Proposed rule for selecting students of IITs opposed

PATNA: Bihar School Examination Board (BSEB) chairman Dr A K P Yadav on Monday came down heavily on the Union human resource and development (HRD) ministry’s proposed move to give 70 percent weightage on performance of Class XII examinations while selecting students for the prestigious Indian Institute of Technologies (IITs).

“The move would prove detrimental for the lakhs of students of Bihar who appear at Plus Two examination every year, conducted by BSEB,” he said, amidst fear that this would deprive the meritorious students of the state from taking up IITJEE.

Yadav said that as students appearing at other board exams such as CBSE and ICSE score higher marks due to liberal policy adopted by these boards in giving marks, students appearing in BSEB exams are placed at disadvantageous position. He asked the state HRD minister, who was present on the occasion, to take up the matter with the Union HRD ministry and also requested chief ministerNitish Kumar to intervene in the matter.

“I will vehemently oppose the proposed move at a meeting convened by the Union HRD ministry on August 27 at New Delhi,” Yadav said.

It may be mentioned that the Union HRD ministry had earlier set up a committee under IIT-Kharagpur directorDamodar Acharya to suggest reforms in the IIT joint entrance examination (JEE). The committee, in its draft report submitted to the HRD ministry after holding countrywide consultations, has recommended giving 70 percent weightage to Class XII exam performance for selection in IITs.

The reason cited behind the move is that it will make easier for students who prepare for their Class XII boards and IITJEE simultaneously. The move also aims to curb the mushrooming of IIT coaching centres with students not focusing on the board exams and giving priority to coaching for IIT entrance.

The panel, comprising directors of IIT-Kharagpur, IIT-Madras, IIT-Bombay and IIT-Roorki, has also suggested that the IIT-JEE be replaced by a broad-based National Aptitude Test (NAT) and 30 per cent weightage should be given to the NAT.

Union minister for HRD Kapil Sibal, however, had earlier said that the ministry has not accepted the suggestions yet and will take the matter to the IIT Council.

Earlier, state HRD minister Hari Narayan Singh, while inaugurating a three-day workshop on `Preparing Sample Question Papers in Science, Mathematics and Social Sciences’, said that the workshop would greatly help in drafting out measures needed to bring out reforms in the present examination pattern. Notably, the BSEB for the first time in 2011 would be conducting Class X examination based on new syllabus in operation since last two years in the state in the light of Bihar Curriculum Framework 2008 which was drafted keeping in accordance with National Curriculum Framework (NCF) 2005.

The BSEB chairman said that from now onwards more stress would be given to students’ skill testing, interpretation ability, reasoning analysis, critical thinking, problem solving and creative ability in place of their testing of memory power. He said that though Continuous Comprehensive Evaluation (CCE) of the students based on their all-round performance which NCF 2005 has recommended is a welcome step, it should be implemented in the state after fulfilling the required teacher-student ratio (1:40) and due facilities to the teachers.

Yadav further said that though some smaller states has implemented the system of examinations being conducted in several semesters based on question papers’ bank, it is not feasible for bigger states as Bihar.

SCERT director Hasan Waris, State Madrassa Board chairman Maulana Ejaz Ahmed, A D Tiwary of NCERT and teachers and subject-experts from across the state were present at the workshop.