Sakshi Education
As the import if the change is the introduction of aptitude test, lets us look into various aspects of aptitude tests, what they mean to test and ways to emerge successful in such tests, specifically in the context of CSAT.
Aptitude test:
Aptitude, by definition, is an innate/acquired/learned/developed component of a competency to do a certain kind of work at a certain level. Aptitudes may be physical or mental. In aptitude tests, the mental aptitude is tested. The generic tendency is to link aptitude to simple arithmetic and English. But contrary to that, aptitude can be in various other fields as well, like engineering, philosophy etc.
Aptitude tests are designed to assess your logical reasoning or thinking performance with respect to the area of concern. They consist of multiple-choice questions which are administered in a strictly time bound manner.
2011 was the first year in which UPSC conducted an Aptitude test. Only the outline of the areas being tested were provided and are as below
The “Greater emphasis will be given to test the aptitude for civil services as well as to the ethical and moral dimension of decision-making” . This should not be surprising as the government, for the greater good, would like to induct people who are ethically & morally upright into its highest decision making roles. As such, many reputed organisations world-wide, especially those in the social arena, make use of appropriate tools to evaluate candidates before they are hired.
This would force one to conclude that the CSAT (paper II in particular) could have a considerable contribution from the “Psychometric Testing” perspective as well and will not just be a clerical aptitude test. The Aptitude test will, hence, check if the candidate is capable and if he/she would work with high level of integrity and a strong sense of social responsibility.
Aptitude, by definition, is an innate/acquired/learned/developed component of a competency to do a certain kind of work at a certain level. Aptitudes may be physical or mental. In aptitude tests, the mental aptitude is tested. The generic tendency is to link aptitude to simple arithmetic and English. But contrary to that, aptitude can be in various other fields as well, like engineering, philosophy etc.
Aptitude tests are designed to assess your logical reasoning or thinking performance with respect to the area of concern. They consist of multiple-choice questions which are administered in a strictly time bound manner.
2011 was the first year in which UPSC conducted an Aptitude test. Only the outline of the areas being tested were provided and are as below
- Comprehension
- Interpersonal skills including communication skills
- Logical reasoning & analytical ability
- Decision making & problem solving
- General mental ability
- Basic numeracy
- English language comprehension skills
The “Greater emphasis will be given to test the aptitude for civil services as well as to the ethical and moral dimension of decision-making” . This should not be surprising as the government, for the greater good, would like to induct people who are ethically & morally upright into its highest decision making roles. As such, many reputed organisations world-wide, especially those in the social arena, make use of appropriate tools to evaluate candidates before they are hired.
This would force one to conclude that the CSAT (paper II in particular) could have a considerable contribution from the “Psychometric Testing” perspective as well and will not just be a clerical aptitude test. The Aptitude test will, hence, check if the candidate is capable and if he/she would work with high level of integrity and a strong sense of social responsibility.
Published date : 25 Oct 2010 08:19PM
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