BENGALURU: An association conducting preparatory exams before the Secondary School Leaving Certificate (SSLC) exams, to mentally prepare students for finals, has come under criticism. State Primary and Secondary Education Minister Tanveer Sait has accused it of making the exams a money-making business.
The Karnataka State Secondary Schools Head Masters Association, which was permitted to hold one preparatory exam every year, has been holding five to six exams every year and are charging Rs 25 to Rs 32 for each exam from every student. The issue was brought to light by school associations in 2017 when private schools refused to accept the examination and complained to Sait. This year, he has ordered an inquiry into the exams and the association.
A note sent by Sait, a copy of which is available with The New Indian Express, said, “The department has given them permission to conduct one preparatory exam, but taking advantage of this, the association has allegedly conducted five to six exams and has also collected Rs 25 to Rs 32 for each exam. I am directing to conduct a detailed inquiry into the issue.”The association covers almost all the state aided and unaided schools and in some districts it also covers government schools. Every exam they conduct, covers at least 20,000 schools.”
In 2017, following complaints from parents and teachers, the minister had assured measures to conduct the preparatory exam through the Karnataka Secondary Education Examinations Board (KSEEB). However, this did not happen because the KSEEB was flooded with work, officials said. D Shashi Kumar, general secretary of Associated Management of Primary and Secondary Schools in Karnataka said, “These preparatory exams are illegal and unscientific. Conducting more than one exam will have a psychological impact on students. We had opposed it and brought it to the notice of the minister last year.”
Shashi Kumar added, “We have instructed our member schools not to accept these preparatory exams. Our association has given question papers to our members schools online for free and if the schools want, they can conduct preparatory exams.” There are allegations that the question papers of this preparatory exams get leaked and are also available in the market for Rs 50 to Rs 500! The Head Masters Association office bearers agreed that they charge Rs 36 per exam per student.