Reforming examination-evaluation system way to achieve excellence Dr. Nazir Ahmad Gilkar
|| Dr. NAZIR AHMAD GILKAR
Examinations and evaluation occupy a pivotal position in the curriculum management. Evaluation gained strategic position in the entire process as focus shifted to learning in the society. Reforming examination-evaluation management has always been attraction attention of academics, curriculum managers and policy makers associated with education system. The commissions and committees across the country made a significant contribution for improving examinations system to achieve academic excellence. The subject under the title “ExaminationsEvaluation Reforms Management”, in light of the emerging trends, has been a focus of deliberations for long time wherein a need has been felt that all the three components of curriculum management – designing, transaction and evaluation need to operate simultaneously and in tandem. These have a cause- effect relationship and are interdependent.
The performance evaluation of learners should be multi dimensional and continuous and directed to assess intrinsic intellectualskillof learners. To sustain an innovative practice, the 5th ESE workshop was organized by Central University Kashmir in the aforesaid context. Through this academic platform the faculty shared experiences and thoughts mutually .A series of post ESE workshops conducted until now have shown far reaching academic implications by setting a trend towards a culture of best practices initiated in the University. Further by holding this academic exercise a requirement under NAAC has also been fulfilled.
Evaluation Reforms Management pursues the following objectives – introspect and improve upon further examinations and evaluation system, provide necessary space for interaction to the faculty across all teaching departments, avail an opportunity to listen to an eminent educationist in the country, consider various examination and assessment issues and learn from experiences and exposures and ensure that valued outcomes of the deliberations are utilized effectively during the course of forth coming end semester examinations. Prof Jalees Ahmad Khan Tareen, the chief guest on the occasion delivered keynote address on the theme “Parameters of World class Universities” .With support of a power point presentation he highlighted ways and means to be adopted by the Indian Universities in order to carve a space among the top ranked Universities across the globe.
“The characteristics of world class Universities are critical mass of students and faculty,” Prof Tareen said adding that multidisciplinary campuses with wide and varied choice of program base, flexibility in courses of study with interdisciplinary learning options, high diversity ratio of students as well as faculty, fast student progression and mobility, academic freedom enjoyed by faculty, thrust on research and experiential learning, state-of- the- art laboratories, libraries with universal access to updated information are certain essential fundamental requirements. He elaborated that robust self appraisal and stakeholder feedback mechanism ;integrated program at different levels, institutional collaborations and networking, funds flow from private endowments, corporate sector and alumni, participative decision making process, excellence in governance and continuity in policies, good connect and complete trust between administration and academia, minimum bureaucratic interferences into institutional affairs, academic creativity and openness, intellectual courage to experiment new ideas, out of box thinking approach and so on are the areas that need focus at the earnest .
Lastly Prof Tareen opined that a University makes a mark at global level through its research outcome, innovations and inventions. An effective balance must be struck between quantitative and qualitative measures in the education sector at each level. The Professor supported his arguments by referring to several anecdotes during his presentation. The effectiveness of the presentation could be assessed from the fact that it carried the audience comprising mainly the faculty engrossed and spell bound. Prof Mehraj-ud- Din, ViceChancellor CUK in his presidential address on the occasion said that despite a variety of constraints, bottlenecks and impediments, the varsity has been marching ahead fast on academic front.
As on date the varsity has conducted a series of academic events of global significance that have received overwhelming appreciation and applaud from the participants. The University has adopted innovative measures as regards curriculum management and examinations as evaluation reforms management is gaining added importance in response to contemporary challenges. The higher demand ratio year after year reflects acceptability and recognition of different programs run by the University. Earlier, Prof M Afzal Zarger (Registrar) in his welcome note described Prof Tareen as an academic administrator par excellence saying he has left an indelible mark due to his dynamic management capabilities in the institutes of higher learning he governed.
He pioneered novel methods in the academic administration that accelerated the growth of these institutions to newer heights. He said besides traditional courses the varsity runs several flagship programs. The university has been trying hard to carve a niche in the competitive environ despite all hardships. Prof NA Nadeem (Dean SoE) presented a detailed profile of guest. Prof Dr Nazir A Gilkar (CoE) conducted proceedings and dwelt upon the set of objectives for holding the workshop. Faisal Irshad (AR) proposed vote of thanks. The Technical Session “Online CIA Test and Evaluation” was jointly conducted by Dr Zahoor Ahmad Najar AP, IT Department and Irfan Ahmad Bhat consultant ITSS with Dr Sheikh Showkat Hussain in chair. The need for online examinations was thoroughly discussed with participants agreeing that CIA test can be started gradually in a sustained way to include all teaching departments over the period of time.
The following pedagogical niceties were deliberated upon threadbare – the online CIA tests shall be based on multiple choice questions with each item comprising four options and shall have only one correct option that sans ambiguity and double answers and the CIA test for all courses of study in a particular program shall be clubbed together and held in one sitting. The number of questions shall depend upon the size of courses taught in a particular program, for every course of study there shall at least be ten questions, every item shall carry one mark per minute of time to attempt the same and every teacher shall have his/her login facility to create a question bank .Also the question paper to be administered shall be chosen by the teacher before the test time and he/she can select any ten questions from the question bank/depository thus generated, the teacher needs to upload the answer keys for the questions, the online test shall be conducted in the respective browsing centers of the University, the examinees shall be having user name and pass word through which he/she will login and start the online test and there shall be randomization of questions to avoid chances of unfair practices.
There shall be a timer to give the examinees an indication for the time limit leftover at a given point of time and the examinees shall have to complete the test within a set time frame. The examinees shall come to know about their performance within two days of the test only after verifying the test key and the evaluation process shall automatically be completed by the system and the examinees shall watch their respective Report Cards online. The teacher concerned, Head of the Department and Controller of Examinations will be able to download the award rolls as and when required.
The first online CIA test shall be held in the last week of October, 2016. Before the start of department-wise group workshop exercise, a Panel Discussion was held with Prof NA Nadeem in chair whereas Prof Abdul Gani, Prof Syed Fayyaz Ahmad, Prof G M Bhat and Dr Farooq A Shah performed as panelists. A detailed discussion was held on the proposed activities to facilitate the workshop practice session: selecting a course of study as per ones choice: perusing question papers set until now; finding flaws ,if any ,in the construction of questions; constructing questions in all the sections; focusing on HOW and WHY questions; preparing question- wise expected answers; evaluating learning outcomes with learning objectives; finding variations between expected answers and answers written by examinees; maintaining balance in word limit, time allotted and marks allocated; evaluating intellectual depth in responses and arguments built; analyzing each question and framing value points to maintain uniformity while evaluation and re-evaluation. The Controller of Examinations responded to varied queries raised by the panelists and the event proceedings ended with concluding observations by the Vice-Chancellor. (Inputs from PRO, ITSS, EEW and Dean SOE CUK).
Author can be reached at gilkarna@ resiffmail.com
Focus of the Discussion Steps needed to be initiated to carve a space in the list of world class Universities?
Need for making examination system more transparent, speedy by focusing on efficacy and quality enhancement in evaluation process Improving evaluation process through robust measurement mechanism and framing a set of recommendations based on the aforesaid academic proceedings.
The University has conducted a series of academic events of global significance that have received overwhelming appreciation and applaud from the participants. It has adopted innovative measures as regards curriculum management and examinations as evaluation reforms management is gaining added importance in response to contemporary challenges.
