Karnataka: Students and parents are stressed by the back-and-forth on board examinations

Students are losing out in this controversy between the Karnataka High Court’s subsequent stay order and the quashing of the notification to hold board exams for grades 5, 8, 9, and 11. Due to the frequent changes in court rulings and government announcements, nearly 28 lakh pupils from 45,000 schools in the state are unable to concentrate on their exams for the specified grades.

Thus far, the government’s notice has been overturned by a single-bench court. But the administration contested it, and two days ago, a different High Court court reversed the decision and allowed the tests to go forward.

Parents and educators have expressed concern that the children’s performance would suffer and false information would be disseminated as a result of this back and forth. The future of these young brains will be the true influence, despite the fact that certain activists have taken positions on either side of the debate. The tests are now set to start on March 11, in accordance with the schedule.

The RTE Students and Parents’ Association’s Yogananda BN said that they have filed a complaint with the Supreme Court and would be waiting for a Monday morning hearing. “We hope SC will give the students some relief, even though the exams are scheduled from 2.30 onwards on the same day,” he said.

The activist further claimed that the printing mafia is the main reason the government is pushing for these exams. “The department heads just care about getting their 40% fee from the publishing of exam papers for every grade level. However, why should students be put through undue stress and anxiety-inducing conditions while taking board examinations, simply for their benefit? Yogananda said.

The government was also encouraged by the organization to disclose the results and effects of these centralized tests at lower levels. All rural schools, in addition to city schools that follow the state board, would be required to administer these tests. The activist questioned how all schools could be held to the same standard at such a young age.

Educationist KE Radhakrishna backed the single-bench judge’s ruling, stressing that it is not a prudent option to administer these tests.

“Students in grade 5 are between the ages of eleven and twelve, and forcing them to fall behind in their assignments is impeding their development as individuals.” Parents will go completely insane and start putting greater pressure on their kids. He continued by saying that the drive to bureaucratize the school system is the primary source of the issue, which has resulted in a wider social issue.