Evaluation of Value Attainment

M.N.G. Mani

Principal

Sri Ramakrishna Mission Vidyalaya College of Education

Coimbatore _ 641 020

It is easy to talk about values; a beautiful article may also be written on how values should be developed, how an individual should live etc. Our scriptures too have talked about how the individual should live in the society. They have indicated the social virtues and vices. They have given us models too. Therefore, there is no dearth of materials on values. The crux of the problem is how to practice rather than preaching values. Evaluation of the value attainment is a complex phenomenon than it appears.

Present Status:

Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru said, "I know a great India but not a great Indian". The statement sends signals about the erosion of values among individuals. The patriotic feeling that existed before independence is not existing now. The sole objective of patriotic value made the citizens of the country to uphold the values of national integration, religion harmony, sincerity, etc., in the past. The days when technology was not available, when economy was not so sound, when industrial growth was not remarkable, and when the literacy rate was low, patriotism in the country was high, crime rate was low, and life system was so dignified. Today, the technological explosion is evident, literacy rate has increased, industrial revolution too is taking place but the life system is under jeopardy, crime rate is high and corruption is on the increase, and so on. This is because of the lack of value education. Today, the need of the hour is to promote values in young children, and develop in them the powers of conviction.

Parameters of Value Attainment:

In the evaluation of value attainment, the classification of the individual becomes vital. There are three dimensions of the individual. The first is what the society thinks of an individual; the second is what an individual thinks of himself; and thirdly what is the true self of the individual. The real individual is one who has understood his true self and does things, which do not contradict with the perception of what the individual thinks of himself and what the society thinks of the individual. Therefore, the best way to evaluate value attainment is through `introspection.' By looking at inward, one can understand the positive and negative aspects of self. If there is determination, the negative aspects can be transformed into positive experiences. Therefore, any method, which would enable the individual to introspect self from time to time, would help to understand value attainment. Meditation is one such technique which would help the individual to introspect and self-regulate the behaviour. However, an untrained and undisciplined mind cannot do an objective introspection of the self. As a result, the revelations of an individual about himself or herself may not provide a proper picture. Therefore, external methods should also be attempted to see whether an individual is heading towards value attainment or not.

General Methods of Evaluating Value Attainment:

Though the external indicators of assessing value attainment are also not foolproof, they would definitely provide some indicators. Some of the methods may be as follows:

1. Observation of regular habits of individuals for a prolonged period :

It is always possible to behave correctly under an experimental condition. For example, schools perform extremely well during announced inspections. Do they put up the same performance on other occasions too? Individuals study well, gather information, etc., to equip themselves to get a job. Do they continue such practices regularly even after securing jobs? Professionals do research, etc., with a motive to get higher degrees. How many continue research after getting degrees? The examples may be many. The fact is that the `regular habits' are indicators of the self to some extent. The consistency in which an activity is performed can indicate the true mind set of an individual. This information cannot be obtained overnight or not even in a short duration. This should be obtained over a period of time, say, one year to assess the value attainment of individuals. This can be effectively done by classroom teachers who have the opportunity to observe the students formally and informally over a period of time.

2. Observing Volunteerism : Volunteerism is not a virtue of everyone. The person who volunteers has some special qualities. Volunteerism for specific type of activities may reveal the mind set of individuals. For example, a person who volunteers himself for some physical work may be different from one who volunteers for a social work. Though the motivation `to be of use' is appreciable in both the cases, certain qualities are needed for the person who involves himself in selfless activities. Blood donations, community work, helping the disadvantaged, etc., by volunteerism, may provide indicators to assess the value attainment of individuals. Again prolonged observation is needed to assess this quality and teachers are the best persons to evaluate this aspect.

3. Record of Sincerity : Sincerity is different from efficiency. Some persons are efficient but may not be sincere. Some sincere people may not be efficient. If a person is both sincere and efficient, it would be a great virtue of him/her but the true sincerity of the individual would definitely reveal his/her true value attainment. However, sincerity is a good value even if the person is not efficient. The sincerity with which a person approaches a work irrespective of the results is as important as the result itself. A person practicing sincerity may inherit other values also in him since clinging on to one value at any cost would contribute to practicing other values too. For example, sincerity has associated values such as truth, hard work, self-motivation, etc. Observation of such key values would provide definite indicators for value attainment. To assess sincerity, parents and teachers can be used. However, parents may have a tendency to become biased when it comes to evaluation of their own children, and therefore, teachers again play a vital role in the evaluation of this value. Regular diary of student activities may be maintained by the teachers to assess the attainment of value in this regard.

4. Evidence of Self-dependence : Parents and teachers can assess to what extent the child depends on himself/herself. Parents have a role in developing habits in children right from the beginning to address their own needs independently. One such activity is to find out to what extent the child appreciates the concept of `Dignity of Labour.' Is the child prepared to do household small chores? Even activities like getting the school bag ready, dressing, washing plates after taking food, cleaning, etc., would reveal to what extent the child appreciates dignity of labour. The behaviour of self-dependence develops mostly through conviction, and conviction is a virtue that develops through sincerity. Therefore, parents and teachers can also assess value attainment by observing the self-dependence of the individual. Rating scales and checklists can be prepared to record the presence or absence of behaviours focusing on dignity of labour, etc. In this aspect too, assessment should be carried out over a period of time.

5. Skills on Inter-dependence : Human being is a social animal and therefore cannot live in isolation. Modern management system talks about Emotional Quotient (EQ) of individuals and one of the determinants of EQ is to what extent the person fits himself in the society. The individual's ability to cope with others in the society for good things is a desired value. Inter-dependence is one of the qualities of leadership. A person having this value is normally democratic in approach and can easily work with other. Teachers can observe this skill in children by looking at their ability to organise themselves in groups.

Assessment of Value Attainment at School Level:

Though some of the above methods may work to evaluate the value attainment of individuals, they are not fully foolproof. Some techniques may work on specific occasions for looking at specific values but they may not provide a comprehensive picture of the individuals. At the school level, the teachers may look at the following values through the methods suggested under each.

1) Sincerity

• Look at the attendance record

• Observe at what time the child comes to school everyday.

• Verify whether or not the child attends all classes.

• Check whether the homework given is done as per direction.

• Consult other teachers about the sincerity of the child in their classes.

• Verify whether or not he/she admits mistakes (for example, not doing home work)

• Note how often the student tells lie.

3) Dignity of Labour :

• See whether the child does cleaning of the table, class, etc., on his own.

• Check the interest of the child in doing community work.

• Ask who arranges the school bag, etc., at home.

• Provide menial work under simulated conditions and check to what extent the child performs.

• Observe the study habits of the student irrespective of performance.

• Check the neatness of the student in classroom work.

• Verify whether or not the student completes class work regularly.

6) Self-Regulating behaviour :

Verify to what extent the student develops proper habits. (Check with parents, and peer group, if appropriate).

• Observe the child while performing daily living activities.

• Check whether the child is able to manage time.

• Check whether the child keeps punctuality in his works.

7) Respect to elders

• See whether the child helps elderly people.

• Observe the student whether he speaks politely with elders.

• Check what the child thinks about himself.

• Verify how the child faces work-pressure in various situations.

• Verify the student's level of achievement with respect to his capabilities/talents.

Values are rather caught than taught. Evaluation of the value attainment may not be fully objective. However, looking at the factors listed above and the methods prescribed may provide indicators of value development in the individual. Teachers and parents may maintain anecdotes at various points of time to observe the day-to-day behaviours of individuals. As Swami Vivekananda says, even a fool can become important overnight but the true greatness of the individual depends on how he performs his day-to-day activities sincerely and diligently. In short, evaluation of value attainment would be unbiased only when the individual reveals his true self. Otherwise, the evaluation would end up as assumptions only.

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