Errors in evaluation Archives - DU Beat - Delhi University's Independent Student Newspaper

Students pursuing B.Com (Honours) express their grievances as the results of the first-semester examinations leave students dissatisfied.

On 12th May 2020, results of the first-semester B.Com (Hons.) were declared. However, there were surfacing concerns regarding discrepancies in the same. Students have put forth the issue of disproportionate results i.e. the marks obtained in practicals and internal assignments not corresponding to the results of the odd semester examinations.

“I believe that my classmates have been marked incorrectly. For someone who scores eleven out of twenty-five in internals, getting a score of nine or ten in the core paper seems to be uncanny,” says a first-year student who responded on the condition of anonymity. The Varsity’s faulty evaluation has repeatedly been a cause of concern to students with respect to their results.

“Our seniors were not surprised when we told them about the discrepancies, this shows how deep-rooted and normalised this problem is,” says a student pursuing B.Com (Hons.) who wished to remain anonymous.

“The results have mostly been fine. Other than a few minor discrepancies in some subjects, the only major cause of concern has been the Microeconomics GE (Generic Elective) paper. Some students feel that the marking has been outrightly random. Students with perfect scores in internals and a well-written test have been marked far below their expectations,” says a first-year student pursuing B.Com. (Hons.) from Shri Ram College of Commerce (SRCC).

Moreover, the issue of revaluation also stands as an inconvenience amidst the contemporary COVID-19 pandemic. With shops closed, attaining photostats becomes a tedious task. Along with the technical constraints, the revaluation and rechecking procedures emerge as faulty systems as students often claim that the Varsity gathers revenue from its own faults.

The recurring glitches in the results along with the University’s proposal of conducting online examinations have been a worrying matter to the students of Delhi University.

Feature Image Credits: DU Beat Archives

Priyanshi Banerjee
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After a flurry of court orders, shifting timelines, and adapting new policies, the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) announced the Class 12 Board examination results on May 28^th, 2017, after a delay of about a week. Following the release of the much-anticipated results, the Board opened the application for verification of marks and subsequent re-evaluation procedure. Every year, this procedure commences to ensure that all queries with regards to the distribution of marks are satisfactorily met. This year, the Board has been flooded with an unprecedented number of applications for the same.

Cases of students who had applied for this process and had their marks substantially increased are making the rounds. According to The Times of India, one student who managed to score 42 in her Mathematics exam received a 90 after undergoing the verification procedure. Similar boosts were also witnessed in other cases, as a student jumped from 68 to 95 marks. Another student who was shown to secure 9 marks cleared the exam after the marks were revised to 45. Last year, a student had received 85 in the answer sheet, which were increased to 98 marks after the re-evaluation procedure.

A CBSE official admitted the shortcomings in this year’s evaluation procedure. The errors can be attributed to a range of reasons; including the supplementary sheets getting detached, incorrect transfer of marks to the first page by the examiner, incorrect tallying of marks by the Board. The number of applications have thus, seen an unprecedented rise.

Currently, the Board only allows students to pursue verification of marks. For further re-evaluation, a student must approach the Court for the Board to consider his/her grievances. Such a cumbersome process often discourages students from undertaking the elaborate steps, thus, they conform to their erroneous marks even when they deserved more.

Moreover, the Class 12^th marks are an integral component for applications under the University of Delhi. The verification of marks procedure often takes weeks before the student is informed of a change in marks. The registration process for the merit-based courses under the University of Delhi closed on June 13^th, 2017, until which many candidates had not received the re-evaluation results of their Board scores. Such a disparity in time also often discourages the students from committing to the verification procedure.

A DU-aspirant who recently passed her 12^th exams says, “It is extremely troublesome how the Board refuses to accept the answer books for re-evaluation, when there exists a blatant error in evaluation of marks. In my Economics paper, the examiner has marked three 6 marker questions wrong, out of which 2 are numericals. According to the answer key, these three questions are absolutely correct, considering there is no scope of doubt when it comes to the evaluation of numericals. Now they refuse to award me 18 marks which I clearly deserve. The undertaking we have signed prohibits us from pursuing this issue any further.”

“I have scored fairly good marks in all other subjects, but the marks in this paper will hamper my admission into a decent DU college”, she said.

Such drastic revisions hint towards a flaw in the functioning of the academic setup, with many claiming this to be a major bungle on CBSE’s part. Students are compelled to question the credibility of the marks awarded by one of the largest academic Board of the country. The underestimation of marks also negatively affects students’ morale and future college selection prospects.

Feature Image Credits: Hindustan Times

Saumya Kalia

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