Cumulative Grade Point Average: Introspection

Cumulative grading points average: Introspection.Mondofacto online medical dictionary defines cumulative grading point average as  "the numerical average of  all the student's grades achieved duringthe study at an institution". The system is introduced to cut unnecessary competition between young minds for scoring higher marks.But what has been accompalished by introducding the GPA to evaluate the performace of the students vis vis the earlier percentage system. The introduction of the system has rained in confusion as recent experiece of admission seekeers to class XI has borne out.It is meting out discriminatory attitude to ISCE  Cth pass outs. The evaluation of these students as per CBSE guidelines is miserably putting them in lower status leaving them high and dry.In the backdrop of the CSSE guidelines, students who have got E grades will have to clear their papers before July,if they have to secure admissions in class XI.Earlier they were admitted to class XI, and given five opportunities to clear their compartment papers. A Layman fails to comprehend if grade E meaning "needs improvement" is read as "compartment" ( as it used to be termed earlier) then what is the point of introducing confusion in the system.More than nine lakh students appeared for CBSE class X examwhich was held under the grading system this year.Of this 13000 students have been given E grade.3000 students from the city are in this E bracket. District Eduction Officer has denied them and compartment students of Punjab and Haryana Board admission to Class XI,unless they clear the EIOP exam in July and secure grade D or above.This is more stressful than the earlier system of allowing multiple chances to the student community.Tie breakers also pose problems. Students getting grade A2 are all those who have secured marks between 80-90%. A school having, say, 35 seats and getting 40 applications of the same grade needs to refuse admission to five shall be at a quandry to decide whom not to admit. ‘Administrtive climate' in our country being wellknown to everyone, it  will lead to ‘siphaaris' or other via media for admission.We see some schools adopting grading system in the elementary classes,but that is the age,when the pupil is completely ignorant of its effects. But in higher classes, percentage differences up to two decimals is taken into consideration for ranking. CBSE chairperson Vineet Joshi saying "We will come up with detailed guidelines for schools by March end. Our guidelines will clarify how to break a tie. It is a pilot test and we hope it will work well." However, I am unware of any guidelines.Private Schools in Chandigarh have been given toworkmout their own options for admission. Most of the private schools are minority schools. These would prefer to work out their own norms as they have been doing till now. Any guidelines to them shall be challenged in theminority commission as unnecssaryinterference in their working  and allegations of arms twisting for admissions shall surface.It  has rightly been  pointed out tht grading minus internal assessmment means little and it  has rightly  been assessed that "the mark sheets handed over to the students does not make any mention of cumulative marking in activities except the annual examination." It is ovbisouly difficult to eliminte the confusion thus created as all schools donot have identical facilities and infrastructure that is pivotal to assess pupil's merit.On the other hand, teachers complain that the new system has turned them in office routine stealing their teaching mode. Work load of the teachers has increased manifold and it is causing  them rising stress levels. If this allowed to persist, we can imagine that the good spirit shall cause evil effects.It is true many countries have devised cumulative grading point average in their education system but this is no ground to introduce the same procedure in our system without first evaluating its fall out on indian horizon. Our HRD Minister Kapil sibal's intentions can not be questioned, but he could not foresee policy's hiccups is well established withstanding the first year's experience. Satish Chandra Sharma,General Secretary,Chandigarh Social Welfare Council,R/o # 1605, Progressive Enclave,Sector50-B, Chandigarh Cell: 9888-255-128.