A decline in writing speed stemming from the long absence from in-person classes was a far greater fear than contracting Covid for the 11 lakh-plus students appearing in Madhyamik.
The Class X exams conducted by the West Bengal Board of Secondary Education started on Monday with language papers.
Several candidates said they were concerned initially over whether they could write all answers (carrying 90 marks) in the stipulated period — noon to 3pm.
Some of the students said they overcame their jitters as the exam progressed and wrote with confidence.
Ujjwal Maji, of Sanskrit Collegiate School, said his hands ached as he wrote the answers.
“We have not had in-person classes since we were promoted to Class IX in 2020.... My hands ached when I tried to increase my writing speed. I could write all the answers,” said Maji, who is writing the exam at Hindu School.
Dibyendu Pal, another student of Sanskrit Collegiate School, said the writing speed bothered him towards the start of the test.
“During online classes, we did not have much to write,” said Pal. He practised at home how to stitch the answer sheets fast so he was not under any pressure at the exam venue.
Some students said the sight of invigilators had become unfamiliar to them.
“The sight of invigilators doing the rounds and the sound of the exam bell gave me an awkward feeling. But as the questions were easy, I got the confidence back within half-an-hour,” said Arpit Mondal.
The secondary education board has truncated the Madhyamik syllabus for this year.
The buzz associated with a board examination was felt on Monday after two years. No board exam was held last year because of a sharp spike in Covid cases.
Madhyamik 2022 will end on March 16.
At Bethune Collegiate School, the girls were busy with their last-minute preparations. The parents were checking whether the children had brought all necessary items from home.
One of the parents waiting under a shade said: “I am relieved with the resumption of on-campus exams because this will ensure genuine assessment. Ending up with tons of marks based on the Class IX performance, as had happened last year, does not make any sense.”