TN govt mulls revision tests via WhatsApp

With the common revision tests for Class X and Class XII has been indefinitely postponed due to the closure of schools amid the spread of the third wave of coronavirus, the Tamil Nadu government might conduct the tests through WhatsApp so that students would appear from home if the opening of institutions was further delayed.

The School Education Department was planning to conduct the revision test from January 19 for both the standards. However, due to the closure of schools for board exam students till January 31, the government had announced the postponement of tests without mentioning any rescheduled dates.

A senior official from the School Education Department, seeking anonymity, told DT NEXT if the state government was forced to close the schools even after January 31 if the normalcy was not restored from the Covid pandemic, further postponing the revision tests will not serve the purpose.

"As the question papers for the revision tests are ready and all almost all the schools have completed the truncated portions, the authorities were discussing to send the question papers through WhatsApp", he said adding "with all the schools including government institutions have created WhatsApp group connecting teachers and students, receiving question papers would not be difficult".

Pointing out that conducting revision tests through WhatsApp has already been initiated in the Coimbatore district, the official said the authorities will soon take a decision to issue a circular to other districts to conduct the revision test like that.

According to the official, the students will download the question paper from WhatsApp and would write the answers on the white sheets. "The answer sheets will be photographed and would be sent to the teacher for correction", he said adding "the students will also be asked to bring the hard copies of answer sheets for verification when they come to schools after reopening".

However, Tamil Nadu Teachers Association president P K Ilamaran said though most of the students especially in the State-run schools have access to Android mobile phones, conducting tests or exams through WhatsApp would be a just formality to complete it. "Student might refer the textbooks and write the exams", he added.

He also suggested that the authorities could conduct exams through a mobile app, which was already available for the teachers, who appear for their internal test regularly. "The App could be modified for the students by introducing the option of setting time should be so that those who appear for the exam will have to complete it in the specified schedule", he said. EoM