New Delhi: The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) on Monday dismissed media reports that claimed it cannot conduct board exams twice a year. Media reports were claiming that the CBSE had told the Education Ministry that conducting board exams for classes 10 and 12 twice a year was not possible under the current academic schedule.
“The imputation in this news item regarding CBSE’s views on the matter is denied. It is totally incorrect and does not have any basis in any communication made between the Ministry and CBSE,” CBSE wrote on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter).
According to the media report, since CBSE schools are present worldwide, it is impossible to conduct CBSE board exams in two shifts under the present system and policies, the board reasoned.
Last year, the new National Curriculum Framework (NCF), prepared by the Union Government-appointed National Steering Committee led by former ISRO Chairman K. Kasturirangan in line with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, proposed a semester system for students of classes 11 and 12. The framework, which was released by the ministry in August 2023 also proposed that students be given the option to write their board exams twice a year.
However, this is not the first attempt at reforming board exams. The Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluation (CCE) was introduced for Class 10 in 2009 but was revoked in 2017, and the board reverted to the old model of year-end exams. The board exams for classes 10 and 12 were also split into two terms during the COVID-19 pandemic as a one-time measure, but the old format of year-end exams were resumed.