The state higher secondary council has decided to merge data science and artificial intelligence within a year of introducing the two subjects amid reports that subject-specific teachers could not be appointed and data science did not find enough
takers.

The council has announced that the merged subjects will be called “computer science and data analytics” starting next year.

The council introduced the two as separate subjects in Classes XI and XII during the 2023-24 academic session.

Council president Chiranjib Bhattacharya said of the two subjects, it has come to their notice that the data analytics does not have enough takers.

He also admitted that
subject-specific teachers could not be appointed as recruitment has stalled at the
secondary and higher secondary levels over the past few years.

Complaints of irregularities in the previous rounds of appointments have led to a barrage of litigations and forced a stop on most school recruitment.

The council secretary, Priyadarshini Mallick, said there are a lot of commonalities between the two subjects. This prompted the council to merge the two subjects, she said.

Many wondered if that was the case, then why the council did not realise this when the subjects were launched.

“Data science is not having enough takers. There is a shortage of subject teachers. Considering all these constraints, we have decided to merge the two subjects,” president Bhattacharya told The Telegraph.

Mallick said: “When the current batch of students at the plus two level progress to the third semester after writing the second-semester examination in April 2025, they will be studying the merged subject to be called computer science and data analytics. During our periodic review, it emerged that there are a lot of commonalities unfolding particularly from the third semester. So, the two subjects have been merged.”

The council has semesterised the plus-II courses from the 2024-25 academic year.

Semester I and II are for Class XI. Semesters III and IV belong to those in Class XII.

Krishnangshu Mishra, the secretary of the West Bengal Headmasters Association, said, the merger was inevitable because the council
introduced the two subjects without working on the logistics and infrastructure
required.

“In schools where the two subjects had been introduced, the council could not appoint subject-specific teachers. The teachers who had been earlier recruited to teach computer science and computer application at the plus-II level had been engaged to impart lessons in artificial intelligence and data science. In many schools, computer instructors engaged under the ICT (Integrated Computer Training) project for general computer education among the students studying between Class V and Class X, were being used to teach artificial intelligence and data science,” said Mishra.

A senior council official admitted to the involvement of the contractual teachers under the ICT project in teaching artificial intelligence and data science.

The Telegraph had reported on May 15, 2022, that the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations had signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with IIT Delhi that would help the council design a curriculum in “upcoming technologies, including robotics, artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML) and data science”.

The headmaster of a school in south Calcutta said the higher secondary council should have spoken to some premiere institution as the ICSE council did before rolling out such advanced subjects.

“The higher secondary council should have taken some proper guidance,” he said.