CBSE’s decision of cancelling the Board exams of class 12 was a historic step and the whole nation embraced it whole-heartedly. Initially, many state boards of education were delaying their decisions but most of them have eventually given into CBSE’s decision.
The present scenario, however, is in quite an uproar due to the supposed marking system or the assessment criteria that CBSE has decided to use to decide the ‘futures’ of the students at stake. The finalized marking scheme stated that the students will be assessed based on their marks in Class 10, 11 and 12. The evaluation strategy involves 3 parts, drawn from 3 best performing subjects in Board exams. Class 11’s final marks will also provide 30% component and 40% will be based on Class 12’s unit test/mid-terms and Pre-board. This criteria has been approved by the Supreme Court.
Now, many has appealed to the Supreme Court and many parents have also condemned the proposed system of marking as unfair. Meanwhile, the apex court has rejected the plea and a vacation bench of Justices AM Khanwilkar and Dinesh Maheshwari have also spoken in support of the marking system. Those unsatisfied with the results are provided with optional exams and the marks scored in these will be taken into account for the final result. In an affidavit, CBSE has declared that the improvement exam will held from 15th of August to 15th of September. The dates may change based on the prevailing Covid-19 situation.
The evaluation system has presented itself with its loopholes. Many have voiced out their concerns regarding the 30% weightage of marks based on class 10 performance. Some students fall behind in their science and maths paper and some in their social sciences paper as those concern subjects do no cater to their interests.
They go on to excel in their Class 12 board exams with the inclination towards their own choice of stream, be it Humanities, Science or Commerce. And, we accept it or not, class 10 and 12 results do a decisive role in creating a very sparkling academic record and resumes. Entrance exams like CAT, JEE, GMAT, XAT etc are the rat races we are all engaged in and the results of class 10 and 12 do play a big role in the examiners’ decision for following through the final call.
Students pursuing science stream have protested against the evaluation system basing 30% weightage from class 11 results, as most have proclaimed that they have spent their class 11 academic year in coachings and extra classes. This particular criteria also weighs in for the students who have chosen to pursue their extracurricular activities like sports during that same academic year. Sports and extracurricular activities are already at the backseat in our country and directly or indirectly, punishing the students for that is a huge mis-step.
Nevertheless, it is important to realize that the marks in our report cards are and never will be a testament of our intellect. It’s just the significant outcome of the 3 hours examination that we sit in. It is not mature to engulf ourselves with the ‘marks’ madness, however, it is a testament of our broken education system and of an immature society. Students give into pressure as cases of suicides are very common and students descent into depression is not an uncommon sight. As Shakespeare has rightly put ” Much ado about nothing”.
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