There are already enough discussions in the public domain about the poor learning outcomes of our school children, misplaced priorities in assessing our children, and consequently, the rote learning it entails at the cost of conceptual understanding.
There is enough data from NGO-led studies (ASER) and government-sponsored surveys (NCERT) highlighting the abysmal learning outcome of our students.
Yet the status quo persists. The problem and possible solutions have been widely discussed. Our assessment mechanism is the villain. The entire academic transaction process is dictated by the assessment pattern and forces students to engage in learning by rote. The compulsion to memorise facts and recall them during exams impedes progress besides causing stress and strain among students. If the present elders are asked to take up board exams now, they would understand the suffering our students undergo. This is unnecessary. Learning should be a pleasure for everyone. Why should we make it so stressful? By improving the assessment pattern from just testing the student’s memory to testing the student’s conceptual understanding, the whole system can be transformed to produce excellent results.
In fact, with just minimal intervention, things could be improved drastically. Simple changes in the question format that assesses the understanding of the student will bring huge results. Normally, we narrate a theorem in the question paper and the students are asked to derive the theorem. Invariably students memorise and reproduce it. This does not help anyone. There is no scope for verification of the students’ knowledge on application and analysis. Instead of this, the entire theorem, along with the derivation may be given in the question, and students may be asked to assess the changes in the parameters/ indicator for the given set of behaviours and state them. In this case, unless the student has a perfect understanding of the concepts behind the theorem, she will not be able to answer.
Secondly, in mathematics, traditional math questions often involve calculating the area that will be irrigated by water flowing through a canal, with the canal’s dimensions being given. This type of assessment requires students to merely recall memorised formulae and procedures, rather than demonstrating a deeper understanding. A more comprehensive evaluation of a student’s understanding and ability to apply their knowledge can be achieved by including the full calculations in the question paper and asking students to modify the calculation based on specific constraints, such as irrigating the entire farm within a set time frame or identifying errors in the procedure and calculation. Additionally, students can be challenged to determine how much the water velocity or size of the canal should be altered to irrigate the desired land. This type of assessment requires students to use critical thinking and problem-solving skills to arrive at a solution.
Thirdly, normally students are asked to write about the life cycle of the malarial parasite, Instead, the various stages of the life cycle along with a description of activities in those stages may be jumbled and given in the question paper. Students could be asked to serially arrange them by identifying and understanding the activities. Memorisation is not required here if the student has properly understood the various stages of the life cycle and what happens at each stage.
In social science, for example, a conventional question will ask students to explain the advantages of a particular form of government. This is simply a memory-based question. Instead, if we list out various forms of government and their respective features randomly and ask students to match the appropriate feature against each form of government or choose any particular form he prefers and justify their choice, it will help to test the student’s ability to think and apply his knowledge for a given situation.
Children have the inherent potential to learn that is natural and universal. If they don’t learn in our schools, it is not their problem but ours. Allowing this huge waste in our education system to continue is detrimental to the welfare of our children and a crime we commit with impunity on our children.
Footnote is a weekly column that discusses issues relating to Tamil Nadu
The writer is professor of Mechanical Engineering, Bannari Amman Institute of Technology
Learning by rote
The entire academic transaction process is dictated by the assessment pattern and forces students to engage in learning by rote. The compulsion to memorise facts and recall them during exams, impedes progress besides causing stress and strain among students