Page 53 - February EW 2024 PDF

Class X examination in Karnataka: rote learning and grades inflation

Rote learning and the exam system. The elephant in boards to remain attractive to schools and students who
India’s K-12 classrooms is rote learning. Simply put, rote can easily score higher marks.
learning is mechanical learning where students can recite This has triggered a vicious cycle — exam boards feed on
dates and definitions and solve ‘typical’ problems, but can- society’s preference for higher grades and encourage rote
not demonstrate deeper understanding of subjects and ap- learning. This also becomes the way of teaching and learn-
ply their knowledge to real-life situations. Rote learning is ing for teachers, students and coaching centres. In turn, it
not simply ‘memorisation’, which is a learning tool and may leads to strong pushback if boards try to move away from
be useful at times. For example, memorisation of formulas rote-based assessment.
for quick recall, once understood, or of multiplication tables The good news is that the National Education Policy
is handy. Rote learning is learning by memory without un- (NEP) 2020 has explicitly addressed this problem, prom-
derstanding and with no intention to understand curricu- ising a shift in the format of exams from one that “primarily
lum subjects. It is when students say — half proudly — “I tests rote memorisation skills to one that is more regular
have no idea what it means, but that’s all they’re going to and formative, is more competency-based, promotes learn-
ask in the exam, and I know the answer!” ing and development for our students, and tests higher-or-
Exam marks are valued in every society, but the ‘arms der skills such as analysis, critical thinking, and conceptual
race’ between exam boards to award marks liberally so that clarity”. Major exam boards have already started making
students of affiliated schools can ‘remain competitive’ has the change. But change has been slow and the boards may
led to boards setting recall or textbook-based questions, as need stronger political backing to sustain the pushback
students can score more in such questions. This has not only from society when scores drop (whether from 99 to 90 or
led to grades/marks inflation, but also had a downstream 50 to 40) as is likely.
effect on classroom teaching with teachers focusing on what Significant variations in school quality. In the recent
exam boards signal as important. When we compare exam World’s Best School Prizes of the London-based T4Educa-
boards in India with international boards we find that the tion, the Riverside School, Ahmedabad was adjudged ‘Best
latter have moved in the direction of higher order thinking in the World’ in the prestigious ‘Innovation’ category. This
and knowledge application in their questions, whereas in proves some of our schools are world-class. But the differ-
India we have moved in the opposite direction for exam ence between the few top and numerous bottom-perform-

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