Back to: Measurement and Evaluation in Education B.ed Notes, M.A Notes, IGNOU Notes and Graduation Notes
Limitations of the Present System of Examination
As our present education system mainly evaluates a student through the format of subjective examinations, it mainly focuses on the objectives of the cognitive domain including knowledge, comprehension, application, analysis, synthesis, and evaluation. An examination is defined as the evaluation of the understanding of the knowledge of a person. The assessment can be done in the form of a formal test.
Objectives of the Examination
1)The exam is taken to check the knowledge of a student of a particular subject by including a variety of questions like objective, subjective, one-word, etc.
2)There are two kinds of tests i.e. oral and written. In primary classes. For example- in classes from nursery to 1st, the tests are taken orally as the students haven’t learnt to write. But from the first standard, students learn to write and the examinations conducted are in a written format.
3)Exams are tests designed to determine a student’s abilities and strengths. Written exams are usually written forms of tests, some of which can also be practical or contain practical elements and vary greatly in content, level of difficulty and structure depending on the subject.
4)Exams are recognized as a traditional system of testing knowledge and intelligence practised in almost all schools. It is a concern for both brilliant as well as weak students.
Drawbacks of Examination system
1) It brings anxiety and tension.
The stress of doing well in an exam and the fear of failing an exam can make life very challenging for candidates. Some stress may be necessary to keep students motivated to study, but extreme stress can lead to serious health problems.
2) Lack of practical skills.
To get good results, students usually focus more on memorization and ignore the concepts. This approach minimizes the practical skills of the students.
3)Unfair Assessment
An exam checks how a student has performed on a particular day of examination instead of examining how was his/her performance throughout the year.
4)Exam-related depression can have a very negative effect on the character of the child.
Every child’s ability to learn is different. A major problem caused by exams is the comparison made between children/students, ignoring the fact that all individuals are different from one another.
Importance of Examination in a student’s life.
1)Examinations are the most important part of a student’s life because their future depends upon how they have performed in the examinations. 2)Apart from the academic examinations, there are several entrance examinations that the students give to gain a good percentage or gain admission to top colleges and universities.
3) These examinations do not justify the interests of students as some might score average marks in exams but win various competitions organized in schools.
4)The examination system is said to be defective because it compels the students to learn and understand those subjects which they are not interested in.
Limitations of present system of examinations
1)The education system as a whole is surrounded by examinations. Examinations have become a part of the student’s life. Students do not get time to inculcate new hobbies or interests because when one exam is finished, the other arises.
2)The evaluation system includes organizing exams and providing grades. No other method of evaluation has been introduced by any exam conducting body.
3)The examinations and tests are only useful for the present time. The chapters and topics memorized are useful for that particular time. They are not required in the long run if a student is not going for a particular course like science or arts.
Need for alterations in the examination system.
1)A change in the examination system is the need of the hour because it suffers from a large number of drawbacks and requires complete overhauling.
2)The System of examinations is not the real test of the student’s ability. It does not ensure accurate results in determining the real worth of a candidate.
3)The biggest problem is that anything can happen and could unsettle the best of students thus new systems are being introduced such as midterm or semester examinations and unit tests.
4)The students want the syllabus to be changed like change in curriculum, organizing more extra-curricular activities etc.
5)The present education system does not encourage skill development among students. The learning system inculcated is not useful in practical life.
