Revamped Education Ministry Curriculum: Changes to Board Exams and Assessment Methods
The Ministry of Education has introduced a new curriculum framework that includes significant changes to board exams. According to this framework, board exams will now be held twice a year, and students will have the option to retain their best score. The emphasis is on making the exams less stressful and more accessible.
To facilitate these changes, the framework suggests the development of the capability to conduct “on-demand” exams. The aim is to allow students to take exams when they feel prepared. The framework envisions creating a comprehensive test item bank for this purpose.
The long-term vision is to shift towards a semester or term-based system. This would allow students to take tests as soon as they complete a subject, reducing the amount of content tested in a single exam.
This isn’t the first attempt at reforming board exams. The Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluation (CCE) was introduced but later revoked, and the board exams for classes 10 and 12 were briefly split into two terms during the pandemic.
The new framework also seeks to eliminate rigid distinctions between streams like Science, Arts, and Commerce. It aims for a more flexible approach where students engage with a variety of courses across different streams.
The focus of grades 11 and 12 should not be solely on gaining admission to higher education, the framework suggests. Instead, it calls for assessments that evaluate understanding and competencies rather than rote memorization.
The Ministry of Education’s new curriculum framework introduces changes to board exams, including twice-yearly exams, flexibility in subject choice, and an emphasis on understanding over rote memorization. The goal is to create a more balanced and accessible examination system that better serves students’ learning needs.
