examination woes!!

Of late the number of students resorting to unfair means to succeed, especially in examinations is on the rise. Although the innovations employed in such situations deserve appreciation they cannot be condoned. Why do students even think of such means? Is it the fear of failure? May be! But failure in what? Failing in an exam (even assuming that one has worked hard not to) must make one more reflective, more industrious and more focused. It is a learning process. But, unfortunately the fear of ‘failure’ weighs more heavily on their minds than the fear of being ‘caught in the act’. Who is to blame for this unhealthy trend? Of course, that students must restrain from such practices is indisputable. But are there other ways to help them stay away from such shortcuts to success? Perhaps there are!! Is it possible to stop examining rote learning and concentrate on enhancing their critical and creative abilities? For this to materialize our examination system needs a major revamping and a lot more thinking (and time) must go into the preparation of question paper. Malpractices in examinations can be stopped only when our testing patterns focus on the application aspects, completely or largely ignoring textual and factual comprehension.