Are we lowering our sights?

So, finally we have the various board results from different parts of the world in hand. Everyone is elated and it is time to celebrate and congratulate. And why not? The results this year have surpassed all expectations and are so much better than before. Although a few papers could not be completed, and in some cases, the entire examination had to be cancelled, the various boards did their best to ensure, that pupils did not suffer in any way. What an amazing way to end your schooling and move on to college. So, to all educationists, pupils, and parents – HEARTY CONGRATULATIONS. Some degree of happiness amidst the gloom is always more than welcome. However, I feel rather confident in saying, that with me, there are probably innumerable discerning individuals out there who have a question on their mind. Mind you, this is not to take anything away from pupils who have worked extremely hard and teachers who have given it their best shot and then more. Are we lowering our sights a little too low? This is not a criticism but a fact of life. Are the marks and percentages too high for comfort? Aren’t we seeing this happening year after year? Are you having the same thoughts that I am? A few years ago, when the trend began, it was surprising, then incredulous, then genuine disbelief! Now it’s like “where can we go from here”? Are schools reaching the pinnacle of their success? We have pupils scoring full marks in all subjects! I can understand full marks in Math or for that matter a Science subject. But full marks in English, Social Studies, Economics? When most pupils of a grade score over 90 %, the scenario certainly appears skewed & not healthy. One is then forced to question the credibility of the examination system and mind you , before you decide to shoot me down with your poison tipped arrow , I am not referring to any school or board or country in particular – I question the system of Education and as an Educationist I must. Something is not right. Complacency is the bane of modern education and a rethink is the need of the hour- the quicker – the better. Innovation in the classroom is brilliant – what about innovation in the system? Does everything seem honky dory to you? It certainly does not to me! Mark you, this is not only in the board classes. This is a widespread problem in primary and secondary schools all over the world as well. If you dig below the surface, you may be surprised or depending on who you are, you may not be! High marks and grades seem to be becoming the norm. Kindergarten parents expect their wards to score all A’s and when they do not, they question the school as to why! They also say they are worried in case there is something wrong with their child. Is this even real? Further up in the grades, low marks on a report card are like a bear in a room – everyone at home is screaming, crying and in panic mode. The remarks one hears are not only strange but quite absurd. Supposedly “such low marks were not expected” they will certainly “lead to depression and a lowering of self-esteem”. “what will friends and relatives say”. What if the child “does something drastic”? “The school is to blame”! For goodness sake – what’s with us? Please can we all just realize that there is nothing wrong with a child who did not score high marks and you don’t have to run for counselling immediately – trust the school to give the right advice. To quote the renowned education academic, Professor John Hattie ““Part of our problem is that we’ve conceived success at the school level to be high achievement, and the unfortunate implication of this is, if you have high achievement to start with, you don’t have to do as much,” he said. “However, if you turn that on its side and say our job is to make sure that every student deserves at least a year’s growth for a year’s input, then every student – no matter where they start – will have to show progress.” Briefly, such high marks all round could boil down to ineffective paper setting, the quality of the assessment, faulty moderation patterns or just plain inflation of marks. There are other reasons too, but I will not go there. High examination scores may have their merit if you can call it so. They boost student morale, they please worried parents and they are some reward for years of consistent work by pupils, teachers, and schools. It looks like a win win situation all round and no one is cribbing and why would they? I agree that students are more focused, school education is better structured, teachers are better trained, they use modern methods & parents do all they can and more, to give their wards the best education possible. There are also smart private tuition classes attended by the toppers to get them to do even better. However, when almost everyone scores in the region of 95 % and above, the entire euphoria of saying “I have done well” boils down to zero and means very little. Reality hits home when the very same pupil who was elated when scoring a centum in almost every subject, is given a B or a C in the first college examination he or she appears in. Suddenly, from riding on a cloud of unbridled success and beaming from ear to ear after all the adulation, the very same pupil becomes a nervous wreck and feelings of incompetence, total disillusionment and depression set in. Mind you, this can last well into graduation and beyond and that is not healthy. Educationists around the world should continue to look at the deeper meanings of teaching and learning rather than relying disproportionately on often overly inflated numbers. Someone, somewhere, has to stand up and say “The buck stops here” This whole concept has become quite a vicious circle, because when pupils don’t get those high scores that everyone has come to expect , schools and teacher standards are under the scanner for all the wrong reasons . That is not fair. I truly believe, that in this so called modern, 21st century world, schools are so over saturated with testing and so dependent on scores that we are missing the overall end of education and this is indeed , extremely sad. We are sending pupils into the world with a false belief in their abilities, and they are, at times, too naive to know the difference . Somehow, we seem to be over controlling and undervaluing our students by making them believe they are overachieving and this needs to stop. We must realize that if we continue to focus entirely on metrics and data, true education will be a myth and that is a disaster the world can least afford.