Board Exam

MCQs and Board Exams

Well, hi! I am Shruti. Let me tell you some quick things about me. I am an Indian teenager who is studying in Class 10. So you know, tenth grade is a time when people expect you to work very hard to pull off some good marks. These marks have little to do with your intellect but, I don't know why, are a matter of great interest to your neighbours and relatives. They have their mental record of all the children they know and rank them accordingly. Having 90 per cent above is a prerequisite to their definition of an "intelligent kid". I am sure that as soon as my exams are over, they would peep into my life and ask their traditional question, "board mein kitne marks aaye?" or "how much did you score in your board exams". But I don't care if I am an "intelligent kid" to them. Still, some part of me does not want their judging eyes on me. 

This year, 2021-22, we have been forced to take objective tests instead of subjective ones without our consent. There is a big misconception to people that MCQs are easier than descriptive questions. We used to believe the same. But after doing objective tests, I realised otherwise. There are two reasons why I think that:

• All the options seem correct. In English question papers, all the alternatives are so appropriate that teachers would not deduct my marks if I wrote all the choices in a descriptive question. Now you wouldn't understand that unless I show you some examples.
• Your perception is not significant. There are so many students appearing for this exam, and many of them can have a different outlook. But somehow, objective test makers for comprehensive subjects have chosen one option. How is that even fair?

But somewhere in my mind, I also think that I had left some ends loose. That is the problem with me: I didn't prepare enough. I don't study the chapters after I think I have grasped the main idea. I know that it is not an unpromising way, but this isn't a subjective test, where you have to write what you understood. You have to tick what you crammed up. But anyway, How can you even study for any exam if you watch 'How I Met Your Mother' when your mother thinks you are preparing for the exam. Even as I write this, I have an absurd sense of pride that I didn't study when I should have been.