New Delhi: Girls continued to outshine boys in CBSE class 10 and 12 exams while the pass percentage and the number of students scoring above 90 and 95 per cent marks dipped compared to last year.
CBSE officials said a comparison cannot be drawn with last year's statistics as the academic session then was split into two terms because of the COVID pandemic.
School principals, however, claimed the decline was due to the introduction of the Common University Entrance Test (CUET) for undergraduate admissions.
The pass percentage in Class 10 stood at 93.12 per cent, a dip of 1.28 percentage points from last year. The pass percentage in 2019 (pre-pandemic year) was 91.10 per cent.
Similarly, the pass percentage in the CBSE class 12 exam has gone down by 5.38 percentage points and stands at 87.33 per cent as against 92.71 per cent last year. In 2019 (the pre-pandemic academic session), the pass percentage was 83.40 per cent.
A similar trend was witnessed in the number of students who scored above 90 per cent and 95 per cent marks.
[bsa_pro_ad_space id=1]In Class 12, as many as 1.12 lakh students scored above 90 per cent and 22,622 candidates secured above 95 per cent marks. Among those who scored above 90 per cent, 271 are from Children With Special Needs (CSWN) category. As many as 44 CSWN students scored above 95 per cent.
Last year, 1,34,797 candidates scored above 90 per cent in Class 12, while 33,432 candidates scored above 95 per cent.
However, in 2019 (pre-pandemic academic session), the number of students scoring above 90 per cent and 95 per cent was 94,299 and 17,693, respectively.
In the last academic session, the exams were conducted in two parts and the syllabus was split into two terms as a one-time measure in view of the pandemic.
"This year, the board resumed the annual one-term practice like pre-pandemic years wherein students had to give exams of the entire syllabus at once," a senior board official said.
"Therefore, a valid comparison can only be drawn with pre-pandemic years and the pass percentage has increased from pre-pandemic year 2019," the official added.
In Class 10, as many as 1.95 lakh candidates have scored above 90 per cent while 44,297 scored above 95 per cent. Among those who scored above 90 per cent, 278 are from the CSWN category while 58 students of that group scored above 95 per cent.
[bsa_pro_ad_space id=1] [bsa_pro_ad_space id=1]Last year, 2,36,993 candidates scored above 90 per cent in Class 10, while 64,908 candidates scored above 95 per cent. However, in 2019, the number of students scoring above 90 per cent and 95 per cent was 2,25,143 and 57,256, respectively.
The board has decided against publishing merit lists to avoid "unhealthy competition" among students. Officials said the board has also scrapped awarding first, second and third divisions based on students' scores.
"No merit list will be declared by the CBSE to avoid unhealthy competition among students. However, the board will issue merit certificates to 0.1 per cent of students who have scored the highest marks in the various subjects," a senior board official said.
According to Sudha Acharya, chairperson of the National Progressive Schools' Conference, which has over 120 private schools as its members, the decline in the result can be attributed to the introduction of CUET.
"CBSE board exam has become a qualifying exam whereas admission in colleges depends on CUET score. Students are moving out of the school system and joining coaching centres to crack CUET, JEE and NEET," she said.
Bharat Arora, the president of the Action Committee of Unaided Recognised Private Schools, echoed similar thoughts.
"CUET is a big factor. With the introduction of CUET as the sole criterion to get admission, the purpose of school education at the senior secondary level has been compromised. CUET has many benefits but a balanced approach considering school education is a must," he said.
The board also announced that it will conduct exams for classes 10 and 12 for the 2023-24 academic session from February 15 next year.
The CBSE has decided to change the 'compartment' exam nomenclature to 'supplementary' based on recommendations made in the National Education Policy 2020. The board has also decided to offer more opportunities to students to improve their performance in board exams.
"Following recommendations made by NEP, CBSE has changed the nomenclature of the compartment exam to supplementary exam. Students will be provided more opportunities to improve their performance in supplementary examinations," the official said.
While Class 10 students will get an opportunity to improve their performance in two subjects in the supplementary exam, class 12 students will get the chance to improve their scores in one subject.
"For students who are placed in the supplementary category and those who wish to improve their performances, the exam will be conducted in July and the dates will be announced soon," he added.
Over 1.34 lakh candidates have been placed in the supplementary category in class 10, while the number of such candidates in class 12 is over 1.25 lakh.