Parents under Exam Stress!

How wired parents get when their stressed kids take the board exams showed up yet again when they went on a ruckus over a question that appeared in the English paper asking students to provide an imaginary account of a bomb blast in a crowded place. Opinion seemed sharply divided with some parents on edge calling it “insensitive”, while ex-students terming it contemporary and relevant.

Parents argued that stressed to the hilt that exam-goers are at these times, asking them to imagine and describe a gory scene of a bomb blast would add to their children’s distress. Could not the paper -setters’ think of pleasant topics that could soothe their raw nerves?

Some students garnered their parents’ sympathy and mentally cushion them in the event of a less than expected performance. “It is all the insensitive board’s fault!” is what they are chanting along with their parents, having found a convenient scapegoat should it be necessay when the results come in.

Successful ex-students and teachers however had a differnt take on this topic. If the English paper was to test thier linguistic skills, what was wrong in testing them on issues a bit beyond the text book? Why do students and their parents expect “smooth” questions that seek answers that can be provided by rote? Is that the best way to test linguistic skills? Why then do we have students with adeqaute decoratve degrees in English who cannot speak, write, describe or narrate anything beyond what Jack and Jill didon that fateful day?

 Mrs Bhargava, a young smart school teacher, surprised me with her response when I posed this issue to her. “Contrary to what w expect, students actually perform better when asked such unconventional questions”, she said. “I have seen students write much better essays on issues such as corruption, scams, terrorism or elections than they do on the old-world topics such as honesty, beauty, gratitude and valour”, she said, making me wonder if we are indeed being separated from our present-day kids by the proverbial generation gap.

While anxious parents do deserve as much sympathy as their stressed out exam going children, they have heaped more flak to the CBSE board than they deserved. To start with, the question was not a compulsory one; any stressed-out student could choose the other option. Further, describing vivid, albeit imaginary scenes is often easier and more scoring than writing on abstract issues. And if education is what we are all trying to provide, then touching on and creating awareness on “real” topics is a step in the right direction. The feelings of a bomb blast surviver are more relevant today than that of a ship-wrecked sailor of 2 centuries ago.

And if our 17 year olds need to be protected from exposure to horror and violence, they should not be watching Bollywood movies but reading fairy tales instead.

By seeing parents behave unreasonably under stress, as on this issue, students are likely to do much the same.

As published in HT City (Hindustan Times) dated 5 March, 2012.