India’s exam culture is a highly competitive one. The exam results don’t reflect what the student has actually learned, rather it focuses on rote learning.
Exam results have often led to depression or anxiety issues in the best of students. One of the primary reasons for suicides in the country under the age of 25 is exam results.
This competition has somewhere stolen and degraded the real meaning of education will hundreds of millions of students just focussing on rote-learning to excel in the exams.
This case is not limited to India. China’s higher education entrance examination is a 9-hour exhausting test. Students coming with IV drips attached to them hasn’t moved the government yet to opt for more humane procedures.
Almost every country in Asia faces a similar excessive exam pressure. The problem starts right from the primary school and continues till the exams for graduation and post-graduation.
Rote learning degrading the significance of education
A couple of years ago, a study was done under the RISE (Research on Improving Systems of Education). Education systems of India, Pakistan, Nigeria, Uganda, and Canada were compared and as expected, the education systems of India and Pakistan were miserable and least efficient.
Students lacked basic skills. Rather, they remember irrelevant excerpts from their books as a result of excessive rote learning.
This image of education and learning needs to be eradicated. Several startups like Educational Investments (EI) have started working in this area. They are trying to change the perception of examinations of parents and teachers.
Everyone focuses on infrastructure, mid-day meals but the quality of education remains unchecked everywhere. EI has launched an ASSET test that focuses on learning rather than useless rote learning. However, it doesn’t have any significance as the government exams, students do not pay attention to it.
The problem lies with the mindset of people, especially the parents and teachers.
However, the new National Education Policy (NEP) draft gives hope that this massive pressure would be taken off the students’ shoulders in the coming years. The traditional system of 10+2 education will be replaced by 5+3+3+4, in an effort to let students realize the career opportunities they have in the future in a better way.
Countries like Norway or Finland have always been appreciated for their education system. They have managed to completely kick out the relevance of standardized exams.
Other countries like Australia or the US are also coming to terms with the fact that rote learning and standardized exams have done more harm than good.
