Most students dread the word ‘examinations’. But this is something they have to face right from primary school to higher centers of learning. They would probably have a great sigh of relief if the word was altogether deleted from the dictionary! The reasons are not far to seek.
When it comes to public examinations or other important examinations, the whole career of a student depends on what he is able to write during the short duration of an examination. If he suddenly takes ill or is unlucky enough to get a tough question paper, he fails, and his future is ruined. Examiners have no knowledge of his all-round performance during the academic year. They go just by what is written in the answer paper. Again, assessment varies from examiner to examiner. It does not, in any way, reflect the real merit of the students. Examinations kill students’ genuine interest in study and give importance only for cramming. Sometimes they are mere games of chance and guessing.
All this is admitted by everyone. Yet no other method of testing students on a mass scale has as yet been devised. So, examinations have become a necessary evil! If there were no examinations, it is likely that the majority of students would not bother to study at all. We would never be able to separate the brilliant students from the average ones. Then whom would we select for higher professional training?
