To discourage learning by rote, 12 BMC schools show the way
Report on 4,500 students who took ‘open textbook exam’ a month before final exam says results positive; 80 per cent said they fared better….UPNEET PANSARE
IN A first for primary schools run by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, an “open textbook examination” conducted as a pilot project with 4,500 students has yielded “encouraging” results, according to a report submitted by the Mumbai Municipal Teachers‘ Union.
That means the teachers’ basic target was achievedto encourage students to refer to textbooks and formulate answers according to their understanding of the subject, and to simultaneously reduce dependence on guidebooks with readymade answers that are often inaccurate.
“Textbooks are very often the only basic literature available to students. Forget storybooks and newspapers, it has been observed that students do not even read their textbooks. At exam-time, they reproduce answers printed in the guidebooks without even comprehending what is being asked in the question paper,” said Ramesh Joshi, general secretary of the Mumbai Municipal Teacher’s Union (MMTU), which initiated the pilot.
The examination was conducted in 12 Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) schools for 4,500 students across the city in February. On Friday, a report on the findings was submitted to Deputy Municipal Commissioner S S Shinde.
Open textbook exams stress the importance of reading textbooks, selfstudy techniques, decisionmaking, all of which in turn help in building self-confidence among students, Joshi said.
To implement the idea, a two-day training programme was held for teachers and principals on the difference between regular exams and an open book exam, the teachers’ role in helping the students during the exams, the role that parents could play, etc.
Thereafter, meetings were held with parents and students two days before the exams. “Initially, a lot of doubts were raised. Parents and teachers thought that this kind of an exam would make the students used to referring to textbooks for answers and hamper their studying process. However, almost all of them admitted that students simply did not read their textbooks,” said Shilpa Naik, a teacher at Ghatala School, Chembur.
The exam was held nearly a month before the final exams. Due to time constraints in setting a fresh question paper, it was decided to give the students last year’s exam papers. According to Joshi, a number of students brought guides along with them instead of textbooks.
Another unique concept introduced was that of selfassessment. Ten student-examiners were elected by each class to assess their answer papers. Examiners sat with the students and evaluated the answer sheets.
Once again, the students were only provided with textbook-¿no model answer sheets. Teachers then sat down with each student and their assessed answer sheets for a detailed feedback session.
Joshi says the effects are clear in the results of these 4,500 students’ final examination marks. The report submitted to Shinde says that almost 80 per cent of the students felt that reading textbooks helped them gain more marks, even agreeing that reading was better than rote-learning.
Around 50 per cent of them recorded better handwriting than in other examinations. Among teachers, 80 per cent said students with poor grades could write better answers after an open textbook exam, and 52 per cent of them thought the students learnt more when they were asked to assess their own papers.
Thirty-five per cent of parents felt that children had begun reading books and newspapers at home.
Shinde said: “It is a good concept. I feel that it should be introduced in more schools. Due to its uniqueness, students will be attracted to it and take interest in it. The concept of open book exam also helps in reducing the gap between teachers and students.”