Not So LITeracy

by Divyajot Singh

The academic year 2021 started with students extremely happy with CBSE, for how considerate it had been towards the 10th and 12th students. Having cancelled the board exams earned CBSE the students’ favour. A few months into session 2021-22, CBSE makes another announcement to lighten student loads by introducing Term 1 and Term 2 Board Examinations.

The students were overjoyed because the Term 1 exams would be taken in MCQ format. TO this the exclusion of the Term 1 syllabus from the Term 2 Board exams was a welcome pleasure. Fast forward to December 2021, and the Term 1 Board exams are a disaster.

With sudden changes in exam patterns, improper methods of testing particular subjects and incompetent paper-setting, it was havoc.

The day the students exited the exam halls, the answer key was released. Students spotted several errors in the marking scheme. The checking was to be completed on the same day as the examination and hence, rushed. The discrepancies in the answer keys had no time to be corrected.

Students and the teachers were disappointed by the language exams. It is impossible to grade writing skills in MCQ format. It is problematic because writing skills are the most important in language subjects. Subjects like English, based on interpretation and explanation are not about memorizing events in literature. These subjects were reduced to rote-memorization.

Accountancy students were informed in the exam hall about a change in the pattern of the question paper. To ensure the question papers weren’t leaked, the exam centers received soft copies of the question papers on the very day of the exams. Many exam centers could not print them in time, resulting in a delayed start.

An English question paper that had passed through multiple screenings featured a misogynistic passage about the role of man and woman in the household. The woman was blamed for poor management and making the children disobedient. On the other hand, the man was called ‘The master in his own house’. Children and servants were encouraged to ‘know their place’ as inferiors.

The very fact that something morally wrong on so many levels was written and approved is horrifying. Students should be taught values, ethics and morals for which CBSE has no regard. If CBSE failed to identify how misogynistic it was, one wonders how careful CBSE has been in conducting exams. Not just the unseen passage, but the accountancy exam incident implies carelessness. This carelessness is the only thing CBSE has been consistent with. It is not new to hear about CBSE question papers being leaked.

All these problems point towards one question: Does CBSE need to be reformed?