Regular classes for the HSSC and SSC students started from November 21 and needless to say there have been quite a few cases of COVID-19 already amongst the students and the teachers. The Chief Minister was quick to say that the schools have been given standard operating procedures to be followed strictly but refused to give in to demands of cancelling the offline classes.
Now then, with the government and the Board finally announcing the date sheet for exams, though a formal time table is yet to be announced, are our children ready for such important exams amidst the chaos? There are hundreds, if not thousands, who have missed a lot of classes due to the inconsistent network connectivity. In the last few months we have also seen network issues in many parts of the State. Despite the Chief Minister’s assurance on a Mobile Tower policy, there has been no improvement in this sector – as a result the students have continued to suffer. With all this chaos, can we even think that the students would be ready after just some months of regular classes?
We all know that the Class X and Class XII are the foundation of one’s future career and help the students to choose their stream or profession. Hence, we have to think twice before imposing such an important decision of the examinations on the students. Mind you, the threat of the COVID-19 virus is not over yet, the European countries, including UK, and parts of UAE are already seeing the second wave of the deadly virus. With Goa being a tourist State and also having many seamen and other Goans frequenting between Goa and London, the threat looms large.
If Goa sees a second wave, which is the mutant corona virus, said to be more deadly than the first wave, we will put our wards to even more risk. Has this point been discussed before taking such an important decision on the critical exams? However, the decision also has another side to it. There are still four months left for HSSC exams and nearly five months for SSC exams, the students have ample time to study, only if the regular classes are to start, as we all know the online classes in the State have been a disaster till now. The Board has also not clarified whether the exams will be online or offline, though the circular indicates it would be offline.
Interestingly, on the day that the Board announced the exam dates, Goa University postponed its offline exams for final year students happening in January. They will be held a little later. How can the Board at the same time decide to hold offline exams for SSCE and HSSCE, though these will be held at a much later date? Also, one has to understand that almost 18,000 each in HSSC and SSC students would be answering the Board examinations and maintaining SOPs would be a tough ask for the authorities. Agreed, the technical education and the Board were successful in holding the Board exams last year and were successful in the conduct but that time the cases in the State were not as much. Today the State has crossed 50,000 COVID-19 cases and it is increasing daily. Hence, the government needs to give a serious thought to its decision to hold exams.
