By Irshad Ahmad Wani
Not long ago, I came across a student who had appeared for a scholarship test conducted by a reputed coaching institute. He had studied diligently for months, had almost completed the entire syllabus of his class, and the test paper was also linked to the same level. Yet, to his surprise, he scored only about 60%. Why? Because the test did not merely demand memorisation of textbook facts—it tested how far he had understood concepts and whether he could apply them to unfamiliar situations.
This is not an isolated case or an odd exception. Many of our students who excel in traditional school examinations find themselves unprepared when confronted with assessments that demand application, reasoning, or critical thinking. I know another young boy who scored an impressive 98% in his Class 10 board exam, only to struggle badly after admission to a reputed institute in Srinagar. He realised, with great disappointment, that the formula for success that had worked so well for him in school—rote learning and recall—was almost useless in answering questions that required analysis, evaluation, or problem-solving. His earlier performance was largely a story of memory, not mastery.
Experiences like these highlight an uncomfortable but vital truth: the way we design our question papers determines not only how students perform but also how they learn. If our exam papers reward acts of recall and reproduction, students will naturally prepare in the same way. But if we frame papers that demand deeper understanding, application of ideas, and creativity, both students and teachers will feel compelled to adopt learning practices that develop those very abilities.
The National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 underlines this with clarity. It stresses that assessment should move away from rote memorisation and focus instead on achieving learning outcomes and developing skills like critical thinking, creativity, communication, and problem-solving. Similarly, the National Curriculum Framework (NCF) 2023 emphasises that assessment must be competency-based and directly linked to stage-wise learning outcomes. Put simply, exams should no longer be tests of memory alone—they should measure what learners can actually do with knowledge.
Despite this policy clarity, in many schools question paper setting remains rooted in outdated traditions. Many teachers, pressed for time, simply compile questions directly from textbooks or class notebooks. Such papers at best test memory and basic comprehension but do little to nurture true learners who can think and apply their learning to real-life contexts.
The irony is telling. National surveys like the NAS (National Achievement Survey) and the ASER (Annual Status of Education Report) have, for years, assessed students on competencies that go beyond recall. The findings have been sobering: across states and levels, children consistently perform weakly when faced with higher-order tasks, confirming that the present mode of assessment is failing them. These surveys are in fact a reminder that shifting to competency-based question papers is not a choice but a necessity.
The reform cannot stop at individual classrooms. The responsibility also lies with examination-conducting boards/agencies also which are the true standard-setting authorities. Once they introduce examination papers that are competency-driven rather than recall-heavy, a ripple effect is bound to follow. Teaching practices will adapt, classroom discussions will change, students will engage more meaningfully, and assessment will begin to serve its rightful purpose: aiding growth rather than promoting rote.
A well-designed question paper does not merely test—it also guides and teaches. When teachers know that examinations will contain reasoning-, application- and analysis-based questions, they are compelled to adjust classroom transactions accordingly. Instead of limiting themselves to chalk-and-talk or textbook recitation, they begin opening opportunities for group discussions, problem-solving activities, projects, debates, and analytical exercises. In this manner, assessment strongly influences pedagogy, and pedagogy in turn transforms learning outcomes.
The NCF 2023 suggests useful thumb rules that can help teachers set better questions:
• Questions should target central concepts and core skills rather than minor details.
• They must be accurate, age-appropriate, and unambiguous.
• The language used should be simple, sensitive, and free from bias.
• In multiple-choice items, distractors should reflect genuine misconceptions, not absurdly wrong options.
• In descriptive questions, a clear marking scheme should be provided to ensure fairness and consistency.
These rules are not abstract statements reserved only for policymakers or curriculum designers—they are tools that every classroom teacher can meaningfully apply to everyday practice.
So, what can teachers do when they sit down to prepare a question paper? A few practical suggestions may help:
• Balance the levels of questions by using Bloom’s Taxonomy as a guide. Start with some recall-based and understanding-based questions, but ensure that the paper also includes application, analysis, and even one or two creative or evaluative questions.
• Use real-life contexts. For example, instead of asking, “Define photosynthesis,” ask, “Why do farmers remove weeds from their fields to ensure better crop growth?”
• Frame open-ended and expressive questions, such as “Suggest ways in which water can be conserved in your neighbourhood.”
• Provide variety by including objective, short-answer, and descriptive tasks in the same paper. Each type assesses a different dimension of learning.
• Critically examine from a learner’s perspective before finalising: “If I were a student, would this question make me think, or allow me to simply recall?”
Over time, question papers should come to be seen not merely as annual gatekeeping devices but as continuous tools that guide teaching, inspire new learning pathways, and prepare children for life outside of classrooms.
If, as teachers and paper setters, we begin designing exams that require thinking, reasoning, and application, we will not only help students gain more genuine and lasting learning but also prepare them effectively for the challenges of the future. In the long run, this will reflect even in marksheets and performance scores, because students trained to think and apply will naturally do better across varied types of assessments.
Education cannot and must not be reduced to a memory test. Its ultimate purpose is to equip learners to use knowledge wisely—to ask questions, to solve problems, and to contribute meaningfully to society. A reformed approach to question paper setting is not just a reform in examination, but a reform in the very way we view learning itself.
The writer is a teacher and resource person in the School Education Department, Jammu & Kashmir. He regularly writes on education, pedagogy, and policy reforms.
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