So, this time, instead of preparing for the first semester examination, school kids can enjoy a vacation blast. For, the examinations will now be conducted ahead of the Dasara vacation.
According to the earlier calendar of events, the Department of Public Instruction had declared holidays from September 17 to October 1 for students of Standard 1 to 10. The exams were to be conducted after the holidays.
Now, in line with a revised schedule issued by B A Harish Gowda, Commissioner of Public Instruction, the holidays have to be given from October 3 to October 19. Summer vacation will be from April 11 to May 28, 2010. The timetable is applicable to all government, private and aided primary and high schools.
The commissioner has said that the time-table has been revised as per the suggestions of parents and teachers. Students can enjoy their holidays only after writing the exams. Hence, the revision of timetable, he added.
Asked whether students will get holidays during Dasara in September, Chidre Shankaraiah, Director for Secondary Education, said that some schools in Mysore, Mandya and Bangalore wish to declare holidays for 10 days during Dasara.
“Those who want to declare holidays may do so. But such schools will have to compensate the working days they lost by holding classes on Sundays. Last year some schools in Mysore did so. The total working days for a school in a year is 221 days. All schools will have to adhere to this norm,” Shankaraiah said.
Pattern change
Education department sources also said, beginning this academic year, multiple choice questions in the SSLC examination papers were likely to be reduced considerably.
Now, 50 per cent of the questions in the SSLC exams are with multiple choice answers.
“Such a system will curtail students’ reading, writing and analytical ability. Students, at least till 10th standard should read and write in a conventional way. This will help in improving their presentation skill too. Also, the multiple choice question (MCQ) system is leading to lot of malpractice in exams.
The government was seriously considering reducing the MCQs”, the sources said.
