CBSE Came Up With another Reform to Encourage Students for Application-Based Study

From 2014 onwards, the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) is going to give a sigh of relief to those students who are not good at rote learning. The CBSE has planned to mention formulas in the question paper that would be vital to answer the questions. This plan would be functional from this year onwards.

The move of the CBSE board in planning question paper reforms by making question papers more of an application-based is to discourage the method of rote learning among students.

As a part of question paper reforms, CBSE also introduced Open Text-Based Assessment (OTBA) from 2013-14 exam session meant to be given by class IX and XI students. The OTBA from 2014-2015 will also be introduced in classes X and XII of CBSE affiliated schools.

CBSE also set up subject committees with having 2-3 experts who will work on modalities of the classes XI and XII question papers. These question papers will be framed keeping in mind that they become application-based, in which students will not be asked to first derive the formulas.

A senior CBSE official said that formulas would be provided in the paper and students will only then have to identify the right one that will be used to correctly solve the numerical problem.

On this plan the committees are recommended to submit their opinions and suggestions by February 2014. The Board then following them will implement the changes that will be reflected from the new academic session of 2014-15 for Class XI and 2015-16 for Class XII.

CBSE has already applied Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluation system for secondary level classes, which is intended to make the teaching and learning process leaning to an application-based methodology.

CBSE chairman Vineet Joshi spoke on the question paper reform plan that CCE is currently implemented in Class X only. The board has come up to these reformsto discourage students from the prevalent method of rote learning and so that more time could be then be devoted to applications-based study at senior secondary level, which is more useful and fruitful.