Sibal plan: Bengal, Kerala see red

Orissa, Left-Ruled States Apart, Mixed Feelings Greet HRD Min’s Edu Reforms Ideas

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

New Delhi: State education ministers and examination boards warmed up to the reform proposals of HRD minister Kapil Sibal with the exception of the Leftruled Kerala and Bengal and also Orissa.

UP took a leaf out of Sibal’s book and CM Mayawati became the first one to announce a grading system for the state board exams from the next academic session to ease academic pressure. But it rejected the plan to junk the board exams and was cautious on the recommendations of establishing a single secondary board with a uniform curriculum. The BJP government in Gujarat said what Sibal was talking about now was first mooted by the state.

Mayawati said performance will be judged on the basis of marks scored in the best five of the total six subjects and there will be supplementary exams to help the students. District-level committees headed by district magistrates will be set up to regulate fees in public and private schools, she added.

“These days Class XII has become a basic educational qualification. In such a situation making Class XII exam as an external examination instead of Class X is not a bad move,’’ said H P Bhattacharya, Assam’s director of state council for education research and training.

The Jharkhand government, too, welcomed the move. “The proposed system will help in churning out better talent,’’ said state HRD secretary Mridula Sinha.

The Andhra government was cautious. “Kapil Sibal’s proposal is good for the students and the state. But it has to be studied in its entirety. A decision will be taken only after a thorough examination of the proposal,’’ said secondary education minister Manikya Varaprasada Rao.

Rajasthan’s exam board officials were apprehensive. Eradicating board exams is a revolutionary idea. A lot of deliberation is required before taking any step towards its implementation, said a senior education officer in Jaipur, who asked not to be named. “Recently the US President attributed the excellence of Indian students to the long durations they spent in classrooms. This zeal to spend time studying may be due to the examination pressure,’’ the official added.

Kerala, West Bengal and Orissa were unanimous in opposing Sibal. M A Baby, education minister of Left-ruled Kerala said the Centre should not take unilateral decisions on doing away with Class X exams. Baby sought an “urgent meeting’’ of state education ministers to evolve a consensus. “This is something that needs to be discussed more. Education is on the concurrent list and as such, the Centre cannot take a unilateral decision,’’ Baby told TOI. “Im not averse to reforms being implemented at any level, but it should be academically sound and respect the federal polity.’’

Baby’s Bengal counterpart Partho De said he would “go all out’’ to oppose the plan. “This would lead to mayhem. How can you scrap Class X exam by just saying it is stressful? Is this a joke?’’ De asked. “The syllabus at Class X level in Bengal was revised in such a manner that the flab has gone and students study the bare essential. So where is the stress?’’ On Sibal’s plan of one board for the country, De said nothing could be “more weird’’. “It’s a vast country and each state has needs that only a state-run board can satisfy,” he said.

In Orissa, educationists strongly opposed the move saying it would “ruin’’ the students’ future. “It’s a thoughtless proposal,’’ said K Panda, secretary, Orissa Secondary School Teachers’ Association.

All in a day: Boy gets 90%, loses house

Bharati Dubey | TNN

Thursday came with not just its share of good and bad news students, but some poignant moments too. Saddam Husain Pathan woke up to find he had achieved a dream score of 90% in his SSC exams. But the same day the 16-year-old was served an eviction notice by the BEST, to vacate the Santa Cruz quarter where he had been staying. “My father, Hasim Pathan, a driver with BEST, died about two years ago of cancer. BEST allowed us to stay in the house for two years and even extended our stay after a March deadline due to my SSC exams. Unfortunately today morning we were asked to vacate it. I am now shifting to Kashimira with my mother and brother.”

The student of Sane Guruji Vidya Mandir in Santa Cruz wants to be an electrical engineer. “I will take admission in science or do a diploma in electrical engineering.”

Municipal school results dip to 60%

Sukhada Tatke | TNN

Mumbai: Four municipal school students scored above 90% in the SSC examinations, but the pass percentage in the city’s 49 civic schools was lower this time as compared to 2008. While 72.27% students had managed to clear the examinations in 2008, the number dropped to 60% this year.

Last year, 6,019 students had appeared for the examination, and 4,350 had cleared it. This year, while the number of students appearing for the examination increased to 7,912, only 4,753 managed to pass.

Civic officials attribute this drop to the fact that they had been easy on students in the ninth standard and had promoted almost all of them to the tenth standard. “We did not want to detain students in Class IX. We wanted to see if they fare well. If a student is failed in Class IX when all his counterparts go to Class X it brings his confidence down. But this doesn’t seem to have worked. We will see about next year,’’ said Chandrakant Rokde, deputy municipal commissioner (education).

But there were bright spots as well. Nitesh Padatkar of Byculla Municipal School, the city topper in the category, scored 92.15%, followed by Vinita Velvankar of Malad’s Topiwala School with 91.76%, and Vijay Bhange of Byculla Municipal School with 90.46%. “We had also started a special batch last year where we gave separate training to some kids. Of that batch, Nilesh Karkar from Prabhadevi Municipal School scored 90.15%,’’ said Ujjwala Modhak, member of the education committee.

Additional municipal commissioner Madhav Sangle said the objective of municipal schools was to get maximum students to appear for the SSC examination. “Our students are from very underprivileged sections of society. They need to clear the SSC to get any job. Some of them go on to do extremely well. For such exceptional students, we are even introducing three junior colleges,’’ he added.

Girls lead the victory parade, again

Anahita Mukherji & Hemali Chhapia | TNN

Mumbai: The results that trickled in from the SSC scores were crystal clear — girls were number one, yet again, and in every category. Not only did girls top in every section — state, city, night school, backward or handicapped category— they also had a higher pass percentage compared to boys, like every other year in both HSC and SSC.

Latur’s Shilpa Hiremath was numero uno, with an eye-popping 98.61%, while Thane’s Sonali Chavan topped the Mumbai division with a score of 96.46%. Mumbai’s night school topper, Sonal Singh, who scored 84.15%, was also the state topper in the category. Again, of the six students in the top three, five were girls. Another five students made it to the merit list for the backward-class category, of which four were girls.

Boys had a pass percentage of 78.66% this year, while girls were way ahead with a pass percentage of 82.10%.

Of the divisions, Latur, which missed the state topper’s position to Kolhapur last year and to Aurangabad in 2007, reclaimed the impressive position it held in 2006, and registered a pass percentage of 81.40%, making it fourth in the state.

Vijaysheela Sardesai, chairperson of the state board said the performance of repeaters across the state had improved, boosting Maharashtra’s success rate.

This year, Mumbai had the lowest number of cheating cases across the state, while Nagpur had the highest. This, despite the fact that there was a five-fold increase in the number of copying cases detected in Mumbai this year. “For the first time, we had warned supervisors that they, too, would be penalised for students found cheating at their centres,’’ said Basanti Roy, secretary of the Mumbai division of the board. Moreover, the results of a number of students were withheld this year because they could not furnish the necessary documents for the exam.

In addition to conducting exams, for the first time the SSC board has also launched its own 21-point programme for stress free examinations. Pointers for parents, students, principals, teachers and the school management on how to lower stress levels have been put up at 3,500 schools across Mumbai, Thane and Raigad.

WINNERS ALL: Mumbai topper Sonali Chavan (centre) flanked by Shefali Mhadadalkar (left) and Tejal Pradhan, second and third in the city respectively

Hutment razed not the will to do well

Sharmila Ganesan Ram | TNN

When Arif Shaikh got his SSC marksheet, he could sense its power to bring a smile on his parents’ faces. Arif, who had scored 71.69%, wished he could call them immediately. But that wasn’t possible as neither do they have cellphones, nor does his plastic home opposite the Mahalaxmi station have a landline.

Shaikh lives on the street, in a home that’s made of plastic and bamboo, in anticipation of the familiar municipality bulldozer. Almost every six months, his illegal house, which encroaches on railway property, is reduced to rubble, leaving the family of four roofless.

It happened last December just before Shaikh’s preliminary examinations. His mother, a housewife, was away tending to his ailing grandfather in their village while his father, a housekeeper, and brother, a small steel company employee, were at work. Along with his house, a table fan and his brother’s watch also disappeared, probably stolen by a neighbour. So this student of Marvadi Vidyalaya in Mahalaxmi had to bunk lectures at his Lower Parel coaching class where he had been enrolled by Akanksha, an NGO for street kids. Since the family couldn’t pay electricity bills, that too was cut off. A kerosene lamp at his house would light up only a quarter of the shanty. So at night, the 15-year-old would go to his cousin’s home near Race Course, to study. He stopped eating before exams, “as I was tensed.’’

The forced starvation paid off and an ecstatic Arif, who scored 80 in English, wants to study commercial art. Something he decided, perhaps, while helping his brother build a new makeshift shanty with bamboos.

Govt backs scrapping Std X board exam

Minister Says If Students Study Up To Std XII In Same School, There’s No Need For External SSC Assessment

Prafulla Marpakwar | TNN

Mumbai: The Maharashtra government has expressed support for Union human resources development minister Kapil Sibal’s proposal to scrap Std X board exams, saying there is no need for constant evaluation of students before they reach Std XII. However, state minister of higher, technical and medical education, Rajesh Tope, said, “I feel that before taking a final decision, there should be a wider debate on the reforms in education.’’

Sibal and others on Thursday welcomed the reforms proposed by Sibal. “The concept is c e r t a i n ly revolutionary. In my opinion, there is no need for the Class X board exam. There must be a debate and we must expedite the decision-making process,’’ Tope told TOI. Tope observed that it is high time that the academic community and the government examines the stages of a student’s evaluation. “If students are in the same school from Std I to XII, there is no need for their frequent evaluation,’’ said Tope, a mechanical engineer-turned politician.

Endorsing Sibal’s views, a senior education department official said that while there is debate about a single board conducting the HSC examination, there is unanimity on abolishing the Class X board exam. “In view of the introduction of the 10-plus-2 exam system, the Class X exam has lost its significance. We feel that a decision on abolishing the Class X exam should be taken forthwith,’’ the official said. The official said that when most schools have internal exams for Std VII, the same pattern should be followed for Class X. Since the Class X exam is conducted by the state board, at least 20% of the students who don’t succeed are thrown out of the m a i n s t re a m . “This is a national loss, as many of them give up further education,’’ he said.

The official said, Sibal rightly pointed out that if the Class X exam is abolished, it would reduce the burden not only on students, but parents too. “Let there be less tension and less trauma for students and parents. We must support the steps initiated by the Yashpal committee on education reforms and the proposals made by Sibal,’’ he added.

OPTIONAL STD X BOARD EXAMS: Sibal is taking up the proposal to make Class X board exams optional, especially when a student continues in the same school. Is abolishing the Std X board exam the right way to reduce stress for students? It would water down system

I don’t think this is a good suggestion. Let’s not water down our education system which is looked upon with respect by many foreign education systems. Scrapping the Class X board exam is not the answer to ridding our students of stress. We have to think of other ways to make the system stress-free. We can allow students to explore hobbies together with excelling at their academics.
—Fr Francis Swamy | PRINCIPAL, HOLY FAMILY HIGH SCHOOL

What about accountability?
I have certain reservations about this, because it would imply that schools would get autonomy and that would make accountability a big issue. If Std X boards are abolished, I hope schools make sure they deliver quality education.
—Avnita Bir | PRINCIPAL OF R N PODAR HIGH SCHOOL

Std X boards are a burden
The Std X board exams are a burden on 15-year-old students who are under severe pressure to score well. The problem is so acute that tuitions have become the norm rather than the option. It appears that only tutorial classes are dominating the education scene. Poor students who cannot afford the high fees of tuition classes lose out in such a situation.
—Carl Laurie | PRINCIPAL,
CHRIST CHURCH SCHOOL

Syllabus would be repeated
If there are no Std X board examinations, the colleges would not know which of the students are academically inclined. Optional Std X board exams would mean that all the students would end up studying the same thing for two years. It would defeat the idea of the students becoming independent.
—Yasmin Chagla | PRINCIPAL, CUMBALLA HILL HIGH SCHOOL

Schools may not be sincere
I have my concerns about making the Std X board examinations optional. Internal exams conducted by schools would not have uniformity across different institutions. Some institutions might conduct exams sincerely, while others might not because of the lack of an outside agency.
—Manju Nichani | PRINCIPAL, K C COLLEGE

Get velit aliquam ultrices. In
I don’t think doing away with the Std X board examinations is a solution. Ultimately, educational institutions have to have some yardstick with which to select their students. Even in the USA, one does have the SAT.
—Pradeep Kulkarni | PRINCIPAL, RUPAREL COLLEGE

Compiled by Madhavi Rajadhyaksha, Mansi Choksi and Mahafreed Irani

USE GRADES, NOT MARKS: Another proposal is to replace marks with grades for Std IX and X students in CBSE-affiliated schools. Do you think thiswould reduce stress for students and better gauge learning?

It would reduce pressure, I feel that this is a very good suggestion. It makes sense and is a good way of reducing pressure on students.
—Fr Francis Swamy | PRINCIPAL, HOLY FAMILY HIGH SCHOOL

Wait and watch
This is something that the CBSE board has been trying to work out. We will have to see how the situation develops. It would, however, reduce the burden on students and would cut down on a lot of this cut-throat competition involving percentages.
—Avnita Bir | PRINCIPAL OF R N PODAR HIGH SCHOOL

Implement this quickly
The grading system can be implemented very quickly and this needs to be done in a hurry. The grading system would be great and the CBSE has already begun talking about it.
—Carl Laurie | PRINCIPAL, CHRIST CHURCH SCHOOL

Students would be free
Grading, instead of marking, is a great idea. Grading is a great system. It would give freedom to students as compared to percentages, which are more specific.
—Yasmin Chagla | PRINCIPAL, CUMBALLA HILL HIGH SCHOOL

Percentages create a lot of stress
I welcome any shift to the grading system as the current system of marking causes a lot of stress among students. At the time of admissions, even just 0.1% can become a deciding factor. This creates creates a lot of pressure on students.
—Manju Nichani | PRINCIPAL, K C COLLEGE

Competition would always be there
Moving from a system of marks to any other system may not change much, as one way or another, students would always end up competing and trying to be ahead of each other. With regard to that, the pressure surrounding the education system or the existence of coaching classes will always remain. These things would always be hard to get rid of as competition would always be there.
—Pradeep Kulkarni | PRINCIPAL, RUPAREL COLLEGE

ACCREDITING SCHOOLS: The Centre wants to explore the possibility of creating an independent authority to accredit school education.
Good idea to assess schools
That’s a good idea because it would be an authentic way of assessing the school and will be a way of encouraging them.
—Fr Francis Swamy | PRINCIPAL, HOLY FAMILY HIGH SCHOOL

Unbiased body needed
This is an important step. We need an unbiased and nonpartisan body that would carry out quality checks and device a systematic ranking system.
—Avnita Bir | PRINCIPAL, R N PODAR HIGH SCHOOL

Keep govt out
It would be a wonderful idea to have an independent body to accredit and assess schools. The government should be kept out of it. As the saying goes, “That government is best which governs least.’’ Instead of bureaucrats, educationists like former vice-chancellors, registrars and principals should be on the body.
—Carl Laurie | PRINCIPAL, CHRIST CHURCH SCHOOL

It would create elitism
It is an American and Australian idea to have accreditation. But I am not in favour of this, because it would only create an elitist system where all the A-grade schools employ the A-grade teachers and hence attract all the A-grade students. The poor students would end up being left out, because in such a system they may not be able to afford these elitist schools.
—Yasmin Chagla | PRINCIPAL,

CUMBALLA HILL HIGH SCHOOL
Single body enough?
This might help serve a purpose. The accreditation could address concerns regarding the quality in the education system across the country. However, again, one has to assess whether one single body would be enough for all the institutions across the entire country.
—Manju Nichani | PRINCIPAL, K C COLLEGE

No comment
I am yet to see the Union HRD minister Kapil Sibal’s statements on this particular matter, and until I do I cannot comment on this subject.
—Pradeep Kulkarni | PRINCIPAL, RUPAREL COLLEGE

UNIFIED BOARD: Union human resources development minister Kapil Sibal has talked about having a unified board and unified board exams. Will this make the system fairer and reduce stress for students when they choose which college to attend?

Keep different boards
It is my opinion that we should not be too hasty in creating a unified board exam. I feel that we should keep the different boards because each of them has unique features and students can profit from them. But I do feel that there should be a common evaluation system even though there is different content. That way there would be no question of the quota system, no superiority bias and no discrimination amongst different students.
—Fr Francis Swamy | PRINCIPAL, HOLY
FAMILY HIGH SCHOOL, ANDHERI

Idea whose time has come I feel this is an excellent idea, especially as it’s coming at a time when Mumbai is reeling under the 90:10 crisis. In fact, this is something that has been long time coming considering that we are now living in a globalized world. It would help mobility within the country. If a student wants to move from one part of the country to another, it would be much easier.
—Avnita Bir | PRINCIPAL, R N
PODAR SCHOOL, SANTA CRUZ

An idealistic notion
The move to unify boards is an idealistic notion that would not be easy to implement. Education is a state subject and individual states won’t leave their golden goose so easily. This rule will take 20 to 30 years to be implemented.
—Carl Laurie | PRINCIPAL, CHRIST
CHURCH SCHOOL, BYCULLA

Can’t kill cash cow easily
Education is a lucrative business and with many schools being run by industrialists and politicians, implementing the unified board system is only an idealistic dream because it would take away the profits earned. Also, it may not practically work because it would mean having a uniform exam and invigilation would be very difficult. This would also encourage a lot of mugging from study guides.
—Yasmin Chagla | PRINCIPAL, CUMBALLA HILL HIGH SCHOOL, OFF NEPEAN SEA ROAD

Good idea, but expensive
A unified board would be the best thing to happen, as we wouldn’t have problems such as the 90:10. But it is worth questioning whether the government is going to spend that kind of money on education? In India, you can’t ignore the cost factor. The government has to clearly define the vision—whether it is mediocrity or quality? For instance, priorities with regard to rural and urban areas are different. While in rural areas, the priority is literacy, in the cities education is the only ambition of children.
—Manju Nichani | PRINCIPAL, K C
COLLEGE, CHURCHGATE

1 board, 1 syllabus, 1 exam
I fully agree with Sibal on the need need for a unified board There should be one board, one syllabus and one examination all over India, just like in the United States, which has the SAT. That would definitely take a lot of pres sure off the students, as preparation would be limited to appearing for one exam.
—Pradeep Kulkarni | PRINCIPAL
RUPAREL COLLEGE, MATUNGA

Students may not have to repeat a year

Anahita Mukherji | TNN

Mumbai: If you’ve failed a couple of papers in the SSC exam, there’s a chance you will not lose out on an entire year this time round. For the first time, the state education department is planning to allow students to re-appear for the papers they failed in a month after the results, instead of waiting till October to do so.

“We hope to implement the proposal from this year itself. We have forwarded this proposal to the Maharashtra state board of education and have asked them to revert within the next week,’’ said Maharashtra’s school education minister Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil.

“This way, students will save a year of study. Students who have failed in a maximum of two subjects will be able to avail of this facility. If this proposal is implemented, then the October re-examinations may be scrapped,’’ he added.

According to Basanti Roy, secretary of the Mumbai Division of the state board, this is an excellent idea and will benefit students. “It is already being implemented in certain states in India,’’ she said

4,500 more students cleared the SSC exams from Mumbai

State topper on par with CBSE & ICSE high-scorers

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Mumbai: Who says SSC are a rung below ICSE and CBSE students? This year, Maharashtra’s SSC topper equalled the score of the Mumbai CBSE topper, and came second to the ICSE topper by a miniscule 0.4%. However, the overall pass percentage of the state board — that reaches out to the masses — remains well below its elite counterparts. (See box).

While the ICSE and CBSE boards came close to a cent per cent success rate, the SSC board’s pass percentage was 80.18% this year. Last year, for the first time, the SSC board included a component of internal assessment, already in place for the national boards, which helped boost the pass percentage across the region.

It’s important to note, however, that the number of students appearing for the ICSE examination across the country is only a third of those who take the state board exams from the Mumbai division alone.

This year, despite a 2.24% dip in the SSC pass percentage from the city, Shridhar Salunkhe, the chairperson for the Mumbai division of the state board, said that an additional 4,500 students had cleared the exam. “But we will ensure that not a single student will be deprived of a seat. And that’s not all: they will get a seat in a stream of their preference,” he added.

The Mumbai division, which includes Thane and Raigad, has a total of 2.72 lakh seats in junior colleges. With 2.63 lakh students clearing the boards, the state will be able to keep its promise. Sources in the school education department said the government is also looking at fresh applications that have poured in from managements desiring to start new colleges.

ADMISSION SCHEDULE
JUNE 26 - JULY 3: Fill the online form, and submit 2 print-outs them at a centre
JULY 4-6: Sorting out mistakes and attending to grievances
JULY 14: Display of first merit list in all junior colleges
JULY 15-20: Admission to college, payment of fees
JULY 24: Second merit list to be displayed
JULY 25-28: Admission to college and payment of fees
JULY 31: Display of third merit in all junior colleges
AUGUST 1-3: Admission to college alloted, fee payment
AUGUST 4 AND ONWARDS:
Students without a seat will be alloted one on the basis of their preferences, stream and medium of instruction

THEY OVERCOME CHALLENGES TO TOP THE MERIT LIST

BACKWARD CLASS TOPPER
No mountain is too high for this girl
Rebecca Samervel | TNN
Mumbai: Looking for Anjali Jadhav’s house in Adarsh Nagar, Goregaon (W) on any other day would have been a mammoth task. But the 16-year-old’s new found celebrity status—she’s the city topper in the backward category with 95.84%—made it easy. Sign boards were posted all around directing the continuous stream of visitors to her one-room house. “I expected to score well, but this is beyond my wildest dreams,’’ she said.

An aspiring engineer, the teenager’s journey to the top was not easy. Studying 12 hours a day in a tiny loft that doubled as a study room, Anjali sacrificed her favourite activities for a year. “I gave up painting, watching movies, reading books and playing volleyball. But now, I am looking forward to pursuing painting,’’ she said.

While math and Sanskrit were a breeze, English proved to be an obstacle. “I found English difficult, but with extra classes I managed to score 90 in the subject,’’ said Anjali. “My parents and brother helped me stay up nights and encouraged me.’’ The daughter of a painting operator and a housewife, Anjali said her ideal is former President APJ Abdul Kalam who made it to the top on his own steam.

NIGHT SCHOOL TOPPER ‘You’ll do well if your heart’s into it’
Rohini Nair | TNN
Mumbai: It was a steep drop in her academic performance during the year that pushed Sonal Singh from Canossa Night High School to study harder for her SSC exams and score 84.15%. And it was well worth the effort. On Thursday, Sonal found out that she also topped Maharashtra in the night school category.

Sonal, who studied for four hours every day, said, “It’s a misconception that you have to study for 10 hours to achieve something. As long as your heart’s in it, even if the time spent is less, you will do well. People in my class are from different age groups, but that’s not a problem.’’ Among her classmates who passed the SSC were Shaheen Quereshi, who sells fish and Saraswati Balikoti, who is employed as a maid.

Shaheen scored 59.23% despite sharing her residence with seven siblings and a workday that starts at 7 am. “I have to make my life,’’ said Shaheen, who wants to study commerce at SNDT. A sentiment echoed by 22-year-old Saraswati, who scored 40.76% and wishes to study further.

HANDICAPPED TOPPER His condition did not deter him
Nimish Sawant | TNN
Mumbai: Physically challenged Navnit Mehrul’s happiness knew no bounds when his mother, Madhuri, broke the news to him that he had topped in the SSC handicap category. Navnit, a student of IES V N Sule School, Dadar, scored 94.6%. He was born with a genetically deformed left hand, but has learned to live with it. “I can draw diagrams without using my left hand,’’ he said proudly.

Talking about his future, the teenager said, “I want to study science in junior college, and later pursue a career in civil engineering. I already enrolled in an IIT coaching class. But some day, I would like to become an IAS officer.” In his spare time, Navnit follows his two passions: collecting pictures of cars and watching cricket.

TOPPERS TALK: THESE HIGH-SCORERS MISSED THE GOLD ONLY BY A MARK OR TWO

SECOND She plans to be an IAS officer
Nitin Yeshwantrao | TNN
Thane: While Shefali Pradeep Mhadadalkar—who is ranked second in the Mumbai division with 96.3%, loves watching television—she insisted that there can be no compromises when it comes to study time.

“She has tremendous grasping ability and concentration. She would not immerse herself in her books all the time, and would make time to watch her favourite show and documentaries on National Geographic,’’ said her father who is employed with the Mumbai Port Trust.

The 15-year-old attributed her success to her teachers at Saraswati Vidyalaya High School at Rabodi in Thane, and her parents. “I plan to take admission in the science stream and will also prepare for competitive exams. I want to become and IAS officer,’’ she said. Anjali intends to enrol at Kelkar College in Mulund, and will give the popular south Mumbai colleges a miss.

SECOND ‘Mum’s strength inspired me’
Prathmesh Kher | TNN
Mumbai: Thursday was a day of celebration for city second ranker Sanket Patil, 16, who scored 96.3% in the state board exam. “In the morning, when the news channels started flashing my name as the second topper from Mumbai, I thought they were talking of someone else. But then I got a call from my school,’’ said Sanket, a student of St Anthony’s Convent High School, Vasai.

He attributed his success to his parents who he said inspired him with their determination. Sanket’s mother is battling cancer, and it’s her strength that helped, said the teenager. Speaking of his study routine, he said, “I followed a strict timetable set by my parents. I would study in school, at home and in coaching classes. But I took time out for extracurricular activities like dancing, singing and writing.’’ Sanket intends to join an IIT and become an engineer.

SECOND ‘I didn’t expect to do this well’
Nimish Sawant I TNN
Mumbai: The SSC results day will remain etched in the memory of Nishigandha Kerure, who lost the top rank in the state by a mere one mark. But Nishigandha was delighted when she scored 96.3% at the SSC examination, making her rank second overall in the state.

A student of the semi-English medium of Balmohan Vidyamandir, Nishigandha had moved to Mumbai from Osmanabad two years ago. “I was expecting to score around 95%, but I never thought I’d stand second in the state board. This has come as a pleasant surprise to me,’’ said Nishigandha.

“I never followed a strict timetable. I studied for only around three to four hours every day. After prelims, I put in more hours,’’ she said. Nishigandha wants to pursue either mechanical or chemical engineering at the IIT.

THIRD Hard work ultimately pays off
Nitin Yeshwantrao | TNN
Thane: It was her parents’ emphasis on education and hard work that inspired Tejal Sandesh Pradhan to give her best shot at the SSC exam. Having bagged the third position in the Mumbai division with 96.15%, the 15-year-old student of A K Joshi School in Naupada, Thane, is set to follow in the footsteps of her family, most of whom are engineers.

Discipline and sticking to her well-laid-out study timetable, she said, helped her focus. “I worked hard to achieve this. My parents had prepared a chart, which I followed strictly. I also had spare time to pursue my hobbies,’’ said the teenager.
“She has always been a school topper, and this year she received the ‘Best Girl’ trophy,’’ said her mother Madhuri, an electrical engineer. Tejal intends to take up engineering, which one could say, is the family profession.

THIRD A mix of sports and studies
Nimish Sawant I TNN
Mumbai: Mrunmai Jadhav realised that she had stood third in the state board Std X exams in the Mumbai division when she saw her name being flashed on news channels on Thursday.

A student of IES VN Sule School, Dadar, Mrunmai scored 96.15%. Discipline, she said, played a major role in her success. “I studied regularly through the year. After the prelims, I made a timetable and followed it diligently,” said Mrunmai, who scored 100% in science.

Mrunmai is an avid sportsperson. “I am passionate about chess and badminton. I even represented my school at the district level in both sports in my final year,” she said. Her father, Padmakar, a BMC engineer, wants her to be an IAS officer. “She has been an intelligent child, so I was expecting her to cross 95%. I also expected her to feature in the merit list,” he said.

CITY TOPPER

Bagging the top slot comes naturally to this Thane girl

Nitin Yeshwantrao | TNN

Thane: Sonali Shantaram Chavan, who has topped the Mumbai region in the state board exams with 96.46%, has become a local celebrity in her school, Saraswati Secondary School. But excelling in academics is not new to her: the 16-yearold has a stellar report card. “I won a silver medal in the state scholarship exams in Std IV. In Std VI, I bagged a gold medal in the Homi Bhabha Balvidnyanik examination. Last year, I secured a silver in the seniors category in the Homi Bhabha examination,’’ said the Thane girl.

Sonali is not the kind to rest on her laurels. “I intend to join an IIT and pursue a career in engineering. I have already enrolled in a coaching class and have started preparations for the entrance exams. For now, though, I will take admission in the science stream at M H College in Thane,’’ she said, while signing on notebooks forwarded to her by the primary section children of her school.

Unlike most high scorers who gloss over the study time they put in, Sonali said that she studied till 12.30am every day. “Most of my coaching was done by my school teachers. At home, my grandmother would be by my side all along to give me company and also ensure that I was studying. My father would help me in math.’’

School principal Shaila Barve said, “Sonali has been a perfect student. She was among the 30 students from our school, who were chosen for special coaching during the holidays.’’

Shantaram Chavan, her father, added: “She is a perfectionist and gives full attention to whatever she does.’’

STATE TOPPER

Latur town celebrates state topper’s victory

Syed Rizwanullah | TNN

Aurangabad: Shilpa Basavraj Hiremath, the state topper in the SSC examination, wants to become an IAS officer. But, first she intends to become a doctor.

“Obtaining an MBBS degree would help me realise the dreams of my parents, who are hoping that someone in the family will become a doctor,’’ said the Latur girl, who scored 641 out of 650 marks—98.61%—in the state board exams.

Shilpa is a student of Adarsh Vidyalaya, Omerga and her parent are both teachers, while her elder brother is studying engineering. “I will prepare for the UPSC while doing my MBBS. I don’t think it will be difficult.” Her parents are, of course, ecstatic. “We know that Shilpa will succeed in whatever she does,” said her father, Basavraj. “We will extend every possible support to Shilpa, and help her fulfil her dreams of becoming an IAS officer.”

“She has made us proud,” said S G Dagale, Shilpa’s school principal.

6K city kids break 90% barrier

1.48% Students From Across Maharashtra Scored Over 90%. ICSE Students Performed Better With 4% Scoring As High

Hemali Chhapia | TNN

Mumbai: The campus of Dadar’s Balmohan Vidyamandir, the popularly called the ‘toppers’ factory’, resembled a picture straight out of Diwali celebrations. On Thursday, 53 of its students had scored over 90%, the magical number that opens doors into just about any city college. Last year, the pool of highscorers in this school stood way lower at just 14.

It was a similar scene in several other schools across the city. Bombay Cambridge had 25 of its students in this elite 90% club, up from the previous year’s ten. The People’s Education Society, too, had 20 students who scored 90% and above, this year.

Data from the state board reveals that 1.48% or 18,863 students from across Maharashtra scored over 90%; last year it stood at 13,679. In fact, though, the Mumbai division witnessed a dip in its success rate, the top of the chart looked impressive with 6,190 candidates (as compared to last year’s 4,083) who crossed the 90% barrier.

State board chairperson Vijaysheela Sardesai said that the percentage of high scorers was still way lower than the toppers of the other boards. Across Maharashtra, 3.95% ICSE students had scored over 90%.

One school principal pointed out that getting over 90% this year has a whole new meaning with the state wanting to reserve 90% per cent of junior college seats for SSC students.

Apart from the large pool of high rankers, the number of distinction holders has also gone up. Junior college principals feel that the problem of plenty may hit the “pedestrian” first class and distinction holders. Devaluation of the ‘distinction slot’ had once forced the state to redefine the term. In 1975, the bar for distinction was raised from 70% to 75% in Maharashtra, as the state felt that 70% had become commonplace.

Academicians feel that exam reforms have also been responsible in boosting scores. “Today, a larger number of students manage to fall in the 70-75% bracket, due to internal assessment, and the fact that papers have become more objective over the years. You can’t discount competition, either. Students prepare for Class X exams from Class IX itself,” said a state board official.

An improvement in performance was evident across schools. If 33 schools had 0% pass percentage in 2006, only 21 in the Mumbai region failed completely, this year. Similarly, if 192 schools had a 100% success rate in 2006, the number jumped to 525 institutions. So, if the state once revised the distinction definition, it may be time to revisit the toweringly high 90% label.

Thane shines for 7th consecutive year

Residents of Thane had reason to celebrate when the state board Class X results were announced on Thursday morning. Three of the city’s toppers in the Mumbai division — Sonali Chavan (96.46%), Shefali Mhadadalkar (96.3%) and Tejal Pradhan (96.15%) were local girls. This is the seventh consecutive year that Thane has produced city toppers. The total pass percentage in Thane district was 86.16 per cent. Of the 1,353 schools in the district, 17% ensured that all its students passed the exams.

Question mark on 90:10
The Maharashtra government on Thursday assured the Bombay High Court that while it would begin the process of admissions from Friday, the admissions would be finalised only after the court’s decision on the 90:10 issue. The HC has scheduled the hearing of the PIL challenging the 90:10 rule on June 29

With inputs from Pratibha Mansad

RIDING HIGH: Sonali Shantaram Chavan will never forget the day she topped the SSC exam in Mumbai

More high-scorers, but more failures too in city

Anahita Mukherji & Hemali Chhapia | TNN

Mumbai: The SSC results for 2009 have brought both cheer and chagrin to Mumbai. Over one-third of Maharashtra’s students who scored over 90% are from Mumbai alone—6,190 to be precise. In fact, of the 12.78 lakh who cleared the SSC exam in the state, 1.48% or 18,863 scored over 90% this year, up from 13,679 last year.

At the same time, the city’s pass percentage has dipped 2.24% over last year even as the state celebrates a 1.3% overall rise in that figure. Add to this the fact that Mumbai has ranked third from the bottom in the pass percentage among the eight divisions in the state. Coming close on the heels of a 6% drop in its HSC pass performance, Mumbai’s SSC result has been a mixed basket of cherries and lemons.

Explaining the dip, Shridhar Salunkhe, chairperson of the Mumbai division of the state board, said, “Last year, an internal assessment was introduced for the first time and most schools were liberal with their markings. But this time the board held a session with schools to explain the various parameters for marking students.’’

In absolute figures, 4,500 more students cleared the exam this year from Mumbai division compared to last year. “We will ensure that all students get seats in junior colleges in their preferred stream,’’ said Salunkhe.

Failed students may not have to lose out on a year
There could be some cheer for students who failed the SSC exam. The board is considering allowing them to reappear for their papers within a month so that they do not lose out on an academic year by sitting for the re-exam in October.

Infy boss to join govt as cabinet minister

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

New Delhi/Bangalore: He’s been a poster boy of Indian infotech, co-founded a company that has become a byword for participative entrepreneurship, given Thomas Friedman the idea for the bestselling The World Is Flat, and himself penned a book, Imagining India. And now, at the age of 54, his shareholding in Infosys alone worth Rs 3,500 crore, Nandan Nilekani has taken on one of the most ambitious government programs ever envisaged—heading the project to equip every Indian with a biometric Unique Identification Card (UIC). This is the biggest movement from private sector to government in India in recallable memory.

Nilekani, who will quit his job as co-chairman of the Rs 22,000 crore Infosys to avoid
any conflict of interest, has been given the rank and status of a cabinet minister, a deadline of three years, a corpus of Rs 100 crore and—perhaps most importantly—the flexibility to draw in talent from the private sector to build his core team.

The lateral entry of business barons into government is fairly commonplace in the US but rare in India. Nilekani’s is the most significant appointment since 1987 when the then prime minister Rajiv Gandhi brought in Sam Pitroda to head the Technology Mission which paved the way for the IT and telecom revolutions.

WHAT’S THE UNIQUE ID PROJECT?

Ambitious | Rs 150,000 cr Unique Identity Card (UIC) project will catalogue personal details of every Indian citizen on smart cards

Detailed | To include name, sex, address, marital status, photo, identification mark and finger biometrics

Hi-tech | Will be based on a sophisticated application called SCOSTA, a secured electronic device that’s used for keeping data & other info in a way that only authorized persons can view it

Versatile | Can be used for a number of things, ranging from use as voter I-card to proof for opening a bank account. Can also help deter illegal immigration

Urgent | Scheme was launched in Nov 2003 and has so far been given to just 31 lakh citizens. Miffed by the delay, the SC pulled up the govt in Jan and asked it to implement the scheme speedily countrywide

Times View

This paper has relentlessly campaigned, primarily through its Lead India initiative, for cleaner, better governance. A good way to achieve this, we’ve said, is to have educated, ethical, efficient and dedicated people from civil society and the private sector join government. We aren’t surprised that it was Nandan Nilekani who’s made this leap of faith — he and his mentor, N R Narayana Murthy, have always been imbued by a sense of public purpose. And we commend Manmohan Singh — himself an accomplished economist-bureaucat — for bringing in a first rate entrepreneur-technocrat for a project of ambitious proportions. May many more Nilekanis bloom. India will be the better for it.

UIC project fits Nandan’s passion
New Delhi/Bangalore: The Unique Identification Card (UIC) project could have as huge an impact as Sam Pitroda’s Technology Mission. In its first phase, it will identify the beneficiaries of schemes on which the government has been spending billions with little guarantee that the money was actually reaching the deserving.

It is learnt that beneficiaries of the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS), the public distribution system and the still-to-be-enacted Food Security Act will be the first to be given the cards. “The aim is to ensure that development objectives are achieved without leakages and pilferage. It will be targeted at the marginalised population in the first phase,’’ a source said. Other UPA flagship schemes—Sarva Shiksha Abhiyaan, National Rural Health Mission and Bharat Nirman—will also be covered.

Nilekani first got a call from Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in early June, with an offer to join the Planning Commission. He declined, but was intrigued by the prospect of becoming an effective change agent—especially since he’s still relatively young. He stepped down as CEO a couple of years ago to become co-chairman of Infy—which has no other co-chairman, or chairman, but does have an enviable succession process. In a sense, Nilekani’s ability to influence policy from the outside had reached its zenith, it made sense to shape it now from within.

So, when the UIC opportunity came up, it proved irresistible, especially since it is a technologydriven initiative that dovetails perfectly with the core competence of this electrical engineer from IITBombay. The move also fits into his passion for public service. And it has the blessings of his longtime mentor, N R Narayana Murthy.

“It’s like a younger brother going out of home, seeking nobler aspirations. Nandan was the third person I spoke to when I founded Infosys. He is a good conceptualiser, a good thinker, a big picture man...I rank this project on the scale of importance and impact with Sam Pitroda’s telecom project, M S Swaminathan’s green revolution and Prof Yashpal’s Sites (satellite instruction & TV experiment) project,’’ Murthy told TOI.

Other leaders of India Inc also welcomed the move enthusiastically. “It’s a very good development. We need many more Nandans if the government is in the mood to induct professionals. The key is to task them with a specific responsibility that no one else is doing, and give them independence,’’ said HDFC chairman Deepak Parekh.

Nandan Nilekani at home in Bangalore with wife Rohini. He will head the government’s mega ID card program

Sibal for one board, no Xth exams

100-Day Plan Seeks To Replace Marks With Grades

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

New Delhi: Seeking to bring back some joy to childhood and to high school,Kapil Sibal’s first act as HRD minister has won the hearts of millions of kids across the country—not to mention their parents—crushed under exam stress. As the cornerstone of a larger revamp plan, Sibal on Thursday proposed making the class X board exam optional in CBSE-affiliated schools, if possible from next year itself.

The radical overhaul of the education system also envisages replacing marks with grades, establishing an overarching higher education authority under a one-nation,one-board principle and bringing in a tough law to prevent,prohibit and punish educational malpractices. Academic reforms, including a semester system and credit transfers will begin to be rolled out in the next 100 days.

“Sleepless nights over the Class X examination are not needed. We will reform it and make the Class X examination optional. We should not traumatise education. It is unacceptable,’’ Sibal told TOI after announcing a 100-day schedule to roll out an ambitious reforms package. He acknowledged that the move to make Class X board exams optional could encounter some resistance from state governments and other quarters, but was hopeful of getting round the hurdles by negotiating with them. “We will consult everyone,’’ he said.

New Course For EDUCATION
IN SCHOOLS Proposal: Make Class X exams optional, thus permitting students continuing in same school (and who do not need a board certificate) to take an internal school assessment instead Feasibility:

Great step forward. But state govts have resisted it since 2005 when it was made part of National Curriculum Framework. Also, schools today allocate streams in Class XI based on Class X marks. Whether a board exam or an internal assessment, how will it ease stress on the child? Also, what about schools which are only till Class X?

P: Introduce a system replacing marks by grades in schools affiliated to CBSE for secondary classes, ie IX and X
F: High time it was done. CBSE has been resisting it. But uniformity is needed across all state school boards

P: Enact the Children’s Right to Free and Compulsory Education Bill
F: The bill is in Rajya Sabha and will certainly become law in the Budget session

IN HIGHER STUDIES

Proposal: An autonomous authority for higher education & research, based on Yashpal committee and National Knowledge Commission reports
Feasibility: With UGC having failed, there is growing demand for such a body. But ministries like health, agriculture and others who run educational institutions will not welcome intrusion on their turf

P: A law for mandatory assessment and accreditation in higher eduction through an independent regulatory authority
F: Possible, and very necessary given the poor state of private, deemed and state universities

P: Review of functioning of existing deemed universities
F: Work has already started. Much-needed step

P: Introduction of semesters and choice-based credit system in central institutions
F: Much needed. Work has already begun but barring Delhi University, few central educational institutions are in position to implement it in the next 100 days

WHAT SIBAL WOULD LIKE TO DO
P: Have a single board examination throughout the country
F: A contentious issue. State governments are going to oppose it strongly

P: Eventually, scrap Class XII exams
F: On what basis would college admissions take place? One proposal is to replace Class XII boards with a common entrance exam, but that would simply mean replacing one stressful exam with another

TIMES VIEW
Doing away with the Class X board exams, unifying all schools in India under a single board, and replacing marks with grades are excellent ideas. Achieving these involves getting across many serious hurdles, both political and logistical. But that is no reason for jettisoning good ideas. If these ideas become reality, the stress faced by students and parents would be significantly reduced. Also, the problems associated with many different boards, each following a different syllabus and marking system, would cease to exist. The fact that the hurdles are serious only means that authorities at the state and Central level must pull together if the aim is to be achieved. Time and energy spent on arguing why this cannot happen would be better spent figuring out how to make it happen.