The Karnataka School Examination and Assessment Board (KSEAB) has decided to make significant changes to the SSLC (Class 10) and II PUC (Class 12) examination system starting from the academic year 2023-24. Under the new system, students will have the opportunity to retain the highest marks they achieve from three attempts.
The KSEAB announced that it would rename the "supplementary examination" as "annual examination 1, 2, and 3," providing students with three chances to perform better. The change aims to address the varying learning paces among students.
The board stated that the revised examination system would allow students to improve their scores by keeping the best marks they obtain in the first, second, and third examinations. The change is expected to provide students with better opportunities for further education or employment selection.
The board emphasised that students have different learning paces and styles, and conducting three examinations can help accommodate these differences and reduce the stress caused by time constraints. By renaming the supplementary examination, three opportunities will be available to students, promoting overall performance and a positive attitude.
The board outlined a basic framework for conducting these three examinations and promised to issue clear guidelines for students regarding the revised system. It assured that the content and difficulty level of the question papers for these three examinations would remain consistent.
Additionally, students will have the option to select the subject-wise best score among the marks obtained in these three attempts. For students who join their next academic course late, whether in I PUC (class 11) or at the degree colleges, a 'bridge course' will be provided to make up for missed classes in the initial month.
The current examination system comprises one annual examination and one supplementary examination, which has been causing stress and anxiety among students. This has led to issues with knowledge retention, meaningful learning, and academic progress, according to KSEAB.
Under the existing system, if a student passes the II PUC examination but is dissatisfied with the marks obtained in a particular subject, they have the option to reject those marks and retake the examination. However, only the marks obtained in the supplementary examination are considered as the final marks, without considering the marks from previous examinations. This system is deemed unfriendly to students because they have no choice but to accept the marks from the supplementary exam, even if they have achieved better scores in earlier attempts.
(With inputs from PTI)