Ferozepur, February 20, 2018: Punjab Education Reforms Committee has expressed its concern over the availability of ready copy material available in the market and the issuing of orders of imposing Section 144 at the time examinations is also merely a formality.
Speaking on the burning issue, Hans Raj, Spokesman, Punjab Education Reforms Committee said, the Education Secretary is active now to stop the copying from the root and all the examinations centres in the State have been changed and none of the students will sit in the exam in the school where he is studying.
He said, there is also a plan for CCTV camera record and video graphing in the rooms at the examination centres. But on the other hand, the readymade copying material is available in the market in bulk to encourage the copying during the exams. Under dozen’s titles and hundreds of publishers have made available the guides, guess papers, pocketbooks on almost all the bookshops. While guides and keynote books are available during March-April in the market the pocketbooks and guess papers start coming in the market from December.
He said, the students from poor and Dalit families whose parents don’t bother about their education because of their economic conditions and even students also help them in their day to day work in the fields and to get through the exams, such students spend a lot of amount on purchase of these pocketbooks.
When these readymade copying materials have spoiled the creative power of the students, it is one of the reasons for copying during exams, for which bureaucracy and politicians are directly responsible, he added.
Expressing his concern, he said, no arrangements have been made to lift or ban the printing of such readymade material from the market but the centre controllers, superintendents and checking staff is being held responsible for it. But there are hardly any arrangements in the name of security of teachers and examination centres. Every year, the staff put on examination gets threats and teachers are beaten and there is a stereotype version of the government of imposing of Section 144 at the examination centres. Not only this, some officers and leaders too put a pressure on the staff on examination duty and this is the reason there is no complete check on the copying during exams.
Hans Raj said, there is another ground reality of non-stopping of copying during exams is that teacher is being punished because of no interest of the students in study and the only teacher is abused for the poor results.
Giving his opinion, he said, if the results are separated from the promotion and financial benefits, only then a check can be put on the mass copying during the exams to great extent.
Hans Raj said, there is a need to have the permanent solution to this copying menace. Merely blaming the teachers only will not solve the crisis; the problems of government schools are totally different from private schools. So, without knowing the real problem, there could no lasting solution.
He said, to stop the mass copying during exams, all teachers have also to perform their duties sincerely and honestly.
Photo courtesy: BBC.com