Most states tick CBSE multiple choice option

NEW DELHI: Most states on Tuesday told the Union education ministry that the Central Board for Secondary Education’s (CBSE) Class 12 examinations should be conducted, picking a proposed method that involves a shorter duration for the tests, holding them at schools where students are enrolled, and switching to only multiple choice and short-answer questions.

A high-level meeting called by the Union ministry of education on Sunday to discuss the feasibility of conducting the exams remained inconclusive, even as officials said there was “broad consensus” that the test must be held for a limited number of subjects and with a shorter duration after the Covid-19 situation comes under control.

On Tuesday, only Delhi, Punjab and West Bengal opposed holding the examinations immediately, saying they should be conducted only after

all teachers and students are vaccinated -- a difficult plan not just because of the current shortage of vaccines but also because many Class 12 students are under the age of 18 years, a segment for which there are currently no approved vaccines

in the country.

The decision will apply not just to CBSE but likely to other boards as well, which will follow the model adopted by the country’s largest board.

During Sunday’s meeting, two options were presented to the states – first, a three-hour examination for 19 major subjects; second, 90-minute tests, with students having to appear only in one language and three elective subjects.

At least a dozen states said on Tuesday that they preferred the second option to conduct the exams. Among them were Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Chhattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Karnataka, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. Delhi and Punjab also preferred the second option, but said the exams should be conducted only after all teachers and students were vaccinated.

There were, however, differences on when the examinations should be held. Some flood- and extreme rainfallprone states such as Bihar, Assam and Uttarakhand said they wanted the examinations to be held after the monsoon season, which typically ends by September.