Team Herald
PANJIM: In a major decision, the executive council of the Goa Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education (GBSHSE) resolved that students failing in Class IX and Class XI will be allowed to keep terms (ATKT) and seek admission to the next class.
This will be introduced on a pilot basis for two years beginning from the current academic year 2019-20. The executive council, however, also decided that unless students clear the Class IX and XI, their board examination results of SSC and HSSC would not be declared.
The executive council of the Goa Board met on Friday to discuss the proposal mooted by the Board. The Board council will take a final decision in the matter.
As per current norms, in Classes IX and XI, students who fail in one or two subjects are eligible to answer the supplementary exams.
Speaking to Herald after the meeting, Goa Board secretary Bhagirath Shetye said the idea behind introducing ATKT was to ensure that the students’ academic year is not wasted. “The proposal was to allow students failing in more than two or all subjects in Class IX and XI for supplementary test. But the executive council deliberated and decided to allow the students to keep terms,” he said.
Shetye said that ATKT, once approved by the Board Council would be implemented from the current academic year, that is students failing in IX or XI in the current year, will be allowed to keep terms.
“However, the Board results of SSC and HSSC will be kept on hold, till the student clears Class IX or Class XI,” he said.
The number of students failing classes IX and XI is around 10,000 to 11,000 on an average and there are a large number of dropouts as a result of it, Shetye explained.
This year, around 18,684 students had answered the SSC examination, while the HSSC students were 16,952.
