Classroom-based assessment in Malaysia: fair or burdensome? / Nor Elee Ahmed and Mahfuzah Mahayadin

What is PBD? PBD is a continuous assessment method conducted by teachers in the classroom to evaluate students' understanding, skills, and overall development. PBD involves various assessment forms, including quizzes, projects, presentations, and observations of students' attitudes and participation in learning. PBD: Fair for Everyone? From one perspective, PBD is considered fairer as it provides students with continuous evaluation rather than relying solely on a single major examination. Students are required to be actively involved in learning activities. PBD also lessens the focus on memorizing facts and supports more flexible learning. Teachers can identify students' weaknesses earlier and provide appropriate guidance based on their current level. Generally, students who engage in the learning process can be assessed beyond just examination day. For instance, there was a viral incident in which a student was unable to sit for an exam because her father was in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) [1]. Should the students' skills and abilities demonstrated throughout their schooling be disregarded? Similarly, should students be labelled as having failed if they fall ill on exam day? Here, we can see that PBD plays a role in holistic evaluation.