BENGALURU: Second pre-university students of the state board are hoping for more time to write their examinations even as the state has batted for them to be held in July. Students also sought thorough preparatory classes before attempting their board papers.
A section of students stated that they lacked facilities for online classes throughout the year.
"There was not even one exam held during the course of the year. During the preparatory examination, the lockdown was announced and just two exams were completed by then. So nobody is sure how they will be graded retrospectively," said a class 12 PCMB student from an aided college in Bellary.
Several survey reports from reputed organisations show that merely 25% of students in Karnataka have facilities or resources to avail online education. Among PU students, only 20% could attend online classes, said Vinay Chandra, AIDSO State Secretariat Member and Bengaluru District Treasurer.
"The inequality in the education system has made higher education a day dream for the majority of students in the state," he added.
"The possibility of MCQs via online mode is harrowing as that requires a different technique of preparing for the examination, one that we are not accustomed to," said a class 12 state board student.
A PCMB student from a government college in Bellary said that just half of the more than 50 students in her class attended online classes. However, these 20 days of classes were just the pending syllabus in physics and even so, the attendance was bleak, she said, worried about the possibility of online examinations. Preparatory classes are needed, she added.
Another student from a private unaided PU college in Gulbarga said that his classes were held during the academic year smoothly and even preparatory exams were conducted in March after about three months of offline classes. "Examinations are necessary, however due to the second wave, we ought to wait out a bit longer," he added.
Vasudeva Reddy, a leader of the student organisation SFI, told The New Indian Express that examinations should be deferred by a few months till the severity of the pandemic dies and revision classes ought to be held prior to that. If that is not feasible, internal test marks should be considered and students evaluated on that basis.
While the department is reported to have mulled over the possibility of online examinations, a top official told The New Indian Express that no such decision was finalised, nor was there a suggestion of the sort made to the centre.
"Online exams are not on the table for the moment. There is no discussion in this regard yet," said the Director of Pre University Education Snehal, adding that a meeting in this regard will be held on Monday.