Shocked students file online plea over NATA scores

A group of students who took the National Aptitude Test in Architecture (NATA) have filed an online petition questioning the criteria used in evaluating their exam papers.

The petition was filed on change.org two days after confusion prevailed over the results of the Drawing paper. Claiming that there is a drastic difference in the scores they expected and the scores they achieved, students urged senior members of the Council of Architects for a revision.

After much delay and confusion, the scores of NATA were released on June 6, a day before scheduled. The council also released scorecards for the Drawing test on June 4 only to recall it within a few hours, creating panic among parents and students.

Shocked students asked the council to re-examine the evaluation process. Those objecting told DH that they had secured high ranks in other competitive exams, including the JEE, and could not have scored so low in NATA.

"I took NATA conducted on April 29. I am deeply unhappy with the results. The drawing scores really seem to be blindly evaluated," reads the online petition.

It further said the results of the aptitude test weren't published properly. The marks were increased, and later decreased; all without any intimation to the students.

"Most importantly, what was the criteria of the evaluation of drawing scores? Were they really corrected by qualified staff (sic)?" the petition said. One of the students, Varun (name changed), expressed the most important doubt in students' minds: whether the papers were evaluated according to the prescribed norms.

"How is it that so many of us have got such low score in drawings? Besides, the personnel (evaluators) seem to have no knowledge about the NATA Exam. Whom are you playing with? The lives of architectural aspirants or India as a whole? We the students of India need a proper answer and please respond to this time at least (sic)," the students asked.

They also raised doubts over the credibility of the private site where the results were posted, as the scores were revised frequently.

The scores of aptitude paper were changed thrice to date while students were informed that the drawing scores were not to be considered just hours after it was posted on the site.