Central Board of Secondary Education i.e. CBSE is preparing to conduct open book examination for classes 9th to 12th. Currently, it can be implemented as a pilot project in some schools for subjects like English, Maths and Science for class 9th. Whereas in class 11th and 12th it will be started for subjects like English, Maths and Biology. It is being told that the new system can be implemented in November-December this year. Experts have different opinions on what are the advantages and disadvantages of this system.

There are preparations to bring the concept of open book exam to bring major changes in the education system of the country. For this, CBSE has recently announced to start a pilot program. After this, CBSE will review the entire concept and see whether it can be implemented simultaneously in schools across the country.

CBSE will evaluate first

During the pilot project, CBSE will evaluate students’ thinking ability, application, analysis, critical and creative thinking as well as problem solving ability. In this trial, it will also be seen how much time will be required by the students for such test and what is the feedback of the people involved in it. Through this the board will see how beneficial this concept is for the students. What effect will it have on teachers and what problems may arise if it is implemented in the country.

What is the concept of open book exam?

Although CBSE has not yet disclosed what will be the format of open book exam, but generally in open book exam, students are allowed to use books, notes and other study material. It can be organized both offline and online. In offline open book exam, students are called to school-college for the exam, whereas in online open book exam, they sit anywhere and take the online exam through computer.

There will be no need to memorize

There is no need for students to memorize any subject for open book exam. For this, during studies, emphasis is laid on understanding the subject and its different topics and they are made to practice, because the answers to the questions asked in the exam do not have to be copied from the book. After looking at the book or notes, one has to prepare the answer in one’s own language according to the question, so that one can know how much one has understood about a topic.

What will be the benefit to the students?

In this exam, students are required to think and analyze a topic in different ways. If you look at the answers from the book or notes then it is possible that you may not get the marks. Therefore, in this system, instead of cramming, there is more emphasis on understanding the subject deeply. Through this, students are encouraged to understand the entire concept thoroughly and apply it in different situations instead of just understanding and memorizing the facts. This promotes better understanding of any topic and gives students an opportunity to understand the entire subject well.

Exam stress will reduce

Om Prakash Sinha, a retired teacher of Kendriya Vidyalaya, believes that one advantage of open book exam is that it can reduce the stress level of students. By seeing the notes and getting a chance to write the answers in the exam, they will not be stressed about the exam and will have more confidence in their ability to write answers to the questions. This will create a stress-free environment for the examination and create a positive experience.

The concept is not new

Teacher Om Prakash Sinha also tells that this concept is not completely new in India. This system has been implemented in Kendriya Vidyalayas once before also. Then the focus was on analytical thinking of the students. However, at that time there was no provision for carrying books or study material in the open book exam, rather notes on the topics were given in the question paper itself, after reading which the students had to write answers on their basis. Its positive results were not seen in Kendriya Vidyalayas. Perhaps that is why this system was stopped then. What will be the form of open book exam in the new system, it is yet to be revealed.

Applicable in these countries

Another former teacher SC Mishra says that this system of exams is better for higher education anyway. Especially for such subjects in which application of knowledge is more important than memorizing a topic. He told that the open book exam system is implemented in the A-level exam of the United Kingdom. Most of the universities in the Netherlands, some colleges and universities in the United States, some states in Canada and some colleges in Singapore and Hong Kong also conduct exams using this concept at the high school level. In most of these countries, open book exams are used only in higher education.

Challenge for students as well as teachers

Dr. Faujdar Singh, former teacher of Kendriya Vidyalaya, says that open book exam encourages in-depth understanding of the subject and reduces stress. Through this, not only the students but also the teachers face some challenges. The biggest challenge is that this exam requires a lot of time. Students have to understand what kind of questions can be asked and study material should be prepared accordingly. It should not happen that after opening the book the student keeps looking for just one answer and the entire time passes. Therefore, time management will be most required in this exam.

Final decision will be taken after trial

He said that availability of more and more information simultaneously also creates problems. Then for this exam, students have to go to the examination hall with more resources. This system of exams may confuse some students as to what they need to study now. Everything will be found in the book. Due to this, they will be deprived of in-depth study of the subject, the effect of which will be visible on their results. However, during the Corona period, Delhi University had also tried it but it also did not get positive results. This time too, after the trial of this exam, CBSE will discuss the entire concept with the experts of Delhi University. Only after this will a decision be taken to implement it in schools across the country.