The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has begun a review of the optional board exams for class X as well as the Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluation (CCE) followed in schools under its purview.
CBSE chairman R K Chaturvedi said on Tuesday that the board was consulting stakeholders on the issue. “A majority says having a dual system for class X exams is confusing. These exams are linked with CCE, and there again most stakeholders feel a number of redundant elements can be done away with,“ he said.
The review comes after many schools as well as state governments have voiced opinion in favour of making the exam compulsory again.
Chaturvedi also announced a slew of reforms. He said a committee had been set up to recommend changes in examination bylaws and affiliation rules. Besides, student-friendly initiatives, such allowing them to apply for certificates from any regional office, were in the pipeline.
“These (bylaws) have been written long ago. Though there have been amendments from time to time, many things are not very clear. Education is dynamic and needs reform. We have constituted a committee headed by Pavnesh Kumar, former controller of examinations, to do away with the ambiguities.
“The idea is to give more teeth for punitive action against affiliation violations and also improve the examination system,“ said R K Chaturvedi, chairman, CBSE.
The board has over 18,000 schools under its fold and is planning to digitise all data related to these schools.
“Tracking all schools is a big task. We have devised a system for which the schools have to make some mandatory disclosures. Unless the board has all the data, it can’t improve its planning. Also, the parents and students need to know about their schools and the facilities,“ Chaturvedi said.
Source – Times of India – Ahmedabad – 5th October 2016
