Topic:
Many people believe that formal “pen and paper” examinations are not the best method of assessing educational achievement. Discuss this view and give your own opinion.
Answer:
Changes in the teaching styles and assessments has made advocates of contemporary world think that the traditional ways are not as good as the recent ones. This essay will discuss about both the categories and will provide the opinion in the end.
The way the world has globalised has also made an impact on the education system. The contemporary days of studies has provided numerous form of assessments such as: quizzes, multiple choice questions, presentations, and projects. All of these evaluate the sound understanding of the subjects taught to children; they are not checked on how well they cram the topics but on the level of apprehension and its practicality. For example, when I was studying engineering, we had to present a topic of our choice in front of whole classroom. It enhanced my communication skills, boosted my confidence in interacting with large audience and assisted in learning everything in detail. Apart from this, it is also less painstaking for examiner to evaluate and the results are declared instantly.
However, old school methods of examinations are still widely used and they prove to have their own advantages. Firstly, in this mode, there is no interaction between a child and a teacher, so those who are shy and afraid of communicating with their tutors, can better write the answers on the sheet of paper. For instance, during my senior secondary, it was arduous for me to utter a word before my teachers, so it helped me to score great marks. Secondly, evaluating the answer sheets is also simple and unbiased; the paper act as a proof and can be used in need of a re-evaluation. Lastly, there are few courses like mathematics which cannot be judged using a viva voce or seminars. Therefore, for these kinds of exam, old pattern proves to be the best.
In conclusion, both the benchmarks to judge a pupil have their own pros and cons. I believe, that both the ways should be implemented to asses them by equally dividing the scores between different types of rating. This would be advantageous for educational institutes as well as pupils