Uncertainty regarding board exams and the manner in which they will be conducted have become a cause for concern, especially for Class XII students, several heads of schools said.

In at least two institutions, counsellors and teachers have received “panic calls” from students.

When and how the exams will be held and whether they will be able to attend practical classes before the boards are some of the queries students are asking their teachers.

If students have to keep up a momentum in their studies, they need a date, a principal said. “In the absence of this, it is difficult for them to stay focused.”

“Even for the academically bright, the pressure and uncertainty make them break. It tells on their performance and attitude. Even though they are good in studies, their confidence begins to crack. The nine months at home have made it worse,” said Terence Ireland, the principal of St James’ School.

“The students are also asking when they will be able to do the practicals,” said Father Rodney Borneo, the principal of Loyola High School.

By this time in other years, the students know when the board exams will begin and end and they have a schedule to follow. All of this has been upset by the Covid pandemic.

The anxiety has been generated by the uncertainty because no one knows what is in store, said Amita Prasad, the director of Indus Valley World School.

“It is very hard to sustain that level of motivation. If board exams start in February or May, how can the preparations remain the same?” she wondered.

Ireland said by this time every year, students are in “top gear”. To keep up that pace in their studies for weeks and months without a date can take a toll on them mentally and physically, he said.

“A deadline helps them plan their studies. Since that is missing, they are getting worked up,” said Joeeta Basu, who teaches economics to classes X and XII.

Class XII students are worried about college.

“We are receiving calls from students and parents regarding board exams and though we try to tackle it, the pressure is there. The Class XII students are under more pressure because they are thinking about the time after the exams,” said Anil Jha, senior coordinator at an ISC school.

Many students have already applied to foreign universities and some of them have got conditional offers.

“I have got conditional offers from a few universities in the UK, but the final offer will depend on the board results. Usually, their intake begins in August and September and the concern is whether we will be able to join in time,” said Class XII student Siddhanth Gupta.

“In the initial stage of the lockdown, we felt we would get more time to study but now this more time has landed us in a state of uncertainty,” he said.

Academics and teachers feel colleges, both in India and abroad, will make considerations because this is a worldwide phenomenon.

But they agreed that thestudents’ ap prehensions were valid.

“The students are anxious about their college admissions. Though as academics we think colleges will consider, anxiety for individual students does not get reduced because it is a question of their future,” said Damayanti Mukherjee, the principal of Modern High School for Girls.

A long gap between syllabuses being completed and the board exams might result in students “slackening”, some teachers fear.

“The postponement of board exams is also lulling some of them into a false sense of security,” said Anjana Saha, the principal of Mahadevi Birla World Academy.

In at least two city schools, counsellors and teachers have been speaking to Class X and XII students to allay their fears.

“Our counsellor is speaking to the students to calm them about the boards and to answer their queries to help reduce their anxiety,” said Bobby Baxter, the principal of Julien Day School, Ganganagar.