Thiruvananthapuram: The practical examinations of Plus-Two and Vocational Higher Secondary Education (VHSE) students commenced under strict COVID-19 protocol on Monday. The exams will conclude on July 12.
Students are allowed into the laboratories only after recording their body temperature. Separate exams will be conducted for those testing positive for coronavirus. They will be allowed to take the exams after getting cured.
As many as 4.5 lakh students are attending the exams in 2,024 centres. The exams at 39 schools currently functioning as COVID treatment centers have been postponed.
Separate examinations will be held for students of such schools at the nearest available centres after July 12. This will, however, delay the announcement of results. The Department of Education is planning to announce the result by the third week of July.
COVID protocol
Students, found to be having higher body temperature, will be seated in separate rooms. All equipment will be sanitized before and after the exam. Schools have been instructed against sharing equipment among students, and not to use air-conditioners.
Viva-voce and the writing of procedures should not be held in the labs. They should be conducted in separate rooms. Students, teachers and lab assistants should wear double face masks.
Varied duration
The exam duration for Physics, Computer Science, Computer Application and Statistics will be two hours each, while it will be 1.5 hours each for Chemistry, Mathematics, Computerised Accounting and Electronics. Botany and Zoology will have a duration of an hour.
The exams at 101 VHSE schools under the NSQF (National Skills Qualifications Framework) scheme began on June 21. Exams in the remaining 288 schools commenced on Monday.