Fahim is a science student of a renowned school in South Dhaka. His SSC examination is just around the corner. He is apprehensive about his 75-mark theory exams of physics, chemistry, mathematics and biology. But he worries little about his 25-mark practical exams as he knows he will be given full marks in four subjects of his upcoming board exams. This is not just the story of Fahim. Almost every schoolgoing student under the National Curriculum and Textbook Board (NCTB) gets full marks in their SSC practical exams without doing any hands-on experiment. So, what actually happens in these exams?
The 25-mark practical exam is divided into three segments: 15 marks are allotted to demonstration and 5 marks each to viva voce and practical assignment. However, these three segments turn out to be different things when a practical exam is really conducted. The 15-mark demonstration becomes a theoretical exam, where students answer questions from their memory. And in some cases, invigilators do not mind if the students plagiarise from guidebooks or copy from other examinees. There are many guidebooks available in the market on practical exams. These guidebooks contain solution to the problems given in the textbook. Before a practical exam, students memorise the solutions provided in the guidebooks and answer the questions. There is hardly any school in Bangladesh that prepares students for practical exams.
The viva voce, which is supposed to judge the examinee's ability to do experiment, often becomes an interview where students are asked theory-based questions. Sometimes, the teachers present at the interview board ask personal questions about the students and their families. This is how a viva session becomes just an occasion for exchanging personal views between the examinee and the examiner.
Practical assignments, which carry 5 marks out of 25, are hardly done by the examinees themselves. These assignments are supposed to be written at school laboratories by the students themselves on the basis of their findings from the experiments. But the truth is most students simply go for copying everything from the guidebooks. Some of them even hire ghost writers active on the social media platforms. And these writers write for them in exchange for money.
Teachers and school authorities do not raise any question about this because most of these schools do not have any functional laboratory and equipment to conduct practical classes. However, they do not forget to charge students for lab classes. Some private schools sometimes charge SSC examinees between Tk 500 and Tk 2,000 and promise them that they would get 100 marks in practical exams out of 100. In fact, guardians and students are not serious about learning anything from practical classes. What they are more concerned about is getting a GPA-5 or A+. And this is how practical exams are going on for years in Bangladesh. But this should come to an end. Those should not be like another theory-based exam.
Every school should have functional laboratories, where students can do experiments and learn new things with the help of their teachers and instructors. This will help them internalise what they studied in a better way. It will give them first-hand experience and offer better opportunities for learning.
