Joint Review Mission (JRM) of Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, Haryana and Tamil Nadu made a strong pitch for sample-based assessment or the Census based study for learning outcome.
Prime Minister's Office suggested the idea that a census-based assessment of learning outcomes be done at the school level. The Joint Review Mission (JRM) of Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, showed from their experience how it has worked and helped improve the system. Big NGO working in the field of education is suspected of suggesting the idea of the idea of census-based assessment. States like, Haryana, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka have expressed serious reservations to this idea of Census based assessment. National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) also expressed it's reservation for this idea.
To give a legitimate explanation of the reservation, the case of Tamil Nadu was explained. The case mentioned, there were 45,000 government and government-aided schools with 55 lakh children. It will become an administrative and financial challenge. Unlike sample-based survey where we assign separate investigators and pay attention to specific child's response, in census-based it will not be possible. Eventually, quality of data will suffer. It will not help us diagnose the problem. In fact, it was noted that TN's sample-based assessment had become a role model for many states.
A senior Tamil Nadu official told, "Census-based assessment would not give the kind of data that is expected. The official said sample-based assessment of Class III, V and VIII students in Tamil, English and Mathematics that Tamil Nadu started in 2012-13 (sample of more than a lakh) was not only easy to administer but also helped draw conclusions easily."
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