The CBSE, which had replaced the board exams with the Comprehensive and Continuous Evaluation (CCE) system in 2010, brought it back this year. (Express photo)
THE REINTRODUCTION of board examinations by the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) and no-moderation policy appear to have brought down the overall pass percentage of students who took the Class X exams. The overall pass percentage has dropped from 90.95 per cent last year to 86.7 per cent this year.
The Chennai region, of which Maharashtra is a part, too has recorded a slump in the pass percentage – from 99.62 last year to 97.37 this year. “This year’s was the first batch to take the board exam after a gap of eight years. They were tested on the full portion of Class X unlike the previous years. Students definitely had difficulty coping with the new pattern,” said J P Mohanty, principal, Delhi Public School, Nerul, which has recorded a 100 per cent result. He said that the drop could be attributed to the change in exam pattern.
The CBSE, which had replaced the board exams with the Comprehensive and Continuous Evaluation (CCE) system in 2010, brought it back this year.
Under the CCE, students could choose to either take the board exam or take the school-level exam which encompassed the syllabus of only the second half of the year. This year the board has also done away with the moderation policy after much backlash last year. Principals here said that the new system had made the exam comparatively more difficult for students but they had performed well.
Deepshikha Srivastava, principal of Rajhans Vidyalaya, Andheri, said, “We were worried about this year’s results as the portion has changed. There was no moderation as well. But students have fared well irrespective. Hindi was one subject that has pulled the scores down slightly.” Thane and Navi Mumbai schools continued to shine with 100 per cent pass percentages and high scoring students. St Joseph’s High School, Panvel, DPS, Nerul, Apeejay, Nerul, and DAV Public Schools across Navi Mumbai recorded 100 per cent pass percentages. Sixteen-year-old Akhilesh Narayan from Delhi Public School, Nerul, scored 99 per cent and now aspires to pursue an engineering career. “I did not expect these scores. Now I am preparing to secure a seat at IIT, Bombay,” he said.
Shashank Ramakrishnan from DAV Public School, Thane, scored 496 out of 500 and an aggregate of 99.2 per cent. The son of a banker father and homemaker mother wants to pursue a career in research. Fifteen-year-old Hrushikesh Jadhav from St Joseph’s, Panvel, did not expect to score 98.6 in the board exam or top the charts in his school.
“This is a surprise,” said the aspiring engineer. Karissa Khonglam from Ryan International School, Kandivali, another aspiring engineer, scored 98.8. She, too, had not expected her score.