A 10-point student assessment system has been introduced as an experiment in 140 schools in cities and districts of Tajikistan since September 1. This was reported to “Asia-Plus” by the press service of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic.

Of the total number of schools where this system was introduced, 15 are in the capital.

“Following the results of the current academic year, the ministry will assess the effectiveness of the new system and decide on its widespread implementation or, conversely, cancellation,” - the ministry noted.

They also noted that the points system complies with international standards and is part of the reform of the educational system in Tajikistan.

“The Ministry of Education and Science, its structures, as well as scientists, experts and teachers consider the transition to a 10-point system more appropriate compared to the existing system. The latter does not fully cover the possibilities for evaluating and motivating students,” - the ministry stressed.

According to the source, after the completion of the test, based on its results and suggestions, the ministry will develop a normative act on a 10-point system for assessing the knowledge, skills and abilities of students in general education institutions in Tajikistan.

 

How to rate according to the new system?

According to the new system, the marks are distributed as follows:

10-8 points is “excellent”;

7-6 points – “good”;

5-3 points – “satisfactory”;

2 and 1 points – “unsatisfactory”.

More specifically:

1 point means that the student has not mastered the theoretical material and has not applied it in practice.

2 points are awarded for a low level of learning and a lot of mistakes.

3 points is when a student learns the material with the help of a teacher, but cannot put it into practice.

4 points means that the student has partially mastered the material, but not at a sufficient level.

5 and 6 points – the student has mastered the main information of the material well.

7 and 8 points correspond to the top five on a 5-point scale and indicate that the students have fully mastered the material.

And the maximum scores of 9 and 10 indicate a non–standard creative approach in applying the acquired knowledge.

The ministry said that the introduction of a 10-point assessment system will be accompanied by explanatory work with parents and students.

In accordance with the guidelines, the score will be displayed digitally (1-10) and displayed in timesheets and journals as: 10 (excellent), 9 (excellent), 8 (almost excellent), 7 (very good), 6 (good), 5 (sufficient), 4 (very satisfactory), 3 (satisfactory), 2 (superficial), 1 (very superficial).

It should be noted that in the 1st grade, the assessment of students' knowledge will not be exhibited. In primary school (grades 2-4), the assessment will be conducted in the subjects of study based on the above criteria.

 

The 10-point system provides an objective assessment of the student's knowledge

Earlier, in an interview with “Asia-Plus”, a teacher with more than 20 years of experience in secondary schools in Dushanbe and the Districts of republican subordination, Saodat Rakhmatova, said that the need to adopt a more expanded assessment system is indicated at least by the fact that many teachers still use such types of assessments as, for example, 3+ or 4-, 5+.

“Such "semi-official” assessments are often used because a 5-point scale does not always allow an objective assessment of a student's knowledge. At the same time, the pluses and minuses cannot appear in the final report cards,” - says Saodat Rakhmatova.

 In her opinion, parents and teachers are likely to be unenthusiastic about the new system at first.

“It's simple. For almost 100 years, a 5-point system has been operating in schools in Tajikistan. It is familiar and understandable to both parents and students. A child who does well in school regularly receives maximum points, which, of course, has a positive effect on self-esteem. And many people will not want to change the already established, familiar method at first,” - Rakhmatova believes.

However, according to the teacher, with a 5-point system, it is not possible to assess the student's progress, for example, the efforts of a non-achiever student seeking to improve his results will not be noted in any way, even if the number of errors in completing tasks is less than usual. The student, as usual, will receive two points, risking completely losing motivation.

Experts also note the obvious advantage of the 10-point system – a deeper classification in assessing students' knowledge.

As the head of the Research Institute for Education Development, Asadullo Najmiddinion, reported in an interview with “Asia-Plus”, before deciding to apply the 10-point system, experts did a lot of work by studying the positive experience of other countries.

“There are various systems in the world for assessing students' knowledge in educational institutions, up to 100 points. Having studied the experience of many countries, we came to the conclusion that a 10-point system would be more acceptable for our republic, according to which countries such as the Netherlands, Latvia, Lithuania, Belarus, Iceland, Spain, Italy and others work,” - the scientist explained.

According to him, the final goal of the school is to give knowledge and teach how to use it, and the 10–point system allows you to assess the level of knowledge more accurately.

“What is more important, with the new system, the uncomfortable gap between the non-achievers and the excellent students is erased. It is obvious that the 10–point system will cope better with the pedagogical task of the school – to motivate students. Grades are important, but it is even more important to keep children's self-confidence and desire to learn new things,” - he said.