HP Assembly adopts resolution on school board exams

The Himachal Pradesh Assembly today unanimously adopted a resolution requesting the Centre to allow the state to conduct board examinations of elementary classes till an effective evaluation system is evolved.
Cutting across party lines, members supported the official resolution moved by Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh who also holds the education portfolio.
Moving the resolution, the Chief Minister said the implementation of a continuous evaluation system had led to decline in educational standards.
"Reports of surveys conducted by various agencies have indicated the learning level of class V students has declined as they have not been taking studies seriously.
"Even the teachers are casual and are not taking much interest in the absence of an examination system," Singh said.

In this regard, "the House strongly recommends and requests the Union government to make an amendment in the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009," the Chief Minister said.

A new clause "the state government shall provide for conduct of examinations for class V and VIII till a continuous evaluation system is implemented and to ensure that there is no board examinations till completion of elementary education" should be inserted in the Act, he said.
Supporting the resolution, Leader of the Opposition P K Dhumal said this system of evaluation had totally failed in America.
"Unfortunately, we had adopted the new system. We have opposed scrapping of examinations up to the elementary level and have taken up the matter with the Union government," he said.

Several surveys conducted by different agencies had revealed the level of learning of students has gone down after the advent of the new system.