Examination-Advantages and Disadvantages
Examinations are a necessary evil. They are held at regular intervals of time. They are a means to test the ability of students. Nobody welcomes them with a smile. Everybody is afraid of them. The very mention of examinations sends a wave of shiver in the body. As soon as they come near, students forget their food and rest. Examination has advantages and disadvantages.
Examinations test the knowledge of students. Students attend their classes for a full year. Teachers teach them various subjects. At the end of a year, it becomes imperative to test how much students have grasped these subjects. Examinations are the only yardstick to measure the ability of students. It is examinations which make students study books and learn things. If there were no examinations, there would be no seriousness about studies among students.
Examinations fill a kind of fear in their hearts. Near examinations they grow nervous. They heave cold sighs. Some even go mad. Examinations are not a true test of one’s ability. They are very slippery. Sometimes weak students get good marks in examinations. At some other times hard working students even fail to pass through. Moreover examinations encourage cramming and copying.
Examinations are not without advantages and disadvantages. They do not suit our present system of education. They should be overhauled. They should be made more scientific and less frightening. We should follow the pattern of developed countries.
To me, the advantages of exams outweigh their disadvantages. Examining or assessing students learning is part of instruction. Results of exams give information about students learning to parents, teachers, and students themselves so that strengths will be maintained and weaknesses will be corrected on time.