As Goa Board SSC Exams approach, my thoughts revolve around the exam scenario of yesteryears and that of today.
In the highly competitive world of today, it’s only the decimal scores between 99% & 100% that matter. A score of 95% which by itself was unimaginable in yesteryears is today considered as ‘average’!
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We are cruelly sacrificing the individuality of our children at the altar of examinations by misquoting the word ‘average’. The very cause of exam fear that abounds in today’s children is our misinterpretation of the so-called ‘average’ score. Until sometime back, a fair majority of students who did well by a generous yardstick were termed as average and this applied to around 80% of the student population which made the examination zone much more comfortable for both students and parents.
In contrast, today we have unfortunately set the bars so high for our children that being ‘average’ is viewed as a very low and insulting zone, thus making our children feel worthless and unappreciated. We’re cruelly insulting the individuality of our children by compartmentalising them as ‘Just Average’ based on a Single Parameter of Exams which is in no way a true yardstick of the individual abilities of a child.
Unhealthy comparisons and competitiveness force our children to perform beyond their age. We’re treating our students like race horses in the Mad Race for Scores! By doing so, we’re not only killing their childhood and youth but also destroying their individuality and self-esteem. Not everyone is wired to score between the decimals of 99% & 100% in exams nor is that score a guarantee of a good life. Majority of us feature in the ‘average’ category and yet lead successful lives, so why are we forcing improbable scores on our children and in the process depriving them of their joyful childhood?
Let’s open our minds to the fact that maladies like exam fever, depression, performance anxiety, etc, are of our own making and as a progressive society, it’s our responsibility to keep our children carefree and joyful, just as children are meant to be. It’s time we appreciate that scores below 95% are not ‘average’ but rather ‘very good’ and moreover, let’s learn to appreciate the wonderful individuality of every child.
Let children be children and let exams be just a simple parameter of scholastic skills and not that of our children’s individuality.
(The writer is Goa’s Tourism Minister)
