Errors in SSC question papers

Nilratan Halder | Published: March 05, 2016 00:00:00 | Updated: February 01, 2018 00:00:00

Eleven, five, three, four and 11 are no figures for a quiz. Audience or viewers of the Z Bangla have now become accustomed to such quizzes courtesy of Dadagiri hosted by Sourav Ganguly. But those numbers are in fact errors contained in the question papers of different subjects on which examinations of the Secondary School Certificate (SSC) have been held this year. As many as 11mistakes are there in the Mathematics question papers of the Jessore Board. Physics question paper under the Dhaka Board has five errors, Bangla first paper and second paper under the Rajshahi Board has three and four errors respectively and the Mathematics question papers of Bangla English versions under the Chittagong Board together have 11 such mistakes.
Mistakes apart, examinees were subjected to an outrageous blunder in that they were supplied question papers of 2014. This happened at least in eight exam centres in Gazipur, Dhamrai, Kapasia, Monirampur in Jessore, Patuakahli, Nilphamari and Ramdia College in Kashiani, Gopalganj, according to a report carried in a Bangla contemporary.
What happens to an examinee when they face this kind of harassment in the examination hall is beyond description. Those who supply such question papers could not be more callous in inflicting mental agony to examinees. Had they been careful, they surely could avoid the fracas. Instead, they made no attempt to salvage the situation. No wonder a number of invigilators have been withdrawn from any exam-related duty.
The board authorities have decided that examinees attempting erroneous questions will be granted full marks. The idea is not to victimise examinees for the fault of the teachers who were assigned the duty of setting questions. The solution is simplistic, no doubt. But how the issue of outdated questions and examinations will be settled is a matter of great anxiety for examinees and their guardians. The local administration of Gazipur has reportedly sent a letter to the Dhaka Board recommending special consideration for the affected examinees. No special consideration can be a true evaluation of the students' merits because each one of them is unique in their own way. Any average marking will certainly be of help to some but to others aspiring the highest possible score it will be a gross injustice.
Now the question is, how can such questions be erroneous. It appears that the errors do not concern printing mistakes. Question marks actually hang on the quality of teachers who were given the responsibility of setting questions. Teachers and reviewers who teach a subject should spot such mistakes very easily. Are they not given enough time to set questions? What is the rush that such question papers cannot be made mistake-free? Actually teachers in general have long undermined their avocation by taking it lightly. Many of them simply do not qualify for the job. Others who know their subject well come to Dhaka and other cities or towns with the aim to make the most of their proficiency. If they serve in a school, it helps their interests even more. They use it as a signboard to announce their expertise for coaching business. It is futile to expect devotion to classroom teaching from them. Some of them even lend their hands in preparing guide and suggestion books. It is a million-dollar business. They are unlikely to take enough care if they are given the responsibility of setting question papers.
Poor quality of teachers on the one hand and aberration of the profession on the other have brought the situation of teaching to a deplorable state. The errors are not just a symptom but the disease itself. The soon the authorities will realise this truth the better for education here.
A lot has been done to raise the percentage of pass and grade point average but in the process, education itself has been reduced to a technical process under which merit has become a casualty. This surely demands a thorough review. One simple thing should receive top priority if education has to be revived to its rightful status. This is the improvement in classroom teaching. Coaching should be done away with. If teachers can prepare students for examinations at their coaching centres enough for scoring GPA 5, why cannot do they same in their classrooms? The reason is simple: they take class teaching casually and impart lessons perfunctorily.