Presently the schools use the mechanism of the RTE Act for evaluation of the tests. The state government is considering to adopt competency tests by external agencies for Class I to VIII students from the next academic session. In these tests the students will be marked on reading and writing abilities. Further the education department and the schools will craft an arrangement for improving the learning levels.
According to the school principals it will burden the students.
They expressed their concerns over the continuous comprehensive evaluation (CCE) system saying that CCE is an efficient system capable of measuring the competency. However the effectiveness of the system has been undermined by the parents, students and teachers.
The CCE is a powerful system that assesses the aptitudes of the students beyond mere reading and writing. Using the existing system checks the abilities of the students in skills and emotional development as well. Arundhati Chavan, president of PTA United Forum agrees that the additional tests will pressurize the students.
Redij, principal, Hilda Castelino High School Kandivli said that bringing a third party for evaluation will not only add the costs to the department but also it might not able to convey the accurate opinions as the teachers can evaluate the students in the best manner.
Another principal Rekha Sahani, Kamla High School, Khar expressed that the present system must be changed rather than introducing new tests.
Making use of the CCE tools proficiently, the teachers can evaluate the students and hence there is no requirement of an external agency.
The principals are perturbed with the no fail policy as the students have become non serious. To make sure that a first class learning level is sustained the state should demand the schools to limit the number of attempts for improvement.