DK Shivakumar slams Karnataka CM Bommai over open school exams for engineering students

Congress leader DK Shivakumar on Monday slammed the Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai for allowing open book exams in colleges. The Karnataka Congress President took to his Twitter handle and criticised CM Basavaraj Bommai for giving his consent for the open book exams saying that he cannot believe the Chief Minister being an Engineering student himself have nodded to this. In an open book examination, students are allowed to refer to books in examination halls. 

Slamming Karnataka CM Basavaraj Bommai, DK Shivakumar expressed his disbelief and asked him what will be the benchmark of students' talents an open book testing will show. Furthermore, the Karanataka Congress President asked CM Bommai that how is an open-book examination going to judge the performance of the students, when everyone can copy from the same source.

Open book examination & Karnataka

It is pertinent to mention here that, in September,  the Mysuru-based Karnataka State Open University (KSOU) had resorted to first-ever one-time ‘open book examination’ for its undergraduate and postgraduate students instead of promoting them directly to the next semester/academic year in view of the COVID-19 pandemic. The decision was taken in the view that the students could attend exams safely at their homes. 

Earlier in 2019, the All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE) approved colleges to conduct an open book exam. In its examination reforms policy, the advisory body had suggested multiple guidelines on how to set questions papers for better assessment of students. One of the initiatives under this framework was the open book examination wherein students were allowed to refer to books in examination halls.

Furthermore, the AICTE also advised colleges to either ask fewer questions that encompassed two or three concepts or allocate more time for the exam under open book. As per the policy, this will be less stressful for a student as it would focus less on the memorising ability and instead will tend to focus on the application of the information and develop problem-solving abilities in students.

The All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) is a statutory body, and a national-level council for technical education, under the Department of Higher Education. 

(Image: PTI)