PAT paper leak raises questions over credibility of examinations

Teachers and education experts say such repeated leaks have made these examinations meaningless, as the results no longer reflect students’ actual learning levels

Mumbai: The Progressive Assessment Test (PAT) question papers for Mathematics and English went viral on social media before the exam began on Saturday, sparking outrage among teachers and raising serious doubts about the secrecy and credibility of the examination system.

PAT paper leak raises questions over credibility of examinations

The State Council for Educational Research and Training’s (SCERT) PAT exams, conducted for students from Classes 1 to 8 in all state-run schools, are meant to assess learning outcomes and understanding levels among children. However, repeated paper leaks have undermined the very purpose of the exercise. Teachers and education experts say such lapses have made these examinations meaningless, as the results no longer reflect students’ actual learning levels.

This time, the leak was detected on Friday morning, and SCERT later found that the question papers for Class 8 Mathematics and English had been uploaded on a YouTube channel. SCERT officials immediately took note of the incident and decided to file a First Information Report (FIR) to investigate the matter.

Mahendra Ganpule, spokesperson for the State Principals’ Association, said, “There are serious lapses in the way this examination is being conducted. Even last year, a paper leak took place and an FIR was filed, but there has been no improvement in the security of question papers.”

He explained that after last year’s incident, the SCERT imposed several restrictions on schools. Teachers were not even allowed to make extra copies of the question papers if the number of copies received from the SCERT was less than the required number. “We had suggested forming local monitoring groups to verify the exact student count and ensure that the right number of question papers were delivered, but that system was never implemented. As a result, many schools did not receive enough question papers this year,” Ganpule added.

Adding to the controversy, teachers have complained about repeated discrepancies in the question papers. Many reported that several questions in the first language paper were not part of the syllabus, leaving students confused. Teachers’ associations have also expressed their frustration, pointing out that despite repeated paper leaks in previous years and promises of tighter security, no significant improvement has been made.

Rahul Rekhawar, director of SCERT said that the process to register an FIR against four such YouTube channels was initiated on Friday night itself. “YouTube channels indulging in such malpractice have significantly reduced after the police have been filing FIRs against them and shutting them down with help from the police cyber cell,” Rekhawar added.

Rekhawar explained that for the printing, transportation, and delivery of the exam papers, SCERT had used data from the Unified District Information System for Education (UDISE) database, going back a month. “If schools could not update the UDISE data even till August end, then they were asked to arrange copies of the question papers on their own. The SCERT also sends 5% extra papers,” said Rekhawar.

Rekhawar pointed out that the PAT exams could not be conducted in a board-exam format considering the number of students involved (over 85 lakh) and three separate question papers for each class.

Rekhawar said that the aim of the examination was also to make teachers, students, and parents aware of the learning objectives for children and the level of studies expected from a child at each academic stage.