A school examination system designed to cut stress and bring India up to par with international educational standards kicks in from this year, and will truly come into its own in 2011 when Class X boards pass into history.
Students now in 10th will have their exams in March-April 2010 as scheduled. But they will not get marks, they will be graded on a scale of 10 starting with A1 and going down to E2; no one will now score 99 or 9.
“The Class X Board exam will be held in the same manner as the previous years,” said Union HRD minister Kapil Sibal on Monday. “But there will be no boards for students going into Class X in 2010.”
At the end of their academic year — March-April 2011 — they will be handed their results based on internal exams and Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluation of such qualities as physical education and speaking skills.
There will be no boards in 2011, and no marks, only grades. Students can, if they want, ask for an exam to test their skills, but this will be voluntary.
“Though the focus on everyday learning is a great idea, I hope it is implemented earnestly. I don’t want my child to feel stressed throughout the year with regular homework and tests. A right balance has to be achieved,” said Ramesh Singhal, a parent.
Many international exam systems such as the International Baccalaureate and the General Certificate for Secondary Education in the United Kingdom go with grades instead of marks.
The new exam system will apply only to the 11,000 schools affiliated to the Central Board for Secondary Education, better known as the CBSE, all over the country. Over 800,000 students took the Class X boards in 2009.
{{/usCountry}}The new exam system will apply only to the 11,000 schools affiliated to the Central Board for Secondary Education, better known as the CBSE, all over the country. Over 800,000 students took the Class X boards in 2009.
{{/usCountry}}Sibal had announced plans to reform the examination system, which has been blamed for scores of suicides every year, earlier, but laid out the roadmap on Monday by fixing milestones.
In fact, the continuous and comprehensive evaluation system will begin in Class IX from this academic year itself.
In English for instance, a student will be tested for diction, fluency and content knowledge.The continuous evaluation will also test students on such co-scholastic skills as attitude towards teachers, school programmes and understanding of values, thinking and emotional skills and creative and scientific activities.
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