published by, sheen kachru
Last Update: June 03, 2023, 12:17 PM IST
The report also recommended that state boards may converge science syllabus with central boards so that students get equal opportunities for common exams like JEE and NEET (Representational image).
Possible reasons for the high failure rate in state boards pointed out in the report include low number of trained teachers and teachers per school
The Ministry of Education has identified some challenges in the assessment of class 10th and 12th board exams. In its report, wide variation in the performance of students across different boards, significant variation in pass percentage and no level playing field for students in terms of standards are among the challenges identified by the Ministry of Education.
The assessment also pointed out that the top five boards (Uttar Pradesh, CBSE, Maharashtra, Bihar and West Bengal) account for about 50 per cent of the students and the remaining 50 per cent are enrolled in 55 boards across the country. The study said the divergence in performance could be due to the different patterns adopted by the boards and the convergence of secondary and higher secondary boards in a state into a single board could help students.
The assessment also found that the different curriculum adopted by the board created barriers to national level entrance examinations. According to School Education Secretary, Sanjay Kumar, the education ministry is now looking at standardizing the evaluation pattern for all the 60 school boards in different states of the country due to the difference in percentages with different states.
Currently, there are three central boards in India – the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE) and the National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS). Apart from these, different states have their own state boards, taking the total number of school boards to 60.
Noting that there is considerable variation in the pass percentage among boards, the study reports that in senior secondary examinations, while Meghalaya’s pass percentage is 57 per cent, Kerala’s pass percentage is 99.85 per cent. The report also states that 11 states contribute to 85 per cent of the school dropouts. These states are Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan, Karnataka, Assam, West Bengal, Haryana and Chhattisgarh.
Possible reasons for the high failure rate in state boards, pointed out in the report, include the low number of trained teachers and teachers per school. This contributes to the low Gross Enrollment Ratio (GER) and also affects India’s overall rank in global indices.
The report analyzed Class 10 and 12 results for the state boards of Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Karnataka, Kerala, Manipur, Odisha, West Bengal and Telangana to understand the variation in results across different state boards. The report also recommended that state boards may converge science syllabus with central boards so that students get equal opportunities for common exams like JEE and NEET.
Another reason behind this standardization effort is to prevent dropouts at class 10 level. “said the report. It added that 11 states including UP, Bihar, MP, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan, Karnataka, Assam, West Bengal, Haryana and Chhattisgarh contribute maximum 85 per cent to the dropouts.
“Mapping of failed students (about 46 lakh) of regular state boards with open boards and sharing of information can help in tracking and retaining students in the education system in the long run. At present only 10 lakh students are registering through open schools. “Similarly, (about 12 lakh) students registered but not appearing can be mapped with the skill development department to track and provide training.”
(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed – PTI,