Haryana: Students' parents protest against board exams for Class 5, 8 from April

GURUGRAM: Parents of school students staged a protest on Sunday against the proposal of the Haryana Government to hold Board exams for Classes 5 and 8 in April 2022. The protest was held by parents of Class 5 and Class 8 students studying in 12 schools across Gurugram governed by CBSE, CISCE, and IB Boards. It was held at Leisure Valley in Gurugram.

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The parents contended that after 650 days of school closures, it will will be difficult to sit for the exams for children who are already struggling to overcome learning gaps. A new Board exam will create additional pressure on them, they said. “Children are already preparing for their term 2 final exams, while dealing with COVID restrictions. Many have not had digital access to classrooms, and have been struggling with hybrid teaching. “Trying to prepare for a new Board exam will be impossible for them,” they said.

“The proposed BSEH (Board of Secondary Education, Haryana) syllabus differs from syllabi being taught in many schools. Students from a large number of schools are not familiar with this syllabus, and it is unfair to expect them to study it in a little over a month,” said the protesting parents.

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The parents will be presenting their case to the Haryana Education Department and the state Chief Minister. The matter is already a subject of a court case -- Haryana United Schools & others vs. State of Haryana and others -- at the Chandigarh High Court. It will be heard next on Monday.