New National Education Policy makes board exams easier: Here is how they will change

The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved the New National Education Policy which has introduced some transformational changes like making board exams easier, reduction of curriculum to core concepts, replacement of 10+2 structure of school curricula with a 5+3+3+4 structure and teaching up to at least class 5 in the mother tongue or a regional language. 

The new system will cover four stages -- Foundational Stage (three years of anganwadi or pre-school followed by classes 1-2), Preparatory Stage (classes 3-5), Middle Stage (classes 6-8) and Secondary Stage (classes 9-12). 

Students will have increased flexibility and choice of subjects so that they choose their own paths according to their talents and interests. There will be no rigid separations between arts and sciences, between curricular and extra-curricular activities, between vocational and academic streams. 

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The most notable change comes in form of approach towards board exams. Elaborating on the reforms, School Education Secretary Anita Karwal said at a briefing, "Board exams for classes 10 and 12 will be continued, but will be reformed to eliminate the need for taking coaching classes.” 

This is likely to reduce the burden on students. 

"Board exams will be redesigned to encourage holistic development and will also be made easier by testing core capacities and competencies,” Karwal said. 

Going forward, the students will be allowed to take board exams on up to two occasions during any given school year -- one main examination and one for improvement, if desired. All students will take school examinations in classes 3, 5, and 8 which will be conducted by the appropriate authority. 

The NEP has also laid emphasis on promoting multilingualism so that children know and learn about the rich and vast array of languages of their country. The medium of instruction until at least class 5, but preferably till class 8 and beyond, will be the home language, mother tongue, local language and regional language, Karwal said.  

"Sanskrit will be offered at all levels of school and higher education as an important, enriching option for students, including as an option in the three-language formula. Foreign languages, such as Korean, Japanese, Thai, French, German, Spanish, Portuguese, and Russian, will also be offered at the secondary level," she said.