State education department sets target of 80% for district schools for board examination

The state education department has given each district targets they need to meet in the upcoming state board examination for classes 10 and 12. For the Gurugram, the target set by the department is 80%, which also happens to be the target for the average pass percentage for the entire state.

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In 2019, the average pass percentage for the state was 59, whereas the set target was 80%. Similarly, in class 12, 68% of the students managed to clear the examination, as opposed to the set target of 80%. Students of Nuh and Mewat performed relatively better in the class-12 examination with a pass percentage of 72% each as against a set target of 85%.

The district education department said that they are confident that this year the pass percentage of students will go beyond 80%. Unlike previous years, when most of the schools failed to finish their syllabi by February, most schools this year have completed their syllabi. Indu Boken, district education officer, said, “Schools were sent question papers of the three previous years so that they can revise them in classes. Most schools have finished going through these papers.” To ensure that students do not lose even a single day of their studies, daily special classes were held during the summer vacation.

English is one subject where students of government schools have failed to perform well over the years. The government, therefore, has roped in a private player to help students to improve their grades in English. “Around 10 district schools that fared poorly in the subject were singled out. Navpath Foundation, a non-governmental organisation, was roped in to help out students with their English lessons,” said Boken.

Swati Kalra, team manager, Navpath Foundation, said, “We are covering all the topics that are there in the syllabus. We have started with punctuations and are even showing students audio-visual slides to make the language more familiar.”

Heads of the schools said that they are offering extra classes to board students to improve their grades. All students who want to improve their scores can opt for these classes free of cost. “We are giving free tutorials to all board students,” said Suman Sharma, principal, Government Senior Secondary School, Sector 4/7.

There is presently no helpline for students to help them cope with their stress. However, the state government has made one counsellor available for each district. Students can come to the counsellor for guidance and tips for beating examination stress. The counsellor for Gurugram, Dr Rajni Sharma, when contacted, said, “Till now not many students have come to me for exam-related stress. However, when they do I will counsel them accordingly.”

The pre-board examination in all government schools in the city will start from January 28.