School Boards to meet on 28 October to discuss high exam scores of students

With the ever increasing marks of the school students in the higher secondary level and rising cut-off marks in the various universities, the HRD ministry has decided to hold a meeting with all the 42 all India and state school education boards. The meeting will discuss the extensive growth in the board exam scores and methods to check the same. The meeting will discuss and focus on needs for the boards to strictly award marks to its students and re-consider its grace marking method.

According to an HRD ministry official, “Around 8917 of the 12 lakh students who took CBSE’s Class XII board exams this year had secured more than 95 percent. The first cut off for admission to leading Delhi University colleges has for years been set above 95 percent. It will be discussed whether we need grace marking at all as well. Also in moderation-the board decides that certain questions in a particular paper were too difficult and awards full marks to everybody against them thus leading to inflation of marks.”

There would be discussions on the question set up, marking pattern, evaluation and re-checking techniques, re-totaling and revaluation by the teachers that would take place in the meeting as well. It is expected that guidelines for all the above would be drawn in the meeting. Cheating in the examination and prevention for it would also be discussed.

The ministry would also discuss with the boards to declare the results of the class XII board examinations in a given deadline, so that they can easily proceed with their admission in various IITs and NITs in the country without any delay.