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LATEST NEWS UPDATES | The Perils of an Exam-Centric Education System -Avijit Pathak

The Perils of an Exam-Centric Education System -Avijit Pathak

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published Published on Dec 28, 2016   modified Modified on Dec 28, 2016
-TheWire.in

CBSE’s prevalent culture of examinations, which is indifferent to the uniqueness of a learner, negates creative articulation and critical thinking and kills the spirit of teaching as a vocation.

Once again we have returned to the tyranny of examinations. Although the class ten board exams were made optional in 2011, as the new Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) guideline suggests, from 2018 onwards, it would be compulsory for students to take the exams. In a way, it is not surprising since our education system – despite the illuminating ideas of creative, stress free and child-centric learning that is propagated by the likes of Rabindranath Tagore and Jiddu Krishnamurti – is essentially exam-centric.

The primary goal of education is not the arousal of the child’s innate potential but is instead a ruthless process of elimination and selection for future manpower allocation. Furthermore, in a society guided by the scarcity of resources as well as the neoliberal ethos of social Darwinism, competitiveness or hierarchisation of individuals on the basis of a measured scale, becomes the standard norm that a large section of parents and teachers tend to accept.

No wonder then that exams are seen as meant for making one competitive and for adoring the values of ‘hard work’ and ‘success.’ Exams are seen as being ‘functional’ because they process and filter people, and this normalisation of examinations, as Michel Foucault said in the context of a disciplinary society, establishes constant visibility over individuals and produces docile bodies and minds. When examinations are everywhere – from television reality shows to diagnostic clinics, it is difficult to imagine schooling without examinations which – to refer to Foucault again – are ‘ceremonies of power.’

Yet, it is about time we realise the significance of three truths. First, with the prevalent culture of examinations, meaningful learning cannot take place. Anyone familiar with the rituals of schooling knows how the entire experience of learning is centered on just one goal – how to get good marks in examinations. This instrumental approach denies the students the joy of learning, restrains them and makes it almost impossible for them to go deeper into any issue. No wonder then that like black money, a parallel education system prevails – tutorial homes, coaching centres and all sorts of guide books become an integral part of a child’s learning experience.

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TheWire.in, 28 December, 2016, https://thewire.in/90026/cbse-examinations-education-india/


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