CHENNAI: The Directorate of Government Examinations has announced that the September/October supplementary exam for Standards X, XI and XII will not be conducted from 2019. The statement cited a government order No 164 dated August 6, 2018 issued by the School Education Department.
This means that all students who do not clear their public exams in March- April should reattempt it in June/July. Currently, students who do not appear or fail in their public exams apply for instant re-exam in June/July. If they fail that as well, they re-attempt it in September/October supplementary exam.
Now, the September/ October supplementary exam has been clubbed with the instant re-exam. If students fail in their papers in June/July, they can write again only in March/April in the following year.
The decision was taken owing to shortage of teachers, said D Vasundradevi, Director of Government Examinations. Teachers are deployed on exam duty in March/ April followed by valuation of answer sheets. Then they invigilate and correct the papers in the examinations in June/July followed by the same routine for the supplementary exams in September/October.
“When teachers are always on exam duty, it disrupts regular classes,” she said adding that the June/July instant re-exam was introduced so that students do not waste an academic year. “But conducting an exam in September would be meaningless, as they cannot join next year anyway,” she said. “However, students who fail in more than one exam will be allowed to take all their supplementary exams in June/July itself,” another official from the Directorate of Government Examinations clarified.
“Teachers have to take care of term exams between all the different exams. Teachers from the science streams are also involved in taking NEET coaching classes. There is a shortage of manpower,” said a senior member of Government School Headmasters Association.
Cancelling these exams may affect marginalised students significantly, said educationalist Prince Gajendrababu. “The instant exams in June/July will only help good students who couldn’t pass or attend an exam due to last minute emergency. Students who want to pursue ITI and diploma, will sign-up for the course and then clear their papers in September/October supplementary exam,” he said.
Students who fail the June/July instant re-exam, will have to wait a year and take the exam again in March/April next year, when ITI entrance will coincide, he added. “This means they have to wait another year to take their ITI exams. Marginalised students cannot afford to not study and not work for such a long time, as their families expect them to earn soon,” he said. He added that such children will be thrown out of the education system into working.