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Teacher-2-Teacher



             Reforms required for



             democratic certification


                                                                                     BHUVANA ANAND  TARINI SUDHAKAR



                   OR THE FIRST TIME IN 58 YEARS OF ITS history,   India needs a system that certifies
                   the  Delhi-based  Central  Board  of  Secondary
                   Education (CBSE) has scrapped its school-leaving   learning and skills attainments
             Fclasses  X  and  XII  national  exams.  Thousands   of students without procedural
             of students from schools affiliated with this and several
             state boards are grappling with the challenge of limited   qualifications with private candidates
             exit certification options. The shutdown of all academic   and independent learners provided equal
             institutions countrywide because of the Covid-19 pandemic,   access to higher education institutions
             provides  an  opportunity  to  re-examine  the  possibility
             of  multiplying  exit  options,  to  think  beyond  traditional
             school  examination  board  certificates  and  democratise   examinees are required to perform practicals. In 2018, the
             certification.                                    Delhi high court dismissed MCI’s disqualification order
                Students  who  opt  for  traditional  brick-and-mortar   as unconstitutional and awarded parity to NIOS and open
             schooling in India usually write exams conducted by CBSE,   schools’ certification.
             Council  for  the  Indian  School  Certificate  Examinations   Cambridge  International  (UK)  —  now  known  as
             (CISCE),  state  boards  or  offshore  examination  boards   Cambridge Assessment International Education (CAIE)
             such  as  International  Baccalaureate  and  Cambridge   — has run into problems with the Association of Indian
             International (UK). These boards provide ‘exit-certification’   Universities (AIU), a professional body that assesses the
             to students, signalling their readiness for higher education   equivalence of certification awarded by foreign examination
             and the jobs market.                              boards “to help people with foreign degrees pursue higher
                However,  traditional  especially  CBSE  and  CISCE   studies in Indian universities”. Although AIU recognises
             certification, is not available for children who opt out of   school-leaving  certificates  of  Cambridge  International,
             the  conventional  brick-and-mortar  school  system,  e.g,   it does not recognise certification of students who have
             homeschoolers  or  drop-outs.  For  instance,  a  teen  who   “completed  their  education  through  home  studies/
             fails board examinations as a ‘regular candidate’ is eligible   private candidate”. This means homeschooled and private
             to write the CBSE examination as a private candidate. A   candidates who write Cambridge International’s A-level
             regular candidate is “a student enrolled in a school, who   exam  won’t  be  issued  certificates  of  equivalence  for
             has  pursued  a  regular  course  of  study  in  a  school  and   admission into AIU member universities.
             seeks  admission  as  such  to  the  All  India/Delhi  Senior   ikewise,  although  some  state  examination  boards
             School Certificate/Secondary School Examination of the   Laccommodate  private  candidates,  they  impose
             Board.”  Private  candidates  are  not  permitted  to  write   curricular restrictions on them. For instance, the Tamil
             CISCE examinations. The only option they have is to write   Nadu State Board allows private candidates to write its
             school-leaving  exams  of  the  National  Institute  of  Open   examinations only in subjects that don’t involve practicals.
             Schooling (NIOS), state open school boards, or Cambridge   The Maharashtra state board also allows private candidates,
             International  (UK).  But  these  options  provide  limited,   but requires them to have studied three languages. Such
             rather than clear, pathways to undergrad colleges.  diktats disincentivise even gifted students to opt out of
                In a society that celebrates CBSE and CISCE toppers,   conventional schooling and choose their own curriculums.
             NIOS and open school board certificates don’t carry much   The  NEP  draft  of  the  Kasturirangan  Committee
             weight  with  parents  or  employers.  They  are  perceived   recommended that examination boards should not have
             as an option for children unable to cope with traditional   any  regulatory  role  over  affiliated  schools  and  confine
             school curriculums. This adversely affects the credibility   themselves to assessing and certifying school-leavers. This
             of certificates awarded by NIOS and open school boards.   is a step in the right direction, but India needs a system
                Indeed until 2015, the Pharmacy Council of India didn’t   that certifies learning and skills attainments of students
             accept  NIOS  certification  for  admission  into  approved   without procedural qualifications with ‘private’ candidates
             pharmacy  study  programmes  provided  by  colleges  and   and independent learners having equal unqualified access
             universities.  Similarly  in  2017,  the  Medical  Council  of   to higher education institutions. To begin with, NIOS needs
             India issued a notification disallowing students with NIOS   to be reformed so that its assessment is not perceived as
             and state open school certification to write the National   less rigorous than of other examination boards. Addressing
             Eligibility and Entrance Test (NEET) for admission into   these  issues  is  necessary  to  attain  the  broader  socially
             medical colleges. MCI cited lack of practical education in     beneficial objective of democratisation of education.
             open schooling syllabuses as justification. Responding, the
             NIOS management argued that NIOS offers its courses   (Bhuvana Anand is director of research at the Centre for Civil Society,
             through  schools  equipped  with  laboratories  and  its   Delhi. Tarini Sudhakar is a research fellow at CCS)

             54    EDUCATIONWORLD   SEPTEMBER 2020
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