![]() ![]() ![]() It is very important to understand that it may be very tempting for all of us at the moment to have objective tests at our universities that would eliminate any “meaningful” discrepancy between the state’s exams and also negate the absurd cut-offs for admissions to fancy colleges. If the child does not agree with any of the given options, the task then is to find the most accurate option out of all of them. It focuses only on how well the child has memorised the facts and how accurately they can identify the correct option from the given choices. Objectivity does not honour the uniqueness, prior experiences and individuality of the child. It does not allow children to make connections to other disciplines and integrate what they have already learned into new experiences. This is because objectivity only allows children to think and respond in a certain, limited way. This way of asking questions makes the boundaries between disciplines more watertight and rigid. Objective questions lead to even greater compartmentalization of individual disciplines. Homogeneity, defined as the process of thinking in a uniform manner throughout the process, is celebrated under the culture of objectivity, which has also become the motto for standardised testing. Objectivity in itself promotes the notion of expressing thoughts, desires, and beliefs in a single way. It is very crucial to acknowledge that wisdom cannot be replaced by mechanical knowledge and no amount of explanation or accumulation of facts will free man from suffering and a shallow understanding of education. As Krishnamurti eloquently said, “ In our desire to acquire more knowledge, we are losing love, feeling for beauty, ability to express creatively and sensitivity to cruelty.”(Education and the Significance Of Life 1974). Objectivity at first may arouse people who are efficient and professional, but it cannot produce creative and complete human beings. A framework that would only breed fear and produce a constant dilemma between what they are and what they should be. Making children conform blindly to everything taught in schools poses the danger of conditioning and training their minds to the given framework. If I had to, I would describe objectivity as the “ absence of conflict in thinking”. This practice has trained and conditioned our minds in such a way that we are somehow stuck in a ruthless competition for accuracy and precision. Rather, the term has a very profound meaning in this discipline, which deprives the child of the opportunity to actively think, explore and reflect. ![]() The term ‘objectivity’ in education and assessments does not refer only to standardised test patterns with one-word or multiple-choice questions. To the students of this new technological and advanced world, it may seem strange that examinations can also be administered in a subjective manner, focussing not only on multiple choice questions but also on how children assimilate to their new ideas and reflect upon them. To uproot this terror the idea of objectivity came into demand. In the race of getting closer to precision and in order to maximise reliability and validity, the fear of scepticism came to power. Education seems to be now associated with objectivity. It also challenges the conventional assessment methods which do not guarantee the subjective analysis and the overall evaluation of the child. This article is a personal essay based on a critical analysis of personal experiences and observations. ![]() Objectivity can be stated as the accurate storage and retrieval of information that students’ so-called “consumers” possess and subjectivity can be referred to as students’ perceptions of their own knowledge, whereby they can actively reflect on and express apprehension about the information they have observed. The essay examines the relationship between objectivity and subjectivity. ![]()
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