Plus-Two exam in Kerala: Why are students doubting their own performance?    

This batch was hit by a double whammy, said a teacher under the condition of anonymity. "Neither did they get proper learning experience in Class XI nor any coaching in Class XII"
Picture for representational purposes only | (Picture: PTI)
Picture for representational purposes only | (Picture: PTI)

Not getting enough preparation time, lengthy questions and absence of choices have created a fear of poor performance among Plus-Two students many of whom are depressed and having suicidal thoughts. Plus-Two examinations ended on Tuesday, April 26.

"Why should we suffer for the state government's decision to give grace marks and also moderation to Plus-Two students last year that led to an unprecedented increase in students with full A+?" asked Namitha (name changed). This is the question that every Plus-Two student asks the government.

"My daughter pointed to the ground from the top of our seven-storeyed building and told me she wanted to jump. She is a very brilliant student who has been scoring cent per cent marks in every class. So if she is having such thoughts, what would be the condition of average students?" asked Merin Antony, parents of the. Science group students are the most worried, she added.

"These kids didn't have proper learning opportunity and had to deal with portions that hadn't been taught in the class," she said. She asked how the teachers could complete the portions when they had only very few classes. "The offline classes began in November. But that too, only for more than a month till noon with 50 per cent students attending online. It was a complete mess," said Merin.

Another parent, Renjith R, said, "I came across a student who was so frightened of the Chemistry examination that she refused to go to the exam centre and was crying pitifully. The child is a good student. She was so overwhelmed that she didn't have the confidence to write the examination. Her teacher had to be called to escort her inside the hall."

This batch was hit by a double whammy, said a teacher under the condition of anonymity. "Neither did they get proper learning experience in Class XI nor any coaching in Class XII. A majority of the students are batting blind," said the teacher.

However, there is no talk of a lenient valuation this time, he added. According to him, in a meeting, Education Minister V Sivankutty had agreed to the difficulty being faced by the students and promised that due consideration would be given. "Nothing official has been announced," he added.

These kids had to face a lot, said Martin J, another teacher. "In Plus One, the students had it easy. They needed to learn only 40 per cent of the portions. It also reflected in their exam scores. The students performed well and nearly all schools got 100 per cent win. But then things changed in Class XII," he added. Teachers, parents and students struggled a lot, he said.

"Though the state government took this approach of including the entire portion for the Class XII examinations keeping in mind the entrance tests, it seems to have backfired. Also, the decision to continue with the normal mode of valuation, doing away with moderation, has come as bad news for the students who had to appear for a tough examination," he said.

"Only those students who have taken effort and studied well will be able to score good marks. They too might not get cent per cent in every subject. It won't be a surprise to see cases of suicide attempts increasing in days ahead of the announcement of the results," he added.

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