Oh no! Not another board exam

While some welcome the move to introduce common examination system in Class 11, there are many who are not very happy with the decision announced by the state School Education Minister KA Sengottaiyan on Wednesday. 

According to the education department, the idea is to improve upon the education system and ensure that schools complete the Class 11 portions, instead of rushing to Class 12 portions straightaway in Class 11 itself, but teachers and parents say that it will only add to students’ stress. 

In a representation made to top government officials, educationist A Narayanan said, “Public exams should be conducted for both  Class 11 and Class 12 and if possible, semester- based system can be introduced. These reforms will reduce the stress associated with the Class 12 public exams. This will also enable the students to learn the subjects, in a wholesome manner. The new announcement by the school education department to conduct public exams for Class 11 is the first step towards reform.” 

He further suggests that reforms should be concurrent and there shouldn’t be any honeymoon period for this. “The first step is to  introduce Class 11 board exams. Secondly, if you look at the question papers of Class 12 and 10, they are very predictable. If a student revises previous years’ papers, he/she would comfortably pass. This has to change immediately. Teachers too need proper training immediately, to improve the education standards and teach students in such a way that they understand the concepts entirely and not merely memorise the portions,” says Narayanan. 

Elaborating further on the change in the syllabus, he says, “Changing books and syllabus will take time and they cannot be implemented immediately. But the other aspects should be applied right away, so that the next batch of students will be ready to comfortably face entrance exams.”  

Students, meanwhile, are not very thrilled with the idea of a board exam. “Class 11 is usually a break year, where students like me take time to figure out our lives and participate in extracurricular activities. Most schools don’t allow Class 12 students to go to other campuses for cultural programmes, fearing they could distract us. If we have to write common exam in Class 11 also, we could be deprived from enjoying other aspects of our school life,” says Hema Priya, who is waiting for her Class 10 results in order to enter the commerce stream. 

As far as schools are concerned, the announcement has evoked mixed reactions. R J Bhuvanesh, CEO of Kaligi Ammal Ranganathan Education Trust, says, “Until now, we had a system where the schools in the same zone exchanged the answer sheets for corrections. Sometimes, schools add some grace marks for their students who didn’t perform up to the mark. After the boards are introduced for Class 11, practices like this will change. The question will be set by the government and the corrections 

will also be done like Class 10 and Class 12 examinations.” However, other schools say that it will only add to the stress for students and the management. “The students already find it difficult to cope with the shift from Class 9 to 10. They get a breather only in Class 11, where parents and teachers are easy on them. Parents are already worried about the board exam performance of their children; one more common exam will only add to the stress. The management will have to figure out ways to conduct model exams and special classes for the extra board exam. They are already overworked and we fear some may resign,” points out Sister Victoria Devasakayam, Principal of St Joseph’s Anglo Indian Higher Secondary School in Perambur. 

Some educationists question the relevance of this extra common exam. “The Class 10 results help students decide the stream they want to take. Class 12 results is about college. How would Class 11 results help?” wonders Pavittra Aroon, educational consultant associated with Auuro Educational Services. “This is only limited to the state board. Class 11 marks won’t hold any relevance when seeking admission in other colleges,” she adds. 

Parents are now worried that they might have to spend extra on tuition. “The details are not clear yet, but if Class 11 is being made a board exam, then I may have to send my child for extra-coaching. I have already enrolled my daughter in NEET coaching classes. She has just finished Class 10. She might have to attend special classes and other extra classes that might be too stressful for her,” says S. Nandhini, a parent. “ I already spent Rs 10,000 on her coaching classes during Class 10 exams and the NEET coaching costs another Rs 10,000. I wonder how much  more I will have to spend now. We only hope the government’s decision will really help the students.”