HSC exam papers to be on same lines as NEET

MUMBAI: The state education board will not implement its plans to upgrade the Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) syllabus this year to make it similar to the Central

MUMBAI: The state education board will not implement its plans to upgrade the Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) syllabus this year to make it similar to the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) curriculum.

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The board said it will only change the question paper pattern for the exam.

The state education board said it will be better to change the question paper pattern rather than the syllabus as students are already preparing for the exams. The new pattern will be worked out after studying the CBSE Class 10 exam papers and NEET question papers. “The tests might have more multiple choice questions and on higher order thinking skills compared to ours,” said Gangadhar Mhamane, board chairperson.

The board said there was not enough time to revise the entire syllabus for this academic year.

There is a 10% difference in the HSC syllabus and that of the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT).

The CBSE and the National Eligibility Entrance Test (NEET) follow the NCERT syllabus.

When NEET — the entrance exam for admission into medical and dental colleges — was reintroduced in April, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu were among states that were not prepared for it.

Students in Maharashtra were taking the Common Entrance Test for government-run medical colleges and private institutes had tests of their own. NEET will be a must for admissions to private medical colleges from this year and government institutes from next year.

Students have welcomed the board’s plan. “I will not have to prepare for two exams separately,” said Aarti Sonar from Andheri.

Academicians said the number of multiple choice questions (MCQs) will increase if the NEET pattern is followed, bringing down the quality of students.

“The HSC pattern already has MCQs of seven marks in physics, chemistry and biology,” said Anil Deshmukh, head, Maharashtra Junior College Teachers Federation. “If more MCQs are added, students will lose touch with long-form writing.”