Marks make way for grading system in state primary schools

Implemented from the academic session that started this June,teachers for up to Class VIII are required to keep a regular monitoring and record of students’ performance in co-curricular activities,skills,values,virtues,interests and behavioural changes.

Apart from academic evaluation,various parameters have been chalked out for individual development. To be evaluated on a scale of 400,students are required to participate in co-curricular activities like music,drawing,art,yoga and physical training. It will be the responsibility of schools to ensure that the students are provided with these options.

“Various parameters including oral,written,practical,group discussions,projects and other tools that gives an exposure to the environment not restricting a child to the books will be implemented in all the primary schools,” stated instructions issued by the Gujarat Council of Educational Research and Training.

For CCE,the entire evaluation structure has been revised. Termed as School Comprehensive Evaluation (SCE),areas like creative evaluation,self-education evaluation and evaluation of individual development have been added to subject evaluation. Based on their comprehensive performance,students will be evaluated twice a year as the curriculum has been divided into two semesters in each class.

Putting the entire onus on teachers,the department has issued directions that they should take responsibility that no student is weak in any subject. For motivating and guiding teachers in this direction,school principals,Cluster Resource Centres coordinators and other officers have to frequently visit schools and monitor students’ evaluation on the basis of their performance.

“Stress has also been laid on self-education. Every teacher has to take a note of each students’ homework,lessons,creative writing,use of books and local literature. All these have to be included in students’ progress report. As no student will be detained till Class VIII from now on,if a student fails to appear in SCE,in special cases,the principal at the earliest has to take his written examination and evaluate on its basis,” said Ahmedabad Municipal School Board chairman Jagdish Bhavsar.

In order to give proper guidance,teachers are required to not only keep a record of the current year’s performance of a child but also records of previous years. To avoid tampering and confusion,it has been strictly directed that grades and marks will be written only in English.