Oral: The dilemma of
oral of SSC examination for languages was at the centre of attention in
Maharashtra from last two years. It is said that the language teachers from
secondary schools bestow marks liberally in oral. It affects the passing
percentage and the highly coloured result doesn’t reveal true caliber of
students. Due to this (mis)conception, the
oral for languages was excluded from
the academic year 2018-19. Tendency of
excluding oral was enormously enthusiastic that it didn’t give a thought of
finding innovative solutions for the problem and its upshot brought the
downfall of 12.31 percent in SSC result that impelled the inclusion of oral and
internal evaluation system in the SSC exam from academic year 2019- 20. But this inclusion does not promise that
teachers won’t donate marks extravagantly in oral and internal evaluation this
year too. It was expected that the innovative
and constructive solutions would be implemented considering the opinions of teachers
of all languages for oral. Actually, it was the golden opportunity to undertake action research in finding innovative and
practical solutions for the fraudulent habit of giving excessive credit in
oral. No such expected solution is suggested in the GR of 8th August
2019. Considering the chaos all over
Maharashtra, it is observed that no one opposes the oral but everyone is
against the temperament of giving excess marks to the students who don’t
perform up to the mark in oral.
Language Lab: I suggest that the state board of education should launch the online portal
to conduct oral through language labs set in every school of Maharashtra
because it is the most practical solution to the present scenario of giving more
marks in oral to the poor performance of the students. What the SSC board needs
for online oral is the intense will power and futuristic vision as it is the 21st
century of globalization, information, science and technology. It is our prime
responsibility to refurbish oral to meet the needs of 21st century
students. If technology collaborates, the outdated traditional procedure of
oral will last no more. The Kothari commission had already proclaimed that destiny
of a nation is shaped in its classrooms. It is need of hour that language labs
should be developed in every school.
Procedure of Oral: The linguistic justice can be given in true sense to students through
language lab while testing Listening, Speaking, Reading and Writing. As soon as
students login on the portal, a progress line in red colour having four steps
of LSRW will turn green indicating that they have completed the oral upto the
particular skill/s online.
Listening: As students
select listening skill, the option list testing listening skill is displayed. The
options are words or sentences, an audio or audio-visual clip, a set of instructions
or a speech, a poem or song, a news or an advertisement, a conversation or a passage.
They can choose the option of their choice. After listening the selected option
through headphones, there will be a set of five simple MCQs activities is
displayed on the screen. They have to click on the appropriate options or they can
type, write on writing pad in their handwriting or they can speak through the headphone.
The written or spoken responses given of them are recorded on the portal.
Reading: A set of instructions
or a speech, a poem or song, a news or an advertisement, a conversation or a passage
is displayed on the screen. Students have to read loudly and it will be
recorded and saved on the portal.
Speaking: A list of ten topics for speaking or a set of personal
response questions or audio- visual clip or an animated clip or computerised
dialogues or a conversation is displayed on the screen. By speaking, they can
express their opinions and their responses are recorded and saved on the
portal.
Writing: An audio-
visual clip or animated clip or a slip of a saving account or a slip of reservation
or an admission form or a wrapper is displayed to test their writing skill. They
can type or write in their handwriting on writing pad connected to the computer
and the responses are recorded and saved on the portal.
Assessment: The recorded responses of the students can be
judged by the computerised assessment developed by the software or app. The SSC Board can take the help of different
assessment systems available online. Otherwise it can develop its own system
that can assess the responses of the students as per their quality of responses.
The pinnacle of
determination of suggesting oral through language lab is to abolish the too
much blamed subjectivity of the oral. The computerised or online assessment
system will confer objectivity to the oral. Here the tradition of imparting
marks generously will be uprooted.
All four skills
are allotted twenty marks considering each skill for five marks and the
scheduled time of the oral is twenty minutes for each student. The marks
obtained by students will not be disclosed to students or their schools but the
SSC board will directly add the marks of oral in mark lists of students.
Transparency: The
identification of students through finger prints, face and eyes recorded by
schools while filling forms of the SSC Board exam should be verified at the
time of oral. The web camera of a computer or laptop can continuously keep an
eye on students to prevent malpractice in oral.
The quantity of
LSRW testing activities as question set should be so enormous that if hundred
students from same school appear at the time, they all should get different
activity sets so that it can eradicate the possibility of copying others. All
these things provide transparency to oral.
Challenges: I am completely aware
of the physical and technological challenges of conducting oral through
language labs and online portal. The first serious issue is developing language
lab in every school. Additional one big classroom for language lab with
availability of sets of computers/laptops, internet, web cameras, headphones
etc. can be a grave issue in some of the schools in Maharashtra. The education
board has to accept the challenge of starting online portal having effective
and efficient software with the technology of identification of students,
online computerised assessment system, storing the colossal data of recorded
responses of the students, preparing question sets with audio visual or
animated clips, imparting training to teachers and changing the mentality of
teachers, students and parents. The board has to undertake this herculean task
for the success of online oral through language labs.
Strength: There is no need to get frantic of the mentioned challenges
as students, teachers and schools are already habituated of online process of the
educational projects called Shaalasiddhi, Avirat and Kalchachani. Teachers are relishing
Avirat whereas students of every school have to appear for online Kal Chachani
before SSC exam. In some regions of Maharashtra, teachers cope with the online
admission process for higher secondary education of their students. All these
facts indicate that it is elementary for the SSC board to start a portal for
online oral through language lab as teachers and students are already working
on different online portals. It can refer the system used by so many online
competitive exams like JEE and CET for verifying identity of students appearing
for online oral. The question sets of activities testing LSRW can be collected
from teachers of Maharashtra by arranging workshops by all eight divisional
boards.
Hope: The SSC board
can easily accept the challenges because online oral can turn eco-friendly
process as it will save millions of papers, printing charges and its chemical
procedure. It will reduce manual work of clerks and teachers in Maharashtra and
can save transport expenditure too. Students won’t hate orals of languages but will
spontaneously love due to languages labs where they enjoy musical audio - visual
clips and learn the basic knowledge of ICT. ‘Live English’ the practical but
innovative section newly added in English coursebooks of std X and IX from last
three years can be treated ‘Live’ in true sense through language lab. Online oral
will get more significance because parents, students, teachers and schools will
treat it more seriously as marks of oral are not in hands of teachers or schools.
At the same time, teachers and school will be free from baseless blame given by
some parents that their children failed as teachers or schools didn’t give
marks to their children in oral. Society, parents, and students have formed the
misconception that the board has included orals in evaluation system to give
excessive marks and pass students in SSC examination. The board must nip the
evil in the bud hitting the nail on the head with the help of languages
teachers who must give the positive message to the society, parents and
students that oral is the movement specially designed for developing language
skills of students. The SSC board should leave no stone unturned to start
online oral in Maharashtra immediately. I know
every cloud has a silver lining that schools, teachers, students will receive it
with open arm as they know that if their
dreams are big enough, the facts don’t count.
Mr. Sahebrao Budha Mahajan 9890377280 msb1166@gmail.om
