Use KVs, JNVs as NEET, JEE Main exam centres: High Level Committee on NTA

NEW DELHI: The High-Level Committee of Experts for entrance exam reforms has recommended that Kendriya Vidyalayas (KVs) and Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas (JNVs) across the country be used as test centres for major entrance exams. The committee envisions using 500 such schools as testing centres within one year.

In the report titled Reformation of National Common Entrance Testing in India – intended for the National Testing Agency and made public on Tuesday – the committee has also recommended improving physical infrastructure in schools, increased appointment of teaching and non-teaching staff, and periodical training of school teachers to improve the higher secondary examinations in India.

Its recommendations to the National Testing Agency (NTA) on the expansion of its network of exam centres for conducting high-stakes college entrance tests are part of a host of wide-ranging suggestions covering everything from paper-setting to security and the structure of the NTA itself. The HLCE was chaired by former Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) chairperson, K Radhakrishnan.

NTA Exams Report: KV, JNV to host NEET, JEE Main

The High-Level Committee has recommended that KVs, JNVs, and similar schools with good infrastructure be converted into computer-based test (CBT) centres for exams such as National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET UG) for medicine, Joint Entrance Examination (JEE Main) for engineering, and the Common University Entrance Test (CUET exam).

It estimates that around 2.5 lakh students can be tested at a time using this network.

“It is possible to integrate such Testing Centres from KVs, NVs, universities and institutes to establish a nationwide network of about 400-500 testing centres within a time frame of a year or so, which will provide about 2.0-2.5 lakh testing capacity for conducting CBT in one session nationwide. Eventually, one could envisage that every District headquarter in the country should have a standardised and well-equipped CBT Testing Centre,” the report said.

The schools, in turn, will gain quality digital infrastructure.

“It is felt that collaboration with Kendriya and Navodaya Vidyalayas (and/or similar K12 Institutions), along with their committed teachers-community as CBT centres nationwide, might be a welcome option in future. This collaboration will facilitate KVs and similar organisations in developing state-of-the-art digital infrastructure that will allow them to serve as CBT Testing Centres for testing agencies with all security features,” the report said.

NTA Report: More teachers, more training

The committee has also addressed the issue of secondary schooling itself.

For improving the higher secondary examinations in schools, the committee has recommended that schools focus on improving physical infrastructure and ensuring that all basic facilities are present.

It also recommends increased appointments of teaching and non-teaching staff in schools to meet the “mandatory student-to-staff ratios”. The report also notes that teaching resources should be prepared in a “more contextual, conceptual, and analytical manner” to improve the learning skills of students.

It suggests “periodical training and re-training” for teachers to keep up with the changes in information technology.

“Rapid changes in the information landscape demand that teachers undergo periodic training and re-training in various aspects of pedagogy and other teacher training modules. A robust teacher training mechanism and new methods of pedagogy must be put in place across the country urgently so that the country keeps its teachers’ pool abreast of high-technology content,” the report said.