29 December,2017 01:02 PM IST | Mumbai | A Correspondent
State government mulling over idea to have different sets of question papers for those planning to appear for competitive exams
State education minister Vinod Tawde made the announcement yesterday
HSC students may have to decide their future plans before appearing for their board exams, if state government's plan is implemented - while filling their forms before the exams, they will have to specify if they plan to appear for NEET/JEE-like competitive examinations; for those who tick yes, there will be a different set of question papers. State education minister Vinod Tawde announced the proposal yesterday for which suggestions from experts in the field will soon be sought. If approved, it will be implemented from the March 2019 HSC exams.
The proposal was mooted after criticism over the new paper pattern introduced this year, which reduced the number of options in questions and required students to study the entire syllabus. Teachers had said that it was causing more to fail. So, if the state's plan is implemented, it will bring relief for those not planning to appear for competitive exams, as their question papers will be as per the old pattern, for which even if a student studies three out of the total five topics, s/he can comfortably pass.
"The decision was taken considering competitive examinations' pattern. In these, a candidate must study the entire syllabus thoroughly. The new pattern had been introduced to give advantage to state board students, who study the entire syllabus anyway. Hence, I was shocked to read news reports that said it was causing more to fail. However, when I spoke to some junior college principals and teachers, I discovered that that wasn't the reality. Nonetheless, considering the situation, we floated this proposal," said Tawde, while speaking to the media. "Education experts will be asked to brainstorm over the idea's feasibility and other impacts. A decision will be taken before the new academic year begins, so that students have enough time to prepare for examinations accordingly."
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