NEW DELHI, Oct 8: According to Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, taking the Class 10 and 12 board exams twice a year would not be required of pupils, and the option is being offered to lessen stress brought on by the worry over missing out on a chance. Mr. Pradhan claimed in an interview with that the issue of “dummy schools” cannot be disregarded and that a serious conversation is now necessary. “Like the JEE engineering entrance test, students would have the option of taking the [Class 10 and 12 board] exams twice a year. They are free to select the highest score, but there will be no pressure to do so. “Students frequently feel stressed out because they believe they lost a year, missed their chance, or could have done better… According to Mr. Pradhan, the option is being introduced to lessen the stress brought on by the dread of missing a chance. “Any student may decide not to take the following tests if he feels fully prepared and satisfied with his performance on the first set of exams. Nothing will be required, he continued. Board exams will be given twice a year, in accordance with the New Curriculum Framework (NCF), which was introduced by the Ministry of Education in August, to give students the best chance to do well and retain the highest grade. The idea to have board exams twice a year has gotten strong feedback from students, according to Mr. Pradhan. “After the New Curriculum Framework [NCF] was declared, I met students. This has been acknowledged, and they approve of the concept. We are attempting to have the tests held twice a year beginning in 2024, he said. When questioned about the unprecedented number of student suicides in Kota, Rajasthan, the Minister responded, “It is a very delicate topic. No one should perish because those are our kids. Our shared duty is to make sure the students are not stressed. Every year, more than two lakh students relocate to Kota to study for competitive tests like the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) for medical school entrance and the Joint Entrance Exam (JEE) for engineering. The number of suicides among students in Kota this year was 23, which is a record for the nation’s coaching centre. The amount was 15 the previous year. The issue of “dummy schools” needs to be seriously discussed, according to Mr. Pradhan. “The problem cannot be disregarded. Even while the proportion of such students to all students is not particularly high… The moment has arrived for thoughtful debate and discussion on the issue, he remarked.The Minister stated that the Centre is working to eliminate the need for coaching for students. Many students who want to take the NEET or JEE enrol in schools in their native states before moving to Kota to attend coaching classes. They don’t go to full-time schools; instead, they just show up for the board exams. Numerous experts have raised the topic of “dummy schools,” arguing that absence from school prevents pupils from developing personally and makes them feel anxious and alone. When asked why there hadn’t been a meeting of the Central Advisory Board of Education (CABE) in the previous three years, Mr. Pradhan responded, “CABE is being reconstituted.”“The earlier CABE version was highly comprehensive… The requirements of today’s educational system have changed. CABE needs to be redesigned at a time when the new National Education Policy is causing a paradigm shift. “At the end of the day, CABE will review what is being introduced now, whether it be new curriculum, new credit framework, accreditation, or any other reform,” he stated. The Minister added that conversations are ongoing with a number of other nations who have showed interest and that two IITs, Delhi and Madras, are in various phases of establishing their offshore campuses.It is being coordinated by the Ministry of External Affairs, and many possibilities and combinations are being discussed. Minister of External Affairs [S.] Jaishankar is investigating it personally. “I’m with him too,” Mr. Pradhan declared. He claimed that soon after being decided, the rules for foreign institutions setting up campuses in India would be announced. “We’re going to change the paradigm. Therefore, we shall proceed after considering all options and resolving all uncertainties. I am optimistic that the UGC will let them know shortly that the rules are being considered, he said.When questioned about why states like West Bengal and Karnataka chose not to implement the National Education Policy (NEP), Mr. Pradhan responded, “Their objections are not academic but political.” “I’m still having trouble understanding what their real complaint is. West Bengal has issued a substitute document. We have observed that, and 99 percent of it resembles the NEP, he remarked. According to him, the ministries of education and skill development are collaborating to raise a new generation of students who have the necessary skills to succeed in the workplace of the twenty-first century.We are combining education and skills to give students both intellectual and practical abilities in order to do this. Nearly 1,000 talent centres exist today, each with a thousand applicants. In the future, we intend to establish 5,000 such institutes,” declared Mr. Pradhan, who is also the Minister of Skill Development. “The Academic Bank of Credit enables students mobility across Higher Education Institutions and helps in seamless integration of skills and experiences into a credit-based system,” the speaker stated.
