Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan announced that students of Classes 10 and 12 do not need to appear for both the board exams held in a year. The double board exams have been introduced to reduce stress caused by the significance of a single exam.
Students appearing for Class 10, 12 board exams will have the option to sit for the exams twice a year. It will not be a mandatory requirement, said Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan. The move is aimed to alleviate the stress students often face out of fear of a single opportunity, he added.
"The students will have the option of appearing for the exams twice a year, just like the engineering entrance exam JEE. They can choose the best score...but it will be completely optional, no compulsion."
"The 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 informed.
"If 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 added.
According to the New Curriculum Framework (NCF) under NEP 2020 announced by the Ministry of Education in August, board examinations will be held twice a year. Students will have the option to retain the best score.
Reconstitution of CABE
Regarding the Central Advisory Board of Education (CABE), which hasn't met in the past three years, Pradhan has stated that it's in the process of being reconstituted.
He emphasized that the demands of today's education system are different, requiring a remodelled CABE.
"At 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 said.
As part of creating a paradigm shift in education, Pradhan revealed that guidelines allowing foreign universities to set up campuses in India are under deliberation and will be notified soon.
Despite objections from Karnataka and West Bengal to implement the National Education Policy (NEP), Pradhan rebuffs them as political rather than academic.
Sync between Education and Skill Development
Pradhan, who also holds the portfolio of skill development minister, assures of a close tie-up between the education and skill development ministries for creating a work-ready generation.
"To achieve this, we are creating synergy between education and skills to provide students with both academic and practical skills. Today, there are close to 1,000 skill hubs with one lakh candidates enrolled in them. Going forward, we plan to set up 5,000 such centres," said Pradhan.
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