If There Were No Examination
Ask any student and the response you will get is “really? Is it possible? Then life would be so blissful”. The examination system has come under a lot of criticism and many condemn it on the ground that it gives undue importance to a good memory; it favours docile and studious people.
Conducting exams, reading answer scripts and giving marks have gained predominance in the functions expected of a teacher. Examination has become a burden because there is too much stress on memorization and abilities like problem solving; creative thinking and analyzing are given very little attention.
Any examination is a tool to assess or measure what a student understands of a particular subject. Information that is gathered after an assessment should give students a feedback on what they know and what they can learn better. In the teaching, learning scenario, assessment should be an ongoing process. Thus, instructional strategies could also be varied so as to make the curriculum more interesting and meet the various needs of the students. Some of the methods which have been advocated to help students learn better are, problem based learning, project method, collaborative learning method, discussions, graphic organizers, debates and role plays. These are various methods designed to help a student to demonstrate his creativity, planning skills, team work, peer interactions, share ideas, express his opinions, listen to others, debate over an issue, giving reasons for or against, and increase self confidence and social awareness while indulging in role play.
Periodic assessments and evaluations should help to provide regular and correct feedback. As Jim Clemmer said “without periodic ‘time outs’ to assess our progress, we often don’t have a sense of how far we have come and whether we are on track or slipping into the swamp”
