Mita Mukherjee
Schools affiliated with the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE) which do not have the plus two section need to be upgraded till Class XII to prevent exodus of students after Class X and the council will provide necessary support to the institutions for the expansion, Gerry Arathoon, chief executive and secretary of the CISCE said.
A considerable number of meritorious students from ICSE schools migrate to schools under other boards, particularly to CBSE institutions after Class X. The inclination to switch to other boards had started a few years ago and the trend is increasing, according to principals of ICSE schools.
One of the main reasons why students are forced to move to other boards is the absence of an adequate number of ISC schools, the principals said.
The CISCE is urging the upgrade as a measure to arrest the exodus, the CISCE chief said.
According to figures released by the council, in the 2023 examinations 2,40,000 students had appeared in the ICSE examinations from 2600 schools in the country. Whereas, only 1,00,000 examinees wrote the ISC examinations from 1300 schools this year which shows that half of the total ICSE schools do not have the ISC units and need to be upgraded.
In many cases, students are forced to move to other schools because their own schools do not have the ISC section.
“To enable students to continue to study the plus two in their own school, the ICSE schools need to be upgraded. The council has decided to provide necessary support and guidance to the schools for setting up the plus two sections,” Arathoon told EducationWorld.
The council has specific guidelines for setting up the plus two units.
“We are telling the schools to have the papers ready. The council will guide them accordingly,” said Arathoon.
Many students also leave ICSE schools after Class X because of a misconception that they would do better if they study Class XI and XII in schools under other boards.
They think that by studying Classes XI and XII under the CBSE curriculum, it would be easier for them to crack the engineering, medical and other entrance examinations.
Many schools under other boards arrange special classes where students are taught by the coaching centres to prepare them for the entrance examinations for admission engineering, medical and other courses.
According to the board chief, several ISC schools are also tying up with coaching institutes to help their students prepare for engineering, medical and other entrance tests.
This will also check the growing tendency among students to migrate to CBSE schools after Class X, the CISCE chief said.
“We are often told by principals of our affiliated schools that many of their students were switching to the CBSE because of the misconception they would perform better in CBSE (XII) and in the engineering and medical entrance tests. Many schools affiliated with the council are now tying up with institutes that prepare students for such tests,” Arathoon said.
Principals of several ICSE-ISC schools in Kolkata said they have started approaching institutes that offer coaching to students to prepare them for the entrance examinations.
“ We are in the process of tying up with institutes that offer coaching to prepare students for entrance tests. Special classes will be arranged where faculty members from such institutes will teach our students and guide them on how to prepare themselves for the entrance exams,” said Sujoy Biswas, principal of Ram Mohan Mission High School in Kolkata.
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