CHANDIGARH: The recent order issued by the UT education department allowing government and private schools to conduct offline exams for classes IX and XI has not gone down well with parents. They are demanding option of online exam as well for their wards. Parents of private schools had also been writing to the UT education department against schools for not providing online option for exams.
Parents termed the order issued by UT as “disappointing”.
A parent requesting anonymity said, “Covid-19 pandemic is not over yet and we see casualty due to the deadly virus every day and despite this, the major concern for our country is to open schools, why? Please take risk with others and not with our children. How will offline exams help children of classes IX and XI? They have a whole year to prepare for the board exams. It is disheartening because as parents we have no say in the matter.”
“We have been complaining to the UT education department against private schools not providing option of online exam and not seeking consent before holding offline exams. But with this order, they have supported schools. When college students are having online exams, what is there a hurry to call schoolchildren to schools?” questioned a parent.
“We have been hearing news each day about the virus infecting children and teachers where schools were opened physically, the latest incident is from Kerala. The UT education department appears to be working under a pressure to reopen schools without caring about the safety of students. The latest order has totally done away with the requirement of parents’ consent. If any child gets infected in schools, then the department officials as well as the school management shall be held responsible,” said Nitin Goyal, president of the Chandigarh parents’ association.
It was on Monday that the UT education department issued a letter to all government, government-aided and private schools allowing offline exams for classes IX and XI in March.
According to instructions issued by the district education office, examinations for classes of IX and XI “may be commenced in government schools through offline mode in the second and third week of March, 2021 as per previous practice by following guidelines and standard operating procedure issued by the Government of India and the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) from time to time. However, the online mode may be provided to those students, who have genuine problem (containment zone, suffering with Covid-19 etc.).