PANJIM, APRIL 4
Extreme heat and humid conditions greeted the 17,290 students appearing for the Secondary School Certificate Examination (SSC) on Saturday across 23 centres in Goa. On the first day students answered Social Science I (History & Civics) paper.
For students (repeaters) answering under the old Maharashtra State Board syllabus the exam was held for two-and-half hours (10 am to 12.30 pm) and for the regular students under NCERT it was for two hours (10 am to 12 pm).
While the centres in Panjim city were not very receptive to queries from the press on the arrangements for students answering the exam, Vidhya Prabodhini High School in Porvorim went out of its way to explain the same to the visiting journos.
The school has done meticulous arrangements for the coming days with answering halls on the first and second floor to keep anxious parents on the ground floor. The chief conductor said the arrangement was done in such a manner to keep parents from distracting their wards while answering their paper, he explained.
He said special arrangements had been made for one handicapped student.
The first day saw no major complains from any centre except for a few minor complaints here and there. A teacher at one of the centres in Panjim speaking on condition of anonymity told Herald that some students had complained why the Board had banned writing pads inside the exam hall.
He said no doubt the Board has banned the pads as the same had been misused in the past for the purpose of copying. However, the teacher maintained that since there are just 25 students in each hall the pads could be checked before the exam began. It was difficult for the students to maintain a good handwriting on the rough desks, he maintained.
At one of the centres parents were seen waiting for their wards till they answered their paper. Majority of the students walking out of one centre said the History paper was not all that bad and they had answered well.
The students, who will now get enough time to study on Sunday, will be answering their first language papers (English, Marathi or Urdu) on Monday. The remaining papers from Monday will be of three hours duration.
