Context: This editorial is based on the news “The need to examine the examination system” which was published in the Hindu. This article highlights the problems that are faced by the examination system in India that needs to be addressed.

Universities and Colleges in India: The Statistics

• There are over 1,100 universities and 50,000 colleges in India with around 40 million students enrolled. There are also 60 school boards certifying over 15 million students every year.

Also Read: QS World University Rankings 2024

India’s Examination System: Key Challenges 

• Lack of Credibility: There is a lack of credibility and consistency in examinations conducted by different boards and universities. 
  • Frequent Scandals: There are frequent reports of scandals related to paper leaks, cheating, and fake degrees, which erodes public trust in the examination system. 
  • Separate Assessment: Employers often disregard university/board certificates and conduct their own assessments of candidates.
• Overemphasis on Memory: Exams tend to test only rote learning and memory instead of higher-order skills like application, analysis, critical thinking, etc. 
  • Miss on Understanding: It leads to teaching practices focused solely on making students memorize content instead of truly understanding concepts.
• Flawed Assessments: Question papers often have errors, ambiguous questions, test irrelevant content, etc. 
  • Lack of Quality: Evaluation of answer sheets is also not standardized and differences in student learning are not properly reflected in grades awarded. This shows a lack of quality control in setting papers and checking them.
• Secrecy and Lack of Transparency: The entire exam process from setting papers to evaluating answer sheets is highly confidential. This lack of transparency allows mediocre practices to continue and facilitates exam malpractices. 
• Inadequate Regulations: Regulators promote academic autonomy for colleges but do not enforce enough oversight on them. The decentralized system has led to a lack of standardization in learning assessments across institutions. 

India’s Examination System: Steps that Need to be Taken

• Greater emphasis on evaluating higher-order skills, not just memory recall.
• Ensuring transparency in the exam process through external oversight.
• Use of technology for standardized question paper setting and automated evaluations.
• External audit of exam boards and publishing performance reports periodically.
• Continuous assignments and assessments in addition to final exams.
• Grievance redressal mechanisms for students regarding evaluation.
• Grading institutions on exam quality parameters like transparency, reliability, etc.
• Need to ensure minimum quality standards through stricter monitoring.

Must Read: Rethinking India’s Exam-Centric Education System