Savitribai Phule Pune University’s (SPPU) Law Faculty semester-end exams, considered among the toughest of each faculties successful the universities, recorded a walk percent of 20.86% successful the pre-pandemic twelvemonth of 2018. That went up to 93.08% successful 2021, erstwhile exams were held online.
From a walk percent of 40.01% successful 2018, Nagpur University’s BA Final Year results went up to 94.17% and 87.96% successful the pandemic years of 2020 and 2021 respectively, erstwhile exams were held online.
During the last exams of 2021, Mumbai University’s undergraduate programmes recorded walk percentages of 93.21 for the Arts stream, 94.5 for Commerce and 74.44 for Science. According to university’s Director of Board of Examinations and Evaluation, Vinod Patil, a surge of astir 20% successful the walk percentages has been witnessed crossed each 3 streams since the pandemic.
IN AT slightest 3 of the biggest universities successful Maharashtra, which unneurotic relationship for implicit 15 lakh students, walk percentages person seen large jumps implicit the past 2 years of the Covid-19 pandemic, starring to teachers, principals and assemblage officials raising doubts implicit the integrity of online examinations.
Data of introspection results obtained by The Indian Express from Savitribai Phule Pune University (SPPU), Nagpur University and Mumbai University connection a measurement of the inflated results arsenic immoderate departments specified arsenic SPPU’s Law module recorded a 72% leap successful walk percentages betwixt 2018 and 2021 – a inclination that’s apt to beryllium mirrored crossed the state arsenic exams moved online during the pandemic.
Since the summertime of 2020, erstwhile the lockdown was imposed and classes and exams were hastily moved online, universities person struggled to enactment successful spot investigating infrastructure, including means of surveillance to guarantee just practices. Also, universities shifted to a afloat online MCQ-based (multiple prime questions) trial to measure students.
Saying offline exams are the lone realistic mode to measurement the show of students, Mahesh Kakade, Director, Board of Examinations and Evaluation, SPPU, said, “When the online method of introspection was deployed for archetypal time, determination were videos being circulated connected societal media teaching students however to cheat, to instrumentality the exam successful groups and truthful on.”
He added that the assemblage managed to soon drawback up, investing successful technological interventions to guarantee cleanable exams. “We employed artificial quality and sensor exertion and started catching malpractices. Our exertion started capturing pictures of students utilizing different devices, going absent from the surface and switching windows connected their computers. The exertion besides recorded movements of others successful the room. We caught implicit 1,100 students cheating successful the October 2021 examinations,” helium said.
Prafulla Sable, Director, Board of Examinations and Evaluations, Nagpur University, too, said the displacement to online investigating came with its acceptable of surveillance problems for the university. “In the archetypal days of the pandemic, erstwhile we conducted online exams for the archetypal time, it took america by astonishment arsenic we weren’t prepared. We adjacent heard stories of students taking the exams successful groups.”
By December 2021, astir authorities universities had started preparing for on-campus examinations but arsenic Covid-19 cases of the Omicron variant started rising, connected January 7 this year, a authorities solution directed each non-agricultural, private, deemed, method and nonrecreational universities and their affiliated colleges to behaviour exams lone successful the online mode. While astir universities are yet to revert to the on-campus exam mode, a fewer autonomous institutes person gone up and announced offline exams, citing among different things, close and realistic assessment.
Data of exam results from the 3 authorities universities amusement wherefore their concerns aren’t wholly disconnected the mark.
At Pune’s SPPU, wherever the engineering module had the highest fig of students appearing for examinations successful October 2020 and May 2021 successful online mode, the results are telling (see box). Of 1.69 lakh students who appeared for the October 2020 exams, the archetypal introspection station the Covid-19 lockdown, lone 421 failed, resulting successful walk figures of 99.75%. For the May 2021 exams, besides held online, 1.66 lakh appeared, of whom 2,297 students failed – a walk percent of 98.61%. Before the exams went online owed to the pandemic, the mean walk percent of the aforesaid module ne’er exceeded 70 per cent for astatine slightest a decade.
At Nagpur University, 18,452 students appeared for their BA final-year exams successful the summertime of 2018 and 8,201 successful the summertime 2019, some written exams successful pre-Covid times, erstwhile the wide passing percent stood astatine 40.01 per cent and 61.57 per cent respectively. The walk percentages went up to 94.17% successful 2020 and 87.76% successful 2021. This is simply a inclination that’s existent of each faculties successful the assemblage — indicative of the falling stature of examinations implicit the past 2 years arsenic exams went online.
University officials and teachers accidental the displacement to MCQ-based question papers whitethorn person besides contributed to a emergence successful walk percentages.
“The quality of the introspection is specified that successful an MCQ-based question paper, adjacent if students prime immoderate random option, there’s a probability of getting passing marks astatine least,” said Kakade.
The main of a assemblage affiliated to Mumbai University said connected information of anonymity, “With the online exams, the signifier shifted from subjective questions to nonsubjective ones. While it was easier for the students, determination was nary country for the professor’s evaluation-based scoring, which factored successful the student’s knowing of the taxable connected which she is being tested.”
Patil of Mumbai University is convinced the surge successful results is purely due to the fact that of the MCQ quality of the exam. “There was online proctoring which did not permission country for cheating,” helium said.
Dhanraj Mane, Director, Higher Education, Maharashtra, said helium was alert of the inflated results crossed authorities universities implicit the past 2 years. “Maintaining the sanctity of exams and holding a reappraisal of the results are the occupation of the universities. Their committee of examinations and vice chancellors are determination to reappraisal it. In January, the authorities had issued an bid (for online exams) keeping Covid cases successful mind, but present determination is nary specified situation. It is up to universities to instrumentality a telephone connected the signifier of examinations. If an exigency concern similar Covid arises, they tin instrumentality online exams. But now, astir universities volition beryllium moving to taking offline exams,” helium said.
While saying determination tin beryllium nary going backmost connected the exams that person already been conducted online, SPPU Vice Chancellor Nitin Karmalkar said offline exams are the lone mode forward. “Even lectures person resumed successful colleges and universities truthful present we request to revert to the accepted pen-paper method of examinations arsenic an contiguous solution. The MCQ-based quality of the online mode of examinations lends itself to unrealistic walk percentages, which tin beryllium corrected by reverting to offline exams. However, arsenic a agelong word solution, we request to instrumentality a choice-based recognition system, wherever continuous valuation of the students takes place.”
Courtesy : The Indian Express