Obsession with marks and ranks

The results of the recently concluded CBSE, ISC and ICSE examinations where students have scored mind-blowing results have left them, their parents and schools in a state of euphoria. Comparisons between the successful and not so successful candidates, their schools, their districts and even states should make us pause to think if all this brouhaha is really about learning. In this highly competitive environment where a single digit makes or mars a child’s future, a child’s schooling can hardly be called education. One gargantuan
examination at the end of 10 or 12 years is in itself a travesty. It neither reflects her potential nor creativity. Nor does it reveal what she gained in those 12 years of schooling.

Have those precious, formative years built a confident and positive personality or merely produced a robotic one who can memorise reams of knowledge and regurgitate the same in one annual test? Educationists the world over have concluded that a cumulative assessment of a student’s progress is a far more sensible option than one concentrated examination. Assessing students’ academic progress without placing a burden on young minds is the best way to ensure that knowledge has been properly imparted and understood. It must be remembered that such assessment tests not only a child’s academic growth, but more importantly, it reveals the teacher’s skills and competence to teach. The present method of an annual marathon neither reflects the student’s talent nor the teacher’s competence. It is an exercise to no purpose except to create an exaggerated sense of self worth in young adults – or, feelings of inferiority if they failed.

This kind of education has no place in the land of Rabindranath Tagore and J Krishnamurty- the torchbearers of true learning where “the mind is without fear, and the head is held high.” Our present system actually instils fear in the student’s mind – the fear of failure. It has sadly failed the younger generation and is the prime cause of depression and suicide among teenagers. Real education is one where marks and rankings are not as important as life skills where a student is taught how to face life’s harsh realites – including failure. In their obsession with marks and ranks, even schools fail to equip their pupils with the skills necessary to face the challenges of life. They also stifle independent thinking and creativity in their pupils forgetting that grades and ranks are not the only criteria for a truly successful career which demands original, resourceful thinking out of the box - an important component of education that is sadly missing in the present system.