CHENNAI: The number of students opting out of State Board curriculum and joining the CBSE stream is rising continuously over the past few years. The Class X results which were released on Friday revealed the fact.
With the National Eligibility cum Entrance Text (NEET), which is mostly based on CBSE syllabus, being made mandatory for medical admissions, experts say the trend of parents admitting their children in CBSE affiliated schools might increase in the coming years.
From 11,46,340 in 2013, the number of students who took the State Board’s Class X exam has come down to 10,25,909 in 2017, according to data released by the school education department. However, the number of CBSE students nearly tripled, from a meagre 56,000 in 2010 to 1.62 lakh in 2016. Also, the number of students appearing for CBSE senior secondary exams has increased steadily by 10 per cent since 2013.
This trend started since 2009 when the State mandated a common syllabus for all schools including for private ones following matriculation and Anglo-Indian board syllabuses. Most of the private schools soon switched to CBSE. “These schools created a sense of perception that the State Board syllabus was inferior compared to CBSE and students can clear national-level competitive exams only by studying the centralised syllabus,” said a government headmaster from Coimbatore.
In an attempt to keep a check on fees collected and make private schools affordable, the State government also fixed a ceiling on fees that can be collected. At present, 752 schools in TN are affiliated with CBSE. Is the CBSE syllabus really updated and does it give students an advantage?
In an attempt to keep a check on fees collected and to make private schools affordable, the State government also fixed ceiling fees that can be collected.
Presently, 752 schools in Tamil Nadu are affiliated with CBSE. Is the CBSE syllabus really updated and does it give students an advantage? Experts stand divided on this topic. “Just like the State syllabus, CBSE books are also obsolete for nearly a decade. Its syllabus is based on the National Curriculum Framework, 2005,” said educationist Prince Gajendra Babu.
Questioning claims that CBSE syllabus will help students prepare for NEET, he said, “All the Joint Entrance Exam toppers this year admitted that private coaching centres helped them secure the top rank. So what is the role of syllabus or schools in it?”
On the other hand, D Anand, a CBSE school teacher from Chennai, said nearly 80 per cent questions in this year’s NEET was based on CBSE syllabus. However, controversies erupted as questions in regional languages were mostly on State syllabus.