'Play well, get promoted into class X'
A top class IX high jumper can now leap into class X in the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) schools even if he fails two mandatory subjects.
A top class IX high jumper can now leap into class X in the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) schools even if he fails two mandatory subjects.
Buried deep in the new rules for promoting students from class IX to class X, the CBSE has introduced a dramatic new pathway for students with poor marks to pass — perform well in extra-curricular activities instead.
For the first time, class IX students, who score a grade below the passing mark in up to two subjects will be passed if they score higher than 34 out of a maximum of 42 extracurricular points that all students will be graded on. These include 15 points for life skills, 15 for attitudes and values, 6 for co-curricular activities and 6 for health and physical education.
“The idea is to tell students that we genuinely value their multiple skills — that when we say that, they aren’t just words,” a senior CBSE official told HT.
The Board has from last year replaced its traditional marking and annual examination system with comprehensive and continuous evaluation (CCE) for class IX and X students. One of the stated aims of the CCE is to encourage multiple facets of learning.
But at present, a student needs to secure a minimum of a D grade in all five class IX subjects — two languages, math, science and social science — to enter class X irrespective of his or her extracurricular performances.
Under the new rules, students will be marked on extracurricular activities too and will receive an extra grade in two subjects they have performed worst in, if they secure over 34 in extra-curricular activities. They will earn one extra grade in a subject if their extracurricular score is between 19 and 33.
The rules mean that students with an E1 grade — representing a failure — in two subjects will be automatically passed without needing to clear an improvement test if they score over 34 in extracurricular activities.