The Indian education system has always been following the marks or grade based assessment system to evaluate the learning milestones achieved by the students. A well developed assessment and evaluation system plays a pivotal role in the educational journey of children. While we look into the complex and integral aspects of the domain of education, understanding the effectiveness and potential challenges of the evaluation system is of utmost importance. When we deeply examine the Indian education system, we can see that report cards are mainly being used by teachers and parents to evaluate the learning capacities and achievements of children.-performance assessment systems in Indian schools
- What do report cards convey?
Report cards include the information about different academic aspects of a child over a period of time, usually a year. It measures the scores or grades a child has obtained throughout an academic year. Most of the time, report cards include information regarding the marks achieved by the students in different subjects in periodic and term end examinations. Apart from this, it also includes grades for behavioural, cultural, and sports related activities that a child is involved in.-performance assessment systems in Indian schools
- Are report cards enough to assess learning?
There have been arguments about the effectiveness and efficiency of report cards in measuring the overall performance of students. Many of the stakeholders from the domain of education have put forward the opinion that while information about the grades provide an idea about the students’ level, rigidity in the evaluation system has overlooked the diversity of talents in children and their holistic development.
- What is the challenge?
The challenges in using a uniform grading system holds more significance, when it comes to a culturally diverse country like India. Another prominent issue adding to this challenge is the undue importance we place on rote memorization. Children just focus on rote learning to score the maximum marks they can, which more or less leads to the failure of the purpose of education. As we are bringing up our children in a much more competitive global era, there is a need to shift the focus towards more progressive and comprehensive methods of assessment and evaluation ensuring maximum participation of students.
Ms. Anjali Kapoor, a child development specialist in India also has the opinion that Children are not defined by grades alone. Our approach should encompass a child’s emotional and social well-being, encouraging a love for learning rather than fostering a culture of competition solely for high marks.
A few years ago, Mr. Vikram Joshi, a renowned educationist from India tells that the purpose of education is to nurture well-rounded individuals. While report cards serve a purpose, they should not overshadow the importance of character development, critical thinking, and practical skills that are essential for success in the real world.
It is a very stressful situation for the students that their teachers and parents are assessing their capabilities just based on the marks they have scored in their term examinations.
In this era of cut throat competition, we need to put our focus on creating a much more progressive, continuous, and comprehensive evaluation system for our schools.
Are our children really learning?
Are the scores mentioned in an annual report card sufficient to make our future generation capable enough?
Are we realising if our kids are lagging behind?
Do you remember the scores you have received say five or ten years back?
Grades or all round development – Who wins?
