Students will see benefits of online system from next exam cycle
Software service provider MeritTrac’s implementation of the On-Screen Marking System (OSM) in Mumbai University was far from perfect, resulting in inordinate delays in declaring results, confusion among evaluators, alleged loss of answer sheets, widespread student protests, rise in demand for revaluation and collapse of the academic schedule.
In an email interview, Nagendran Sundararajan, executive vice-president of MeritTrac, explains what went wrong with the varsity’s online assessment system.
How long does it take to digitise an answer sheet and declare results?
MeritTrac has a capacity to digitise one lakh answer scripts a day. As exams are staggered over 45 days, digitising 40,000 to 50,000 answer scripts would be adequate to meet the result declaration deadline. On many days, MeritTrac was able to digitise more than 75,000 answer scripts. Following evaluation of the answer scripts, MeritTrac submitted results within 24 hours. Later, the varsity started tabulating results when 95% of scripts of a programme were evaluated.
What delayed the evaluation?
Evaluating answer scripts was the varsity’s task. With exams being conducted for over 390 programmes, around 3,600 question papers had to be prepared. May 12 was set as the day of evaluation, but MeritTrac had no control over the availability of teachers and their evaluation of answer scripts. On days when the varsity ensured over 5,000 teachers out of a pool of 15,000 were able for evaluation, over one lakh answer scripts were evaluated. On an average, around 60,000 answer scripts were evaluated per day. Ideally, answer scripts should have been available on the server seven to 10 days after the evaluation. However, unavailability of teachers delayed the evaluation process and the varsity had to extend the evaluation of answer scripts of a few programmes till September.
When did you finish digitising the answer scripts?
Digitisation began as soon as the answer scripts were received. Over seven weeks, starting from May 4, answer scripts were transported in batches from the varsity’s warehouse to scanning centres. On May 18, one lakh answer scripts were made available on the varsity’s server. By June 28, 80% of the scripts were available, and by the first week of July, 90% of the scripts were available for evaluation. At no point of time was the evaluation process hampered by lack of answer scripts on the server.
When were scores sent to the varsity for tabulation of results?
Once evaluation was done for a programme, the scores were compiled and shared with the varsity in the required format within 24 hours. The varsity then fed the scores into its FoxPro programme and linked them to the each student’s data such as attendance, bar codes and seat numbers.
Are you equipped to assess the answer papers of 481 exams written by over four lakh students?
MeritTrac is more than equipped to meet the varsity’s requirements. MeritTrac’s capability was never in question.
Did the system account for supplementary answer sheets used by students?
The OSM platform can handle answer scripts with more than 40 pages. The supplementary sheets will have to be tagged to the main answer script with a unique bar code or seat number. MU is responsible for printing answer scripts, and allocating bar codes and seat numbers.
How do you respond to allegations that you weren’t able to handle the task?
MeritTrac was awarded only 25% to 30% of the overall evaluation. Critical tasks, including tabulating results, adding internal assessment marks, assigning overall weightage, were the university’s responsibility. And these processes delayed the final declaration of results.
What was MeritTrac’s role?
MeritTrac was only tasked with digitising answer scripts, placing them in the server and sharing the scores with the university.
Were the answer sheets lost while being digitised?
There was no question of MeritTrac losing the answer scripts as they were always kept on the university’s premises, which was under constant supervision. The digitised answer sheets are available on the server for six months for re-evaluation.
Who has access to the digitised answer sheets?
Only teachers authorised by the university can access the digitised answer sheets by logging into the OSM platform. There is a two-step authentication process, which includes a one-time password delivered to the teacher’s registered mobile number and e-mail id.
How will you improve the implementation of the online assessment system?
Increasing awareness of the OSM platform among key stakeholders will improve overall efficiency. Proper planning is necessary before the start of the assessment process. The university has to drive the evaluation process and ensure teachers stick to deadlines. The OSM platform has the capability to provide crucial inputs to policy makers, which could drive smart interventions in the academic system.
Who is to blame for the collapse of the varsity’s digital initiative?
The allegations against MeritTrac are baseless. Vested interests might not want the university to progress in the digital space. MeritTrac is committed to supporting the government’s Digital India initiatives and prioritising the larger perspectives of all stakeholders.
Do you have a message for the university’s students?
Students are the most important stakeholders in the OSM system. The platform assures students of accurate, transparent, fair and quick evaluation. They need not worry about errors plaguing the manual process of evaluation. The system also enables quick re-evaluation of answer sheets. I can assure the students that the university has taken the right step forward by implementing the online assessment system. We are confident that the students will see the full benefits of the system from the next exam cycle.
http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/mumbai/students-will-see-benefits-of-online-system-from-next-exam-cycle/article21011755.ece
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