According
to Swami Vivekananda, education system in the schools should be based on 'Man
Making - Nation Building'. But in a long established system set up by the
Central Board of Secondary Education, it could be observed that students of
Class X were assessed only in academics through an external examination that
was conducted at the end of the academic session in the month of March. To
bring about a quality change in the pattern, a new scheme of assessment known
as 'Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluation' was introduced in 2009 with the
initiative of assessing students on various aspects of development like
intellectual, emotional, social, cultural, physical, along with the course of
subjects, during the entire session and not when the academic year ended.
The term
'continuous' refers to the process of assessment that includes both formative
and summative, carried out regularly throughout the academic session. The term
'comprehensive' refers to the process of assessment in the scholastic and
co-scholastic areas, which covers an all-around development of the students.
The 'evaluation' process is divided into three parts and each part is further
divided into two parts. Part One A comprises the scholastic areas (Languages I
and II, Mathematics, Science, Social Science and Additional Optional Subject)
whereas Part One B comprises work experience, art education and physical &
health education. In Part Two, the co-scholastic areas are divided into two
groups, the former consisting of the life skills (thinking, social, emotional)
and the latter consisting of attitudes (towards teachers, school-mates, school
programmes, environment) and values. Part Three deals with co-scholastic
activities and the students are given the choice to select two activities from
the first group and another two from the second group. Group A includes
Literary & Creative Skills, Scientific Skills, Aesthetic & Performing
Art, Organizational & Leadership Skills (Clubs) while group B includes
Health & Physical Activities (Sports, NCC/NSS, Scouting & Guiding,
Swimming, Gymnastics, Yoga, First Aid, Gardening/Shramdaan).
The
Scholastic Areas are purely academic and consist of subjects given in the
curriculum. Two Formative Assessments and one Summative Assessment are
conducted in a term twice a year. In the Formative Assessments, the students
are monitored by the teachers regarding assignments, oral questions,
conversation skills, quizzes, projects and research work carried out in a
group. In the Summative Assessment, the students are assessed by a set of
questions to be answered in short, long and one correct reply among multiple
choices, in a written examination conducted at the end of the term and grades
to be awarded instead of marks. On the other hand, the Co-scholastic Areas
include diverse skills, attitudes, value system, co-curricular activities and
health. The students are assessed according to their ability and progress in
creative and critical thinking, self-awareness, problem solving, decision
making, interpersonal relationships, effective communication, empathy, dealing
with stress, managing emotions, creative and literary activities, aesthetic
activities, scientific activities, Eco club activities, health and wellness
clubs etc.
The new
system was introduced with the aim at bringing out the inner potential of every
student besides excellence in academic learning. It might also help in
recognizing the fields of interest and strengthening the areas where the
students lacked. Moreover, with the introduction of grades, there would be less
scope for competition, comparison and criticism. Instead of competing with
others and comparing the marks obtained, the students shall learn to compete
with their own selves for improvement and better achievement. Besides, the
students will also be able to get rid of frustration caused by criticism on
acquiring poor marks. Above all, it could be hoped that the scheme would enable
students to face challenges, build up confidence and develop personality traits
to achieve their goals desired in life. However, success or failure of the
ambitious format would all depend upon its acceptance by students, teachers and
parents in the years to come.
[Published in 'Articles Base' on 3
December 2011]
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