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Published: August 23, 2015 17:00 IST | Updated: August 23, 2015 20:51 IST August 23, 2015

The logic behind assignments

Usha Raman

We do need to be smart about allocating time and effort in our busy lives.Photo: K. Murali Kumar
They provide the opportunity to do things differently, obtain feedback and build skills and insights.
A while ago, I was chatting with a former student and the conversation veered toward the familiar my rant about how little effort young
people seem to put into their assignments.
I can see that they write their essays at the last possible moment, almost as if they are doing it just to fulfil the formality of the submission, I
complained.
But thats exactly what theyre doing, she said, asking how much that particular assignment was worth in terms of marks. When I told her it
was five marks (out of the semester total of 100), she laughed. Then of course, thats why its only worth that much effort.
Most students work through a process of elimination how many marks will this question or task be worth? Is it enough to demand that I
spend time on it? How selectively can I apply my effort and time? If its a multiple choice test, I have a one-in-four chance of getting
something right. So how much reading will help me maximise those odds? Exams and tests become something of a gamble.
Call me naive, call me impractical, but, to me, thinking this way seems to defeat the whole purpose of education. I agree that much of what
goes as education in our country is about toting up enough marks to get a decent grade so that we can qualify for the degree. So, young people
spend entire decades looking at courses as nothing more than marksheets to be filled with the right numbers. The way in which classes are
conducted does nothing to change this.
But, occasionally, one is presented with the opportunity to do it differently and this happens more often than one realises.
Let me draw from my own experience here. I teach a class on writing, and, in the course of sixteen weeks, I hope to expose my students to a
variety of forms of professional writing. On an average, they are required to submit twelve weekly assignments, and these tasks amount to 40
per cent of the grade. If a student calculates the value of each task in terms of marks, it works out to less than 4 marks each. Thats not very
much, right? It is okay to miss a couple or not to take a few so seriously its not going to affect the grade that much. Besides, there is still the
60 per cent that one can focus on to make up.
But what, really, is the value of each of these assignments? It is the opportunity to (however briefly) attempt a certain kind of writing task. If
one misses a particular assignment, then what is lost is not just the 4 marks, but the opportunity to learn or practise that particular kind of

8/24/2015 10:10 AM

The logic behind assignments - The Hindu

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http://www.thehindu.com/features/education/the-logic-behind-assignmen...

writing.
Unfortunately, the structure of evaluation doesnt allow me to count marks beyond 100, and, in my view, there is so much to be learnt that I
have to build in many tasks a situation that leads to several short assignments, each really valuable in my estimation in terms of learning.
When a student approaches the task only in terms of the marks it represents, we both stand to lose. The student loses that learning
opportunity that exists in the doing and in the receiving of feedback. I lose the teaching opportunity that exists in reading and giving
feedback.
We do need to be smart about allocating time and effort in our busy lives. Theres so much to do and so little time and space to do it. But one
can also get overly calculating about assigning value. Assignments or classwork have certain logic to them. That logic is not really measured in
terms of the marks, but the learning opportunity they represent.
So how does one really evaluate this value? Think carefully about whether and what you will gain from doing the task, setting aside the marks
it will fetch. Is it a repetitive task that aims to build skill or is it a creative or reflective task that aims to build insight and understanding?
Clearly, you will learn more from the latter but it also takes more time and effort.
Courses are a jumble of learning opportunities, and these come in different shapes, sizes and forms, defined by marks, time, interest and
effort/engagement. You may not always be able to judge the real value just in terms of the marks. That is a somewhat arbitrary measure that
teachers are forced to apply.
The author teaches at the University of Hyderabad and edits Teacher Plus magazine. Email: usha.bpgll@gmail.com
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