‘Novel error’: Class XII students ask for compensatory marks

CHENNAI: The Class XII CBSE board examinations, which began on Saturday with the English exam, surprised students after they realised that the question paper had ‘careless’ omissions. The students are now demanding compensatory marks for the ‘error’.

According to students, the English core paper has two novels prescribed for learning - ‘The Invisible Man’ by HG Wells and ‘Silas Marner’ by George Eliot.

The students are taught any one of these books selected by their teachers. The board typically also sets one six mark question each from both books as question numbers 11 and 12, offering a choice to students to attempt questions on the novels they were taught.

However, this time the questions had no choice, and the students who had learnt ‘The Invisible Man’ alone also had to attempt questions from ‘Silas Marner’, which many were not taught.

“We were expecting choices from both, but when we saw the paper we were left stumped,” said a student.

Students further said they had to waste at least 10 minutes to answer the ‘compulsory’ question. “It carried six marks and we didn’t know if we could omit it,” said another student.

However, when students in one of the centres complained, the invigilators reportedly asked them to write the question number followed by the question from the topic they were not taught, in the answer sheet.

“We want those six marks,” said a student.

K Srinivasan, regional officer of the Central Board of Secondary Education, said while the possibility of an ‘error’ was rare, respective school teachers have sent feedback to higher authorities. “The error has been intimated to the officials and they will act accordingly,” he said.

In the meantime, students who appeared for the examination from across the country took to Twitter criticising CBSE over the error and demanded compensatory marks.

“Questions 11 and 12 must have two questions from each novel, but the 11th question had ‘Silas Marner’ because of which those who had learnt ‘The Invisible Man’ couldn’t attempt it. We want the Board to give us the six marks,” said a student.