COVID-19: Education min to interact with students, parents on board exams, entrance tests

Competitive and school board exams next year will only be conducted after due consultation with students, teachers and parents, Union Minister of Education Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank' said Friday.

He said conducting examinations is not less than a challenge amid the pandemic. "Despite the uncertainty looming around due to COVID-19 pandemic, it is crucial to conduct board examinations as well as entrance examinations for admission to higher educational institutions,” Nishank told reporters.

"I will have an interaction with parents, students and teachers in this regard and exams will only be conducted based on the outcome of the interaction. I understand that 2020 hasn't been the best year for students and they are worried about their future. I will be meeting the students live on December 3 to discuss the upcoming competitive and board exams," he added.

Schools across the country were closed in March to contain the spread of coronavirus infection and partially reopened in some states from October 15. However, few states decided to keep them closed in view of a spike in COVID-19 cases.

The board exams that were being conducted in March had to be postponed mid-way. The exams were later cancelled and the results were announced on the basis of an alternative assessment scheme. Competitive exams like JEE and NEET were also postponed twice this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

There have been demands for postponement of board exams to May in view of the continued closure of schools and teaching-learning activities being completely online.

The Joint Entrance Exam (JEE)-Main for admission to engineering colleges across the country is likely to be held in February instead of January, according to officials.

The rising number of COVID-19 cases and engineering admission for this year still being underway are among the reasons behind authorities contemplating the move.

The JEE-Main, which is the national-level competitive test for admission to various undergraduate engineering and architecture courses, is conducted twice a year – January and April. However, due to the COVID-19 situation, the April exam was postponed twice this year and conducted in September.