The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) is planning to start its Class 10 and Class 12 examinations a month earlier than usual from next year. Come 2018, the examinations will start from February instead of March in order to carry out an "error-free evaluation."
Errors in CBSE results: Verification by students reveals huge discrepancies in marks
Moreover, the examinations which span for more than 40 days will also conclude within a month. Currently, the exams begin on March 1 and end around April 20.
"The examinations should start around February 15 and we are also planning to complete them within a month," CBSE chairman R K Chaturvedi was quoted as saying by the Times of India.
Chaturvedi also added that CBSE will advance the date of declaration of results, which generally comes around the third or fourth week of May. This year, the CBSE results for Class 12 were declared on May 28, while that of Class 10 was declared on June 3.
The board is also of the opinion that the early completion and early declaration of the cCass 12 results would help the students prepare better for the undergraduate admission process. "Otherwise it has been a neck-and-neck affair," said the chairperson.
These decisions came after verification of marks by Class 12 students revealed huge discrepancies in the marks that they were initially awarded.
"By April, vacations begin and the experienced teachers are not available. Therefore, advancing evaluation to mid-March will ensure we have the best teachers checking the answer scripts," said Chaturvedi.
"Otherwise, in April during vacations, schools offer us only temporary, ad-hoc and newly-appointed teachers for the evaluation exercise as experienced teachers don't oblige," he added.
The CBSE will also be conducting two training sessions for evaluators as a part of reforms focused on "error-free evaluation."
"Just like teachers' training, we are planning two evaluators' training sessions each year starting December 2017," said Chaturvedi.
He also said that the CBSE had scrapped the re-evaluation policy as only a small number of students from those who apply for photocopies re-apply. Besides as the exam results are declared during the summer vacations, it gets difficult to get expert teachers in that period. The chairman also added that the re-evaluation process also stalls the next process of admissions, compartment examinations, disturbing the annual calendar in the process.
"Moreover, I think there is no point in allowing re-evaluation of 10 questions. Either it should be allowed in totality or not at all. The matter is also in court. But if we can ensure that evaluations themselves are error-free, the question of re-evaluation will not arise," said Chaturvedi.
