For the academic year 2023–2024, there won't be any Karnataka board exams for students in Classes 5, 8, 9, and 11, or first PUC. These students will sit for the yearly tests.
The Karnataka government on Thursday issued an order allowing the Karnataka State Examination and Assessment Board (KSEAB) to conduct a centralised annual examination for Class 9 and first PUC students for the academic year 2023–2024 in what is seen as a continuous and consistent assessment of the learning curve of students studying in the state board.
The decision to implement this comes after the school education department already implemented a comparable examination for students in Class 5 and 8. As a result, beginning with this academic year, Karnataka students enrolled in government schools and colleges and following the state board syllabus will be required to sit for the Class 5, 8, and 9 and first PUC examinations.
The action attempts to assist students improve their learning skills by consistently tracking their learning curves at each level. The school education administration has also allayed students' concerns about being sent to detention if they fail an examination.
The Karnataka School Quality Assessment and Accreditation Council will set the question papers for the Class 9 examination in accordance with the rules established by the state government, and the evaluation is scheduled to take place at the taluk level.
The pre-university (PU) board will set the exam questions for the first PUC examination, and the college level will be used for evaluation. For both the Class 9 and first PU examinations, the schools and colleges will be treated as testing locations.
Teachers from neighbouring schools will be appointed as room supervisors for the Class 9 examination, while college lecturers will be appointed as room supervisors for the First PU examination. The respective teachers and principals are directed to upload the results as soon as possible on SATS (Students Achievement Track System) following the evaluation of the Class 9 and First PU examinations.
The rules also state that no student may be held back from the Class 9 examination if they don't pass. Only the student and the student's parents are directed to be informed of the results in such a case by the school. If a student doesn't receive the required passing score on the first PUC examination, the board will conduct a make-up exam at the college level.
"The idea is to track, monitor, and analyse the performance of students as they progress through higher levels of education," a top education official told The Indian Express. Numerous survey surveys have shown that learning achievement declines when students move on to higher education, particularly in classes 8, 9, and 10. We must therefore make improvements to the learning lacunae.
Recall that the school education department launched the annual examination for Classes 5 and 8 in the previous academic year (2022-23), which put the government in hot water.
Private school management organisations had petitioned the Karnataka High Court to overturn the government decision mandating tests for students in Class 5 and 8. They said that the measure would put pressure on and agitate students.
The government was given permission to conduct board exams for Class 5 and 8 students who were following the state board syllabus in March 2022 by a division bench made up of Justices G. Narendar and Ashok Kinagi. The court further directed the government to provide the student with the necessary instruction and remedial classes to improve their learning abilities without imprisoning them. The court further directed that only questions from the syllabus should be included in the examination. The petition was dismissed and the state was given permission to conduct the examination after the petitioners filed a motion with the Supreme Court on March 27.
