Page 67 - EducationWorld August 2022

Inaugural CUET confusion in Delhi: protests ab initio

study programmes. “In National Education sions are on the basis of SAT (Scholastic Ap-
Policy 2020, it is advocated that we should titude Test) score and in China scores in the
remove the multiplicity of entrance tests and dreaded gaok ao determine admission into
have one single test so that students do not top-ranked and lesser ranked universities. In
have to go through the difficulties of writing the UK, from which independent India inher-
multiple entrance tests... with CUET, students ited its education system, board exam grades
can now write one single entrance test,” says and other performance indicators prescribed
P rof . Mam idal a Jag ade sh K u m ar, a for- by UCAS (Universities and Colleges Admis-
mer professor at IIT-Delhi, vice chancellor of sion Service) continue to determine under-
the top-ranked Jawaharlal Nehru University Prof. Jagadesh Kumar grad college/university admission. The switch
and incumbent chairperson of UGC. “Use of to CUET signals a departure from the British
one entrance test for admissions in undergrad programmes to the American admission process.
has become a global phenomenon,” he adds. But although CUET admittedly eliminates the physi-
Given the relatively high quality education provided cal and mental stress of students having to write multiple
by well-funded Central government universities at ridicu- university entrance tests, and streamlines the admission
lously low price, no sooner was CUET promulgated, it be- application and selection process, its hurried introduc-
came the country’s second largest public exam with 1.49 tion without vigorous debate and ground preparation has
million students registering for admission into undergrad opened up a pandora’s box of troubles.
programmes of 90 universities (UGC regulations permit “The hasty imposition of CUET upon students who
private and state government universities to admit students haven’t yet recovered from the prolonged Covid lockdown
on the basis of any national public exam scores). Therefore shows that government has least empathy for children. Its
12 state, 11 deemed and 19 private universities have opted to announcement at the fag end of the academic year (2021-
admit students on the basis of CUET scores and/or accord 22) as they were preparing to write class XII board exams,
weightage to the new common entrance exam. added the burden of preparing for CUET at short notice.
In this connection, it is pertinent to highlight that a com- Now several lapses in conduct of the test have exposed that
mon entrance exam for admission into undergrad — and NTA was also unprepared to stage this massive pan-India
often postgrad — education institutions is indeed a “global exam. Unfortunately, a test which was supposed to allevi-
phenomenon”. In the US, most undergrad college admis- ate student stress and anxiety has done the opposite,” says

AUGUST 2022 EDUCATIONWORLD 67