adjust their teaching to
what the examination will cover. So, the teaching-learning process becomes highly
restricted.
1
8. Reduces the load on students, enables them to pace their own learning, inculcates regular
study habits and promotes upward mobility.
9. Rechecking is just the retotalling of marks. Re-evaluation means the entire re-assesssment
of the complete answer script.
10. The base of CCE is that the learner's progress is to be seen in reference to hisher own
earlier achievements, to his peer group and to the expected levels of attainment set by
the teacher or a competent authority.

/ 15.11 REFERENCES
Report of the Secondary Education Commission, 1953. New Delhi: Ministry of Education.
Report of the Indian Education Commission "Education & National Development",l964-66.
New Delhi: Ministry of Education.
Learning to Be: The World of Education Today and Tomorrow, 1972. UNESCO Publication.
Nurullah & Naik, "AStudents' History of Education in India", 1972. McMillan and Company,
The National Policy of Education "Challenges in Education". 1986. MHRD.
Report of Acharya Ramamurthi Committee "Towards an enlightened & humane societyW,l990,
MHRD.
Report of National Advisory Committee, "Learning Without Burden", '1993, MHRD.