Rethinking assessments
Here is some food for thought for academic authorities. How valid would the results of an academic test be if those that are supposed to appear for are preoccupied otherwise? Would they even count if the ones tested were struggling with anxiety when they gave it? Or actually, we should be asking if they should count, because our nation does tend to place a premium on test and exam results rather than what they represent.
Amid protests from students, parents and notable public personalities as a new wave of the novel coronavirus surges through the country, Cambridge Assessment International Education (CAIE) is pressing ahead with this year’s annual A and O Level examinations. The CAIE position on this is somewhat understandable, even if it is construed as irresponsible. Last year, when the CAIE finally decided to forego the exams in favour to teacher assessments, the results it published attracted much controversy as students claimed they had been graded unfairly. More than a year since the first outbreak, the novel coronavirus so far shows no signs of slowing down either and many experts have suggested we will simply have to learn to live with it.
On CAIE’s part, there is also the financial component. The organisation charges substantial fees from students who appear for O and A Level examinations. Sooner or later, justifying at least a portion of those fees may become untenable should it routinely call off examinations in favour for direct grading.
That said, our educational authorities and teaching professionals perhaps need to use this opportunity to rethink how students are assessed. This goes for matters beyond Covid-19 as well. Pages and pages of research around the world have ascertained how effective various current modes of standardised testing actually are in assessing the capabilities and learning of students. In Pakistan, CAIE or not, we know about the problems posed by rote learning, lack of critical thinking and unregulated coaching centres to genuine learning and education.
Published in The Express Tribune, April 27th, 2021.
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