How accurate is Bangladesh's education evaluation system? What kind of changes are coming to the country's education system?

 What is an A+ in life? Is the life of those who did not get an A Plus in the SSC exam over?

Think about a test-free education system? Now I have to hear that the friend from next door has got a golden A plus in SSC (there is no such thing as a golden a+). The student who got relatively low grades. But once there was no such thing. Actually, there was no formal education system then. Let's say about the Indian subcontinent, the education system of this region was very much guru or teacher dependent. Education in the early stages was mainly related to the profession. But in the modern era came a radical change in the evaluation method of education. A very important factor in determining the pace, nature and purpose of education. And today's discussion is about the importance of assessment in education. In particular, we will try to understand how effective the valuation system of Bangladesh is.

In the case of our country, when we think of evaluation, the result of the examination really comes to mind. However, there are several differences between assessment and testing. The examination is used in a narrow sense in the field of evaluation. On the other hand, assessment is the process of determining how much students have achieved the content of knowledge based on learning outcomes. Literally, educational evaluation is the assessment of future behaviour in the context of the student's past behaviour in the field of education. That is to say that the assessment does not depend only on the results of a test. Evaluation is a broader concept. According to historical data, testing as a concept was first invented in ancient China. The objective was to select people based on merit to rule the state. No one can be considered based on parentage or birth. At the hands of the British, that test has now become the most important formal process of assessment in education.

There are various types of examinations at different levels in the education system of Bangladesh. Some of these are public exams. Their results are academically important. Socially also very significant. Parents and even teachers are looking at the results of that exam at the end of the day. The question now is that while tests are an important regulator of assessment, can any single test result accurately assess a student's overall educational life? As a student, what you learned throughout the year, what you taught as a teacher, as a family, and the physical, mental, and financial sacrifices you made day after day for your child's education. Can he be judged on just one criterion called examination?

It is sad but true that a GPA of five has become the ultimate aim and goal of education in our country. More specifically, the number of GPA five is considered an indicator of improvement in our education system. Does it carry any message in education?

Our education system is becoming more prosperous day by day?

The matter had reached such a stage that public examinations were being arranged even at the initial stage. Young children were exposed to a standard called the GPA Five. Yet in the modern world, there are no tests for most children who are advanced in education. Formative assessment is used as part of early childhood development in the developed world. No marking, no ranking. For high school students. Most developed countries are without an exam at the end of the year. There are no mandatory tests. Recently, another leading country in the field of education, Singapore, has also de-examined the education system at the primary level. Since 2019 marking and grading have been replaced by discussions, homework and quizzes for primary level first and second-grade students. In other words, during these two years, students will be able to study happily without any pressure from exams. Overall, the examination has been made relatively less competitive for other classes of students at primary and secondary levels.

Let's come back to Bangladesh's evaluation system in education. Bangladesh's assessment system has always been controversial. The level of this controversy has only increased with time. This debate has intensified over the past three decades. Especially after the introduction of multiple choice questions and creative questions. In this country, creative questions have been introduced without any preparation. Many teachers have not yet understood it properly. As a result, there has been a qualitative collapse in the assessment system.

In 1956, Professor Benjamin Bloom of the University of Chicago in the United States divided learning objectives into cognitive areas, belief or affective areas, and monopolises areas. Cognitive skills basically revolve around all the knowledge-related skills of the student. Which can be evaluated through a written test. Beliefs and feelings skills are a major consideration in how the learning process changes the learner's own beliefs and feelings, and while some can be measured through written tests, assessment is most effective through observation. Bangladesh is gradually realizing its lack.

Being able to do something by hand after learning something includes psycho-muscular skills. Due to various limitations in the assessment system of our country, we have never found such importance in the assessment based on the skills based on trust, emotional skills, and psychological skills. Although these two skills are very important in the desired change of behaviour. We are evaluating the merit of a student only based on cognitive skills-based assessment. According to Blue Moss Taxonomy, the six stages of cognitive skills are recall, acquisition, application, analysis, synthesis and evaluation.

Our nation's policymakers have reduced Bloom's cognitive domains from six levels of learning to four.

Keeping the first three parts fixed, the last three steps are considered together as higher skills. If Mr Blooms knew that Bengali intellectuals would play such twelve of his cognitive domain, then maybe he would have thought twice to give this theory.

It is precisely for this reason that this test system was launched with the objective of creativity. But the hope is that Bangladesh is going to enter a new education system from the year 2025. Absolutely transform. These changes are coming in secondary and higher secondary exams, curriculum and subject-wise departments, these changes will come everywhere. Special emphasis is being placed on evaluation this time. In the new education system, there will be no more SSC OHSC exams in the current system, only the SSC exam will be conducted according to the syllabus of class 10. There will be two public exams under the board in the eleventh and twelfth classes and the final HSC result will be announced by combining the results of the two exams.

Most importantly. Students will study the same syllabus till class 10th. Ten areas of their learning have been determined. But there will be no books in pre-primary. They will learn directly from the teacher in the classroom. Humanities and commerce will be divided into three parts in the eleventh class. The important thing is that from pre-primary to higher secondary, emphasis will be given to the continuous evaluation system rather than the conventional examination system. There will be no regular examination till the third class. This method will be introduced in the first, second, sixth and seventh classes next year. This new method will be introduced in the third and fourth, eighth and ninth classes in two thousand twenty-four years, fifth and tenth classes in two thousand twenty-five years, eleventh class in two thousand twenty-six years and twelfth class in two thousand and twenty-seven years. It is expected to bring a huge change in the education system of Bangladesh.

This whole process is seen by educational researchers as a radical change. They say the developed world is always changing with the times. We are now going to do what they did long ago. But the head-scratching thing is that to get the benefits of this change, doubts remained about whether what needs to be done will be done correctly. Since the emphasis is on evaluating the organization. So teachers should be more qualified and independent in this regard. However, there is a fear that there will be enough qualified teachers at that level in their salary structure. Because assessment at this level is not possible without qualified teachers. Since a teacher has to assess the students in each class separately. Therefore, it is mandatory to provide adequate training for teachers. This intensive approach will increase both the number and qualifications of teachers.