Educationists flay MCQ tests for polytech colleges
Previously, the assessment system involved questions of two, three, five, and seven marks demanding descriptive answers.
The reformed system increases emphasis on MCQs, even for questions that require application, analysis, and critical thinking. For internal theoretical assessments, number of MCQ questions (one mark) is double that of short answer questions. As for the end semester examination, the entire assessment (one-mark and two-mark questions) is MCQ-based.
For theoretical-cum-practical exams, also known as practicum (integrated tests), equal weightage has been given to MCQs and theoretical questions (two marks and three marks), accounting for 50 marks. The remaining 50 marks come from practicals, as revealed by a perusal of the communication from DOTE accessed by TOI. While the directorate contends that the reform would help students move on from rote-based learning and help measure learning outcomes accurately, educationists says the measure is a smaller component of outcome-based education, which the NEP 2020 endorsed.
"When the state itself is opposed to NEP, bringing about reforms outlined in the policy is wrong. Outcome-based education kills the spirit of learning. This is a failed model of evaluation. Thrusting this on students without consultating them is unfortunate," said Prince Gajendra Babu, general secretary, State Platform for Common Education System.
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MCQs can only assess the 'what' aspect, not the 'how', L Jawahar Nesan, former convenor, State Education Policy, said. "Especially in a polytechnic setup, the weightage on practicals has to be increased. Focusing on MCQ-based assessment is opposite to the desired learning outcomes. Ideally, 95% of the questions should be comprehensive, providing a multi-dimensional assessment model for the student to analyse the problem," he added.
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