The Haryana government on Monday, 21 February, announced that board exams will not be conducted for classes 5 and 8 in the current academic session.
Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar said that board exams for the two classes will be held from the next session.
"The examinations of both CBSE and Haryana Board have been postponed for the time being. From next session, board exams will be conducted for 5th & 8th classes," he said.
The decision comes amid protests by parents opposing the introduction of board exams for the 5th and 8th grades.
On 18 January, the Haryana government had released a notification saying that all the students of class 8 would have to appear for and pass a newly introduced board exam to be promoted to class 9. It said that from the next year onwards, the Haryana government planned to conduct board exams for the students of class 5 as well.
The notification also asked all the schools in Haryana, irrespective of their curriculum – Central Board of Secondary Education, Indian Certificate of Secondary Education, and International Baccalaureate – to register with the Board of School Education Haryana (BSEH) for the board exams.
'Decision Not To Be Rejoiced, Same Problem Next Year': Parents
"The decision of the Haryana Government to not carry out the class 5, 8 Haryana board exams for 2022 is not one I rejoice, because next year the government intends to carry out these exams," mental health activist and parent of a class 8 student, Nina Kler, told The Quint.
"The weight of preparing for a board exam for these young minds is too much. The term 'exam' is hefty enough to cause a child sleepless nights and anxiety, and add 'board exams' to that mix and it is enough to wreak havoc with their mental health. The idea of having board exams for class 5 and 8 should be scrapped altogether. The rationale behind them is tremendously flawed. Pray the government gives it a serious think. Would be happy to debate on this."Nina Kler
"Children of 10 years and 13 years are too naïve to appear in board exams. Knowledge cannot be measured by exams, it's a continuous process. As a parent, I strongly oppose any proposal of boards for classes 5 and 8," said Rahul Goyal, parent of a class 8 student at Amity International School.
"The fight was never about only this year. It is injustice and inequality that we are fighting for. Our children next year will also have the same issues – different syllabus and patterns, mental health and level gaps as these 2 years of COVID has taken the education system backwards by 10 years," said Anuradha Priyadarshini, another parent.
'Adding Board Exams at Multiple Levels a Step Backwards'
"I am a parent of a class 7 child and I am highly disappointed and disturbed after hearing that there will be board exams next year. The syllabus for the board exams is entirely different from what the children have been studying in the past years. Introducing a totally new syllabus will completely ruin their learning curve and do more harm than good," said Garima Saigal, the parent of a 7th grade student studying at the Shri Ram School, Moulsari.
"The National Education Policy 2020 talks about low stake board exam. By adding board exams at so many levels is a step backwards than forward. The children are highly demotivated and disheartened by this decision," she added.
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