CBSE Class X Board exams compulsory from 2017

Currently Class X students studying under the CBSE board have the 'option' of sitting for their board exams. However, in a meeting with the Rajasthan Chief Minister, Parliament Human Resources Development Minister Prakash Javdekar announced that the government was considering the decision to make these exams compulsory for Class X students.

"We will implement it from the 2017-2018 session. Not this year or in the next two months. The final decisions will be announced soon, it is under final consideration," Javadekar said. 

Speaking of the parents and teachers, who are concerned that there were no exams for children from Classes 1 to 7, he said to remedy this, the government will introduce an evaluation process involving learning benchmarks to assess if a child's performance is up to the mark or not.

Narendra Modi-led government is working to improve academic standard and wants the curiosity among students to grow with education, the minister said.

In view of the increasing number of suicides by students, the minister also said the government will provide free online coaching to IIT aspirants. The planned portal, which will be launched soon, will be called ‘IIT PAL’, the minister said. It will have lectures, material, tutorials, discussion forums and fortnightly tests. "Before the actual Joint Entrance Examination, it will have three four mock exams," Javadekar said. Proficient teachers are being roped in to put together the course material.

"This is my answer to the high costs of coaching and the spate of suicides reported from IIT prep students," said the minister.

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• CBSE