The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) will hold the examinations for Classes X and XII students in May-June, almost two months behind the usual schedule.
According to a notification issued by the CBSE, the board exams for Classes X and XII will begin on May 4. Education minister Ramesh Pokhriyal said the exams would be over on June 10 and the results declared by July 15.

The practical, project and internal assessment segments will be held from March 1 and can continue till the theory papers are over.

The CBSE said alternative ways of conducting practical exams would be explored this year in view of the pandemic. It, however, did not elaborate.

Educationist Usha Ram said the idea of practical exams was to assess the learning outcome and competency of a student in a particular subject.

“Apart from demonstrating practical experiments, the students can also be assessed through oral questioning and multiple answer-type questions. The CBSE can explore such possibilities too,” she said.

More than 30 lakh students had appeared in the exams last year. This year, a similar number of students are expected to take the tests, a CBSE official said.

Last year, the Class X exams had been held at 5,376 centres while the Class XII exams were held at 4,983 centres. This year, the number centres may increase three times because of adherence to Covid protocol.

Some educationists and parents demanded that competitive exams like the JEE Advanced and the NEET be deferred. The JEE Advanced, held to select students for BTech courses in IITs, and the NEET, for MBBS and BDS courses, are usually held in May.

The JEE Main, which is the national entrance test for admission to BTech courses in institutions other than IITs, will be held four times, once each in February, March, April and May.

“I think the students preparing for competitive exams may face stress if the NEET and the JEE Advanced are conducted immediately after the board exams. They should get about a month’s time,” said Kiran Mehta, director (academics) of Mother Mary School in New Delhi.

Ameeta Mullah Wattal, the principal of Springdales School, said students had not done any practical classes this year. The school could invite them in small batches now to attend practical classes so that they don’t face difficulty in taking the board’s practical exams.

Students said they were happy with the deferred exam schedule. “Now, we will get four months to prepare. This was required. We have very less number of classes in the online mode. All the subjects have not been covered,” a student said.

The CBSE has reduced the syllabus by 30 per cent for board exams.

Ashok Agrawal, the president of the All India Parents’ Association (AIPA), said the syllabus should be pruned by 50 per cent. “There are lakhs of students who could not attend any class because of lack of digital devices. The board should reduce the syllabus by 50 per cent to ensure that poor students are not victimised,” Agrawal said.

Ashok Pandey, the director of the Ahlcon Group of Schools, said state governments should allow the reopening of schools. “Interactions between students and teachers are very important. The next two-three months should be utilised for this purpose. This will help students prepare for the exams, he said.