The introduction of On-Screen Marking (OSM) by the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) for the 2026 Class 12 board examinations has been making headlines over the past few months, sparking discussions among students, parents and teachers. While CBSE says the digital evaluation system is intended to make the assessment process faster, more transparent and less prone to manual errors, some teachers and students have expressed concerns about screen-based evaluation, questioning whether it could affect the accuracy of marking. The debate has brought renewed attention to how answer sheets are evaluated in India and whether digital assessment can strike the right balance between efficiency and fairness.
Exam evaluation has traditionally been one of the most time-consuming stages of the examination process. Whether for school board examinations, university assessments or competitive exams, evaluating lakhs of answer scripts is a demanding task for teachers and an anxious waiting period for students. As examination bodies increasingly adopt digital technologies, On-Screen Marking (OSM) is emerging as a key component of this transformation.
So, what exactly is OSM? How does it work? What safeguards are built into the system? And what are its advantages and limitations? Here's a closer look at the online evaluation process.
What is on-screen marking?
On-Screen Marking (OSM) is a digital evaluation system in which students' answer booklets are scanned and uploaded to a secure online platform. Instead of physically handling answer sheets, examiners assess responses on a computer using specialised evaluation software. CBSE has introduced OSM for the 2026 Class 12 board examinations as part of its efforts to modernise the evaluation process.
However, contrary to common perception, answer sheets are not simply scanned and sent to evaluators. Multiple verification steps take place before assessment begins. According to Glen Joshua, Whole-time Manager at Big Data Imaging, an examination processing service company, every answer booklet first undergoes barcode verification and indexing. Each page is then scanned in high resolution and subjected to quality checks to ensure that pages are complete, correctly ordered and clearly visible. If any issue is identified, the booklet is rescanned. Only after these checks are completed is the answer booklet uploaded to a secure server and assigned to an examiner. "The whole idea is to make the process faster while removing the kinds of errors that usually happen when everything is done manually," Joshua explains.
How does the software reduce evaluation errors?
While OSM digitises the evaluation process, it does not replace human judgement. Examiners continue to decide how many marks a student deserves. The software instead acts as a safeguard against common administrative mistakes.
Some of its built-in features include:
Automatic calculation of total marks, reducing arithmetic errors.
Prevention of awarding marks beyond the maximum prescribed for a question.
Mandatory evaluation of every page before submission, preventing accidental omissions.
Random allocation of answer scripts to evaluators.
Complete digital audit trails recording every action taken during evaluation.
Joshua compares the transition to the shift from traditional banking to online banking. "The examiner still evaluates the answers, but the software ensures that nothing is missed and every action remains traceable," he says.
How are answer sheets kept secure?
One of the major advantages often highlighted by institutions is improved security. Unlike physical answer scripts that move between multiple locations, scanned answer sheets remain within an encrypted digital environment. Each evaluator receives secure login credentials and can only access answer scripts assigned to them.
Other security measures include:
Encrypted storage and transmission of answer sheets
Random allocation of answer scripts
Role-based access controls
Automatic activity logs
Regular backups
Disaster recovery systems
Together, these measures aim to reduce the risk of tampering, loss or unauthorised access.
How is consistency maintained among different evaluators?
Maintaining uniformity has always been one of the biggest challenges in large-scale examinations involving thousands of evaluators. Digital evaluation attempts to address this by providing every examiner with the same question paper, marking scheme and answer key directly on the evaluation interface. According to Joshua, institutions can also enable features such as double valuation, moderation by senior evaluators and random quality audits as part of the evaluation process. The software also prevents examiners from awarding marks beyond the prescribed limit for each question. While the software cannot determine how an answer should be assessed, it helps ensure that evaluators follow the same procedural framework.
What happens if technical problems occur?
A common concern surrounding digital evaluation is the possibility of internet failures or software crashes. According to experts, OSM platforms are designed with automatic saving features that preserve an examiner's work continuously. If connectivity is interrupted, evaluators can resume from where they left off after logging back in.
Most systems also include:
Backup servers
Regular database backups
Disaster recovery mechanisms
Continuous system monitoring
These measures are intended to minimise disruptions and prevent data loss during evaluation.
Advantages of online evaluation
Faster result processing: Digital workflows significantly reduce the time required to transport, distribute and evaluate answer scripts.
Reduced calculation errors: Automatic totalling eliminates mistakes that can occur during manual addition of marks.
Improved transparency: Every evaluation action is digitally recorded, creating an audit trail that can be reviewed if necessary.
Greater security: Encrypted storage and controlled digital access reduce the risks associated with handling physical answer scripts.
Standardised evaluation: Uniform access to marking schemes and built-in validation tools help improve consistency among evaluators.
Challenges and concerns: Despite its advantages, online evaluation has also attracted criticism from some teachers and parents.
Jisha Mahonar, a CBSE teacher based in Abu Dhabi, says some students and parents remain apprehensive about the system.
"Since online evaluation has been implemented, some students feel they have not received their expected scores. There are concerns among students and parents that answers may not always be verified properly due to possible digital errors or technical glitches," she says.
Other concerns frequently raised include the limited familiarity of some examiners with digital evaluation platforms and the dependence on stable internet connectivity for uninterrupted assessment. The transition to online evaluation also requires adequate training for teachers to ensure they are comfortable using the system. In addition, some educators and students believe that reading answers on a screen may affect detailed evaluation, while others point to the anxiety associated with adapting to a relatively new method of assessment.
On-screen marking is increasingly becoming part of examination systems worldwide. As Indian examination boards evaluate millions of answer scripts each year, digital platforms are expected to play a larger role in making assessments faster, more secure and more transparent. At the same time, successful implementation will depend on continuous examiner training, robust technical infrastructure and addressing the concerns of students, parents and teachers. Ultimately, while technology can streamline the evaluation process, academic judgement continues to rest with the examiner. The software serves as a tool to support consistency and minimise procedural errors rather than replace human assessment.