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Majority of States Favour Holding Class 12 Board Exams at High-level Meeting: On Sunday, the Union Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’ said the final decision regarding the conduction of the class 12th board exam will be taken on 1st June 2021. The meeting was held on whether or not to conduct class 12 board exams 2021 for various boards including CBSE, CISCE and other states. The meeting was chaired by Union Education Minister. Rajnath Singh also attended the meeting and all State Education Ministers. Union ministers Prakash Javadekar and Smriti Irani were also present in the meeting.
However, there is a broad consensus among states about holding class 12 board exams. While the safety of the students remained an important concern, most of the states were in favour of conducting class 12 exams. A few, however, recommended conducting exams only after vaccinating students and teachers.
Class 12th Board Exam 2021: Tentative Date and Other details
According to media updates, the CBSE has proposed conducting exams between 15th July and 26th August. The result is expected to be declared in September. The board also proposed two options: conducting regular exams for 19 major subjects at notified centres or conducting shorter duration exams at respective schools where students are enrolled.
As of now, no final decision has been taken, it was reported that most of the states were in favour of class 12 examinations. As per the information, the Ministry of Education has sought suggestions on CBSE’s options for conducting 12th board exams from the states by 25th May. As for the exams in the respective states, the MoE has left the decision with the states.
Check State-Wise Stand on Conduction of Class 12th Board Exams
Assam – As per the media reports, the state is in favour of conducting class 10th as well and 12th board exams. The dates will be announced when the situation gets under control.
Odisha – The state is in favour of holding the board exams. The education minister Samir Ranjan Dash said that class 12 exams can either be conducted when the situation improves or the examinations can be cut short. As for Odisha’s board exams, he said that the state was also busy in preparation for ensuing cyclones and that a decision will be taken soon.
Delhi – Manish Sisodia has declined the options given by CBSE. He said his government is not in favour of the options being explored by CBSE to conduct the exams and going ahead with the process without vaccinating students will prove to be a big mistake.
Maharashtra – The state is not in favour of the conduction of the exam. The state education minister Varsha Gaikwad said the option for a “non-examination route” for class 12 students should be actively examined keeping in mind the projection that children are more vulnerable to new strains of coronavirus.
Tamil Nadu – The state is in favour of conducting class 12th exams. The education minister suggested conducting them only when it was safe. “Like other states, Tamil Nadu also wanted to conduct the Class 12 board exams as it plays an important role in deciding students career.”
Chhattisgarh – The state is also in favour of conducting exams. The state has already shared dates for class 12 boards. It will, however, be conducting the boards in offline mode where students would write the exams from their homes.
Karnataka – The state Education Minister S Suresh Kumar said that it is important to conduct the exams for class 12 in the larger interest of the students. He has long maintained that class 10 and 12 board exams for Karnataka state would be conducted when the condition gets stable.
Punjab – Punjab Education Minister Vijay Inder Singla said that students’ and teachers’ safety and security must be the government’s priority during difficult times. Every possible step should be taken in this regard. The minister suggested conducting exams of only three elective subjects.
Goa – The state government has not taken any decision. The state has cancelled its class 10 board examination and a decision on the class 12 exam will be taken in 2 days.
Proposal by Board on How to Conduct Class 12 Exam
As to the final decision, it is now likely by 1st June The decision would be taken in collaboration with the states, the centre has restated. The board suggested two options. According to media sources, the first option proposed was conducting exams at designated centres for 19 major subjects. For minor subjects, assessment can be based on performance in major subjects. This can be done if three months time period is clearly and safely available to the board.
As per the second option, the exams can be conducted twice by the board depending upon the conducive situation, the board can conduct the exams twice. If a student is not able to appear due to any COVID related matter, they will be provided another opportunity to sit for exams. Also, the exams will be of 90 minutes duration instead of three hours. It will be conducted in the same schools where students are enrolled. The questions will be objective and very short answer type. Students will have to appear in one language and three elective subjects.
Conclusion of the Meeting
After the meeting, the Union Education Minister said, “The meeting was extremely fruitful as we received immensely valuable suggestions. I have requested the state governments to send me their detailed suggestions by May 25. I am confident we will be able to arrive at an informed, collaborative decision regarding the exams and remove the uncertainty among student’s and parent’s minds by informing them of our final decision at the earliest.”