Go easy on maths & english papers

Board instructs HSC moderators to be lenient while checking papers in the two 'tough' subjects; says students are under pressure and overlooking minor errors can lift grades and reduce cases of depression and suicide

K A Dodhiya

Posted On Saturday, February 24, 2007 at 02:53:19 AM

This picture is for representational purposes only The Maharashtra State Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education has asked moderators for HSC exams to be lenient while checking maths and English papers. The take-it-easy policy is meant to ease pressure on students which, the Board believes, is responsible for mounting cases of depression and suicide every academic year. Nearly 30 HSC and SSC exam-related suicide cases were reported from across the state last year. Maths and English have been shortlisted for special treatment because they are subjects in which students make many minor mistakes under pressure, which result in loss of marks and consequently, lower grades that can affect not only their prospects but also their psychological health, Board officials said. Instructions to 'overlook minor errors' were issued at a meeting of Mumbai moderators held in Vashi recently to inform them about their pre-and-post exam duties. S V Kadam, one of the moderators who attended the meeting, said: "For maths, for example, we were told not to rely entirely on the final answers but to give marks for steps in case students had done these correctly, even if the final tally was incorrect." While examiners are known to hand out marks for steps, moderators who make the final assessment usually give priority to the overall correctness of an answer and could therefore slash the number of marks obtained. This picture is for representational purposes only Similarly, for letter-writing in English, moderators were told to give marks for small details like address, name, reference, subject, and introductory and sign-off lines like 'to...' and 'yours sincerely' etc. This means that even if the main body of the letter is riddled with errors, a student can get over 50% of the marks set aside for that question. "Students should therefore try to attempt every question, even if they are not confident about the final tally (in maths) or the logical order (in English)," moderator and chairperson of Junior College Teachers' Union Amar Singh said. Chairman of the Board Dr Vasant Kalpande confirmed that they wanted to make life easy for students. "We have, as a general rule, asked moderators and chief moderators to go easy on certain subjects where, probably due to high stress levels, the students are not able to express themselves on paper despite knowing the answers," he said. However, he added, there would be no compromise on the exam format. "There is no alternative to studies, and if students do not prepare well for the exams, we won't be able to help them," he pointed out. The HSC exams began on February 21 and will end on March 5.