Appearing for class 10, 12 board exams twice a year won't be mandatory: Dharmendra Pradhan

Appearing for class 10 and 12 board exams twice a year will not be mandatory for students and the option is being introduced to reduce stress caused by the fear of single opportunity Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan has saidIn an interview with PTI Pradhan said the issue of dummy schools cannot be ignored and the time has come to have a serious discussion about itThe students will have the option of appearing for the class 10 and 12 board exams twice a year just like the engineering entrance exam JEE They can choose the best score but it will be completely optional no compulsionThe students often get stressed thinking they lost a year their chance is gone or could have performed better the option is being introduced to reduce the stress caused by the fear of single opportunity Pradhan saidIf any student feels that he is completely prepared and is satisfied with the score in the first set of exams he can choose not to appear for the next exams Nothing will be mandatory he addedAccording to the New Curriculum Framework NCF announced by the Ministry of Education in August board examinations will be held twice a year to ensure that students have enough time and opportunity to perform well and get an option to retain the best scoreAlso read Moodys predicts no fuel price hike amid rising crude oil costs as elections loomPradhan said he has received positive feedback from students on the plan to conduct board exams twice a yearI met students after the New Curriculum Framework NCF was announced They have appreciated this and are happy with the idea We are trying that the exams are conducted twice a year from 2024 itself he saidAsked about the record student suicides in Rajasthans Kota this year the minister said It is a very sensitive issue No lives should be lost they are our children It is our collective responsibility to ensure the students are stressfreeOver two lakh students move to Kota annually to prepare for competitive exams such as the Joint Entrance Exam JEE for engineering and the National EligibilitycumEntrance Test NEET for admission to medical collegesAccording to official figures 23 students committed suicide in Kota this year the highest ever for the countrys coaching hub Last year the figure was 15Pradhan said the time has come to have a serious discussion on the issue of dummy schoolsThe issue cannot be ignored Although the number of such students is not very high as compared to the total number of students the time has come to have serious discussions and deliberations on the subject he saidThe minister said the Centre is working towards ensuring that students do not require coachingSeveral NEET and JEE aspirants enrol themselves in schools in their home states and move to Kota to attend coaching classes They do not attend fulltime schools and directly appear for the board examsThe issue of dummy schools has been flagged by several experts who believe not attending school hinders students personal growth and they often feel isolated and stressedAsked why the Central Advisory Board of Education CABE hasnt met in the last three years Pradhan said CABE is being reconstitutedThe older version of CABE was very broad demands of todays education system are different At a time when we are making a paradigm shift with the new National Education Policy CABE also needs to be remodelledAt the end of the day CABE will review what is being introduced now be it new curriculum new credit framework accreditation or any other reform he saidThe minister further said two IITs Delhi and Madras are in progressive stages of setting up their offshore campuses and talks are on with several other countries who have expressed interestThe Ministry of External Affairs is coordinating it and various kinds of options and combinations are being deliberated upon External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar himself is looking into it I am also with him Pradhan saidHe said the guidelines for foreign universities to set up their campuses in India are also under deliberation and will be notified soonWe are going to make a paradigm shift So we will go ahead after exploring all possibilities and clearing all doubts The guidelines are under deliberation and I am confident that the UGC will notify them soon he saidAsked about the decision of states like Karnataka and West Bengal not to implement the National Education Policy NEP Pradhan said Their objections are not academic but politicalI have still not been able to understand what their actual objection is about West Bengal has taken out an alternative document We have seen that and it is 99 per cent similar to the NEP he saidHe said both education and skill development ministries are working together to nurture a generation of learners who are equipped with the right skills to thrive in a 21stcentury workplaceTo achieve this we are creating synergy between education and skills to provide students with both academic and practical skills Today there are close to 1000 skill hubs with one lakh candidates enrolled in them Going forward we plan to set up 5000 such centres said Pradhan who is also the Skill Development ministerThe Academic Bank of Credit enables students mobility across Higher Education Institutions and helps in seamless integration of skills and experiences into a creditbased system he saidThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever