CCE Guidelines and Pattern

Examinations are an indispensable part of the educational process as some form of assessment is necessary to determine the effectiveness of teaching learning process and their internalization by learners. Various Commissions and Committees have felt the need for examination reforms.

The Hunter Commission (1882), Calcutta University Commission or Sadler Commission (1917-1919), Hartog Committee Report (1929), the Report of Central Advisory Board or  Sargeant Plan (1944), Secondary Education Commission  or  Mudaliar  Commission  (1952-53)  have  all  made recommendations regarding reducing emphasis on external examination and  encouraging  internal  assessment  through  Continuous  and Comprehensive Evaluation.

Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluation refers to a system of school based assessment that covers all aspects of student’s development. It emphasizes two fold objectives. Continuity in evaluation and assessment of broad based learning.

Place of Evaluation in the Curriculum

A curriculum is what constitutes a total teaching-learning program comprising overall aims, syllabus, materials, methods and assessment. In short it provides a framework of knowledge and capabilities, seen as appropriate to a particular level.  Evaluation  not  only  measures  the progress and achievement of the learners but also the effectiveness of the  teaching  materials  and  methods  used  for  transaction.  Hence, evaluation should be viewed as a component of curriculum with the twin purpose of effective delivery and further improvement in the teaching learning process. If properly understood, evaluation or assessment will not be perceived as something administered by the teachers and taken by the learners on the conclusion of a period of learning. When evaluation is seen as an end of the learning exercise, both the teachers and the learners will tend to keep it outside the teaching-learning process, rendering assessment broadly irrelevant and alien to the curriculum. Further, such a perception associates anxiety and stress with evaluation for learners. On the contrary, if evaluation is seen as an integral part built into the teaching learning process;  learners will not perceive tests and examination with fear. It will lead to diagnosis, remedial action and enhancement of learning.

In  view  of  getting  a  complete  picture  of  the  child’s  learning, assessment  should  focus  on  the  learner ability  to:

„ Learn and acquire desired skills related to different subject areas

„ Acquire a level of achievement in different subject areas in the requisite measure

„ Develop child’s individual skills, interests, attitudes and motivation

„ Understand and lead a healthy and productive life

„ Monitor  the  changes  taking  place  in  child’s  learning,  behavior  and progress over a period of time

„ Respond to different situations and opportunities both in and out of school

„ Apply what is learnt in a variety of environment, circumstances and situations

„ Work independently, collaboratively and harmoniously Analyze and evaluate

„ Be aware of social and environmental issues

„ Participate in social and environmental projects

„ Retain what is learned over a period of time

CCE helps in reducing stress of students by :-

• Identifying learning progress of students at regular time intervals on small portions of content.
• Employing a variety of remedial measures of teaching based on learning needs and potential of different students.
• Desisting from using negative comments on the learner’s performance.
• Encouraging learning through employment of a variety of teaching aids and techniques.
• Involving learners actively in the learning process.
• Recognizing and encouraging specific abilities of students, who do not excel in academics but perform well in other co-curricular areas.

TEACHERS SHOULD KEEP IN MIND

• Use a variety of tools (oral, projects, presentations) .
• Understand different learning styles and abilities.
• Share the assessment criteria with the students.
• Allow peer and self assessment.
• Give an opportunity to the student to improve.

Important Points:

• CCE will cover the scholastic and co scholastic areas of school education.
• The two types of assessment referred to in the circular are formative and summative. The periodicity of the two types of assessment is four and twice a year respectively.
• Formative Assessment totals to 40% weightage.
• Summative Assessment totals to 60% weightage.
• There are nine grades in Part A of Scholastic assessment and Part B of the same assessment has five grades.
• Summative assessment covers non academic areas like attitudes and skills and there are three grades.
• If a student secures Grade 6 in the academic areas his/her marks would range from 51% to 60%.
• CCE advocates absolute grading. This means that Grade 9 would imply an A2 grade.
• The academic term will be divided into two terms.

Screven (1967) first suggested a distinction between formative evaluation and summative evaluation when describing two major functions of evaluation. Formative evaluation was intended to foster development and improvement within an ongoing activity (or person, product, program, etc.). Summative evaluation, in contrast, is used to assess whether the results of the object being evaluated (program, intervention, person, etc.) met the stated goals.

Saettler defines the two types of evaluations as: 1) formative is used to refine goals and evolve strategies for achieving goals, while 2) summative is undertaken to test the validity of a theory or determine the impact of an educational practice so that future efforts may be improved or modified.

A formative evaluation (sometimes referred to as internal) is a method for judging the worth of a program while the program activities are forming (in progress). This part of the evaluation focuses on the process.

Thus, formative evaluations are basically done on the fly. They permit the designers, learners, and instructors to monitor how well the instructional goals and objectives are being met. Its main purpose is to catch deficiencies so that the proper learning interventions can take place that allows the learners to master the required skills and knowledge.

Formative evaluation is also useful in analyzing learning materials, student learning and achievements, and teacher effectiveness.... Formative evaluation is primarily a building process which accumulates a series of components of new materials, skills, and problems into an ultimate meaningful whole. - Wally Guyot (1978)

A summative evaluation (sometimes referred to as external) is a method of judging the worth of a program at the end of the program activities (summation). The focus is on the outcome.

All assessments can be summative (i.e., have the potential to serve a summative function), but only some have the additional capability of serving formative functions. - Scriven (1967)