Masum Billah :
Corona pandemic has broken many of our traditions and practices. SSC examinations were almost regularly held in the month of February for many years but the same was held in November in 2021 due to Covid situation. The SSC examinees got only two and a half months’ time to receive physical classes in the institutions as the institutions have been closed since March 2020 because of Covid pandemic. However, efforts were there to conduct classes online, though it could not touch maximum number of students for some valid reasons. Following this abnormal situation, the doors of schools were opened on12 September 2021 and till the SSC examination started on 14 November and ended in 23 November, the examinees basically got only one and a half months class. Following these practical phenomena examinations in all the subject did not take place normally. Only group based examinations in three subjects were held with concise syllabus and marks, not for full 100 marks. It can be said a little better than ‘auto pass’. In the auto pass neither the students nor the guardians and teachers and nor schools can enjoy even a little satisfaction. In 2021 even though other compulsory subjects and fourth subjects were not considered for evaluation, still students could say’ we have sat for the examinations’. The results of SSC have been prepared on the basis of students’ JSC and equivalent results and the marks obtained in three group based subjects’ partial assessment and this has been done probably for the first time in our known history of public examination.
Publication of results certainly brings an exclusive kind joy and happiness in the young minds of students as they find a change in their life. Students searched and collected the results on 30 December 2021 from the websites of the education boards and through SMS as well. The combined body of all education boards known as ‘ inter board coordination committee’ arranged a ‘ briefing session for the newsmen on 29 December when they let us know the results would be published at 12 am on 30 December. Students were asked to collect their results from their examination centers or from their own institutions. On top of that, the website of education boards also published the results for students and following the guided steps they collected the results sending SMS to 16222 number.
Due to Corona pandemic educational institutions were shut and the SSC examination of 2021 was pushed nine months back and the exam started in 14 November and ended in 23 November 2021. It was after one and a half year later a public examination which saw 22 lac 27 thousand 113 examinees. It was in the history of the nation that a public examination took place partially after the non-stop closure of educational institutions for 544 days and so examinations were taken in three subjects only. Though examinations were taken in three subjects on shortened syllabus, no student passed from 18 educational institutions and this number was 104 last year. Comparing the number of failed institutions with previous year it is somehow better. However, it calls for serious thought of the officials concerned as why not a single student will pass. Who teaches there, what kind of schools are they, are they MPO or Non-MPO? If MPO, things must be dealt with very strictly and the administration must be brought under accountability. We expected to learn it from DSHE what kind of educational institutions these are and what to do next? If DHSE could identify the real cause of zero percent pass schools, its remedies might have been identified. Many NGOs, institutions and individuals have the capability to support these institutions to uplift their situation. Here taking initiative to mobilize the effort is a matter. This is another weakness of our education department. We will have to learn the message regarding these schools from the newsmen or from electronic media, not from the DHSHE or Ministry. They seem to have no headache for it.
In nine general education boards one lac 63 students got GPA-5 and this number is one lac 83 thousand including all boards. Last year this number was one lac 23 thousand 497 students and including all boards it was one lac 35 thousand 898 students. The pass percentage in general education board is 94.08 percent which was 83.75 percent last year. Total pass percentage including all boards is 93.58 percent. Last year 20 lac 47 thousand 779 students appeared in the SSC exam. That means this year one lac 79 thousand 334 students are more than previous year. 17 thousand 676 schools under nine general education boards took part in SSC exams where 18 lac 998 students appeared and nine thousand 110 madrasa’s 3 lac one thousand 887 examinees under madrasa education board, under technical education board SSC and Dakhil Vocational 2 thousand 349 institutions 1 lac 24 thousand 228 students sat for the examination. In 2021 the number of girls was 10 lac 98 thousand 301, out of them passed 10 lac 37 thousand 918 students that means 60 thousand 383 girls failed and pass rate is 94.50. And 11lac 42 thousand 94 boy students appeared and passed 10 lac 58 thousand 628 students and failed 83 thousand 466 and pass rate 92.69. That means girls surpassed boys.
Mathematics and English used to stand as great factors to pass the SSC and HSC examination for the students in the previous pubic examinations but in 2021 students had not to touch these subjects. They did not even have to sit for compulsory subject and fourth subjects. However, Bengali and English are basic subjects, without the knowledge and application of these two subjects, evaluations tend to become incomplete. Language is the means of communication, means of understanding any subjects and making other people understand through these subjects. And education specialists suggested the authorities to include these two subjects while SSC examinations were going on short syllabus and shortened marks. So, it can be concluded that taking examinations not in hard subjects, following short syllabus and lessening the subjects contributed to increase the pass rate and GPA-5 obtaining numbers. Moreover, alternative questions were more than previous years that also played a role to increase pass percentage. So, this good results means suddenly have become good, and it is not real good in simple calculations as was opined by the Education Minister that seems reasonable to us as well. In spite of all these true facts, more than six percent students have failed that might be the cause of their failure in MCOs. They failed in MCQ and CQs (creative questions).Many students usually fail in creative questions even though they have every potential to be creative, to show their creativity. However, their creative faculty gets suppressed because of our faulty assessment and way of teaching method. It clearly talks about a great crack and fault of our entire education system.
All the educational institutions of the country will not be same but a gulf of difference can never sounds reasonable that deserves genuine attention of the people concerned and it is one of the anomalies and irregularities prevailing in the field of education. We frequently talk about ‘quality education’. Now we need to talk ‘what is about it’. I mean what we mean by ‘quality education.’ The concerted face of quality education is ‘students will be able to learn things beyond their textbooks, will be able to utilize the gained knowledge and skills in practical life , will develop their communicative ability, and utilize the language appropriately. Similarly, teachers will have their critical thinking skills developed, will be well aware of the necessary pedagogical aspects and involve students effectively in the teaching learning process, deal with the students effectively and arouse their interest in learning, be able to discover the inner talents and skills of the learners., their presentation skills must be very attractive, be familiar with ICT skills and adopt them for their own benefits. Students must be guided according to the discovery of their hidden talents, guide them and evaluate them which is basically real evaluation to be conducted by the teachers.
Masum Billah is works as an education expert in BRAC Education and is the President- English Teachers’ Association of Bangladesh (ETAB), Email: [email protected]
