‘Board exams for Classes V, VIII would affect dropout rate of rural students’

COIMBATORE: Teachers from government and aided schools are concerned about dropout rate among rural students as the state plans to conduct board exams for Classes V and VIII from the current academic year and detain failed students in these classes.
Teachers said many students, who come from underprivileged backgrounds in rural government schools, sustain till Class X as there was no detention policy and no pressure of board exams. “If board exams are introduced for Classes V and VIII, the number of dropouts would go up,” they said.
“While students from well-to-do backgrounds who study in private schools in cities can cope up with board exams in classes V and VIII, students from underprivileged backgrounds in rural government schools would find it difficult. This move would be adverse for such students,” said a government school teacher from the district under the condition of anonymity.
“While earlier in the state there was board exams for Classes VIII and X, there was no board exams for Class XII, but introducing board exams for Classes V and VIII along with Classes X and XII would be burdensome for students,” said teachers.
T Arulanandam, district president of Tamil Nadu High and Higher Secondary School Graduate Teachers Association, said the move would on one side strengthen the schooling system, but it would also increase dropouts. “Students from underprivileged backgrounds come to school as there is no stress of board exams till Class X. If they are suddenly subjected to this, there are high chances that they would discontinue,” he said. He added that there were children who have no one to support and such students would be affected.
He said the state should bring in a move such that if students fail in a paper in Class V board exam, they can clear it before Class VIII and if they fail in Class VIII board exams they can clear it before Class X. “If such an arrear system is brought in, students would not feel stressed,” he said.
The state, in a government order on Friday amended the Right to Education Act stating board exams would be conducted for Class V and VIII students from 2019-20. It stated that for students who fail in these exams, a re-exam would be held within two months. However, it said for the first three years on implementing this rule, no student would be detained based on the exams and no student would be expelled from school till completion of elementary education.