For the last couple of years, school boards across the country have been in a continuous of process of upgrading their syllabus. An important and integral part of this transition has been the evaluation method. As compared to others, the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has been more proactive on this front.
However, many teachers and parents are of the opinion that CBSE's current evaluation methods focus on 'pushing' the child forward rather than encouraging to 'walk' ahead. The board however has a different view. Regardless of which side of the fence you are, the truth is that the new evaluation system is here to stay. But are the new rules being implemented properly? Many CBSE teachers, who did not wish to be named, told TOI the new evaluation system has increased their paperwork load.
And much to their dismay, they themselves have to resort to 'speeding up' the evaluations. For eg: A student is given the task to prepare a model of the human brain and explain its functions for which he will be graded. "Now the student obviously will make the chart looking at his book diagrams, so our focus is to make sure that he has understood what he has made. But with so many students it becomes almost impossible to spend time individually with students. Hence, rather than interacting with the student, evaluations are done solely based on the project that has been submitted," said a teacher employed with a prominent school in central Nagpur. The teacher though added that they try to avoid such 'short cuts' but unfortunately it has become a candid practice in many schools because of time issues. It was anticipating these issues that the CBSE launched the 'Monitoring & Mentoring Program'. Under this, principals volunteer to be a 'mentor' for other schools.
The mentor is then assigned three to five nearby schools which he or she will visit. During these visits the mentor's job is to make sure that the schools are implementing the new evaluation system in the right manner. In Nagpur about 10 principals from private schools have volunteered for the program. Kana Roy Chaudhuri, principal of Centre Point School (Seminary Hills), says the program has been of immense help. "This programme is good because systems have changed so much and it is all new for us. Schools need to help each other understand and execute the guidelines perfectly," said Chaudhuri.
A CBSE notice on the mentor program says the evaluation system "requires changes in the ways in which schools have been assessing their students and there are many issues that can come in the way of its effective and efficient implementation". Many teachers however point out a flaw in the mentor program. "Whenever a mentor visits our school they only see the evidence (projects, reports etc) on the basis of which evaluation has been done. But the concerned student is never called. So the mentor will never come to know whether the student actually understood the project he has made, or simply copied the diagram from his book. The entire purpose of cross checking is getting defeated," said another teacher from a CBSE school located on Koradi Road. Many teachers feel the government is bringing changes just for the sake of it rather than ensuring child's benefits.
However, many teachers and parents are of the opinion that CBSE's current evaluation methods focus on 'pushing' the child forward rather than encouraging to 'walk' ahead. The board however has a different view. Regardless of which side of the fence you are, the truth is that the new evaluation system is here to stay. But are the new rules being implemented properly? Many CBSE teachers, who did not wish to be named, told TOI the new evaluation system has increased their paperwork load.
And much to their dismay, they themselves have to resort to 'speeding up' the evaluations. For eg: A student is given the task to prepare a model of the human brain and explain its functions for which he will be graded. "Now the student obviously will make the chart looking at his book diagrams, so our focus is to make sure that he has understood what he has made. But with so many students it becomes almost impossible to spend time individually with students. Hence, rather than interacting with the student, evaluations are done solely based on the project that has been submitted," said a teacher employed with a prominent school in central Nagpur. The teacher though added that they try to avoid such 'short cuts' but unfortunately it has become a candid practice in many schools because of time issues. It was anticipating these issues that the CBSE launched the 'Monitoring & Mentoring Program'. Under this, principals volunteer to be a 'mentor' for other schools.
The mentor is then assigned three to five nearby schools which he or she will visit. During these visits the mentor's job is to make sure that the schools are implementing the new evaluation system in the right manner. In Nagpur about 10 principals from private schools have volunteered for the program. Kana Roy Chaudhuri, principal of Centre Point School (Seminary Hills), says the program has been of immense help. "This programme is good because systems have changed so much and it is all new for us. Schools need to help each other understand and execute the guidelines perfectly," said Chaudhuri.
A CBSE notice on the mentor program says the evaluation system "requires changes in the ways in which schools have been assessing their students and there are many issues that can come in the way of its effective and efficient implementation". Many teachers however point out a flaw in the mentor program. "Whenever a mentor visits our school they only see the evidence (projects, reports etc) on the basis of which evaluation has been done. But the concerned student is never called. So the mentor will never come to know whether the student actually understood the project he has made, or simply copied the diagram from his book. The entire purpose of cross checking is getting defeated," said another teacher from a CBSE school located on Koradi Road. Many teachers feel the government is bringing changes just for the sake of it rather than ensuring child's benefits.
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