SC nod to CBSE, ICSE schemes for cancellation of board exams, approves assessment formula

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday approved the schemes of CBSE and ICSE for cancellations of remaining board examinations scheduled from July 1 to 15 due to COVID-19 pandemic and approved their formula for assessment of examinees.

The top court permitted the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) to issue the notification forthwith, with regard to cancellation of remaining board examinations of Class X and XII and assessment of marks, while the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examination (CISCE) said it would upload the notification within a week on its website.

A bench of Justices A M Khanwilkar, Dinesh Maheshwari and Sanjiv Khanna perused the draft notification and noted the scheme of the CBSE in its order. 

The top court's order came on a batch of pleas seeking relief, including the scrapping of remaining exams of Class 12 scheduled from July 1-15, in view of an increasing number of COVID-19 cases. Similar relief was sought for the ICSE Board as well.

The CBSE class 12 exams had started on February 15 and were to conclude on April 3. The class 10 exams had started on February 21 and were to end on March 29.

The ICSE Board had postponed its class 10 and 12 examinations due to a coronavirus outbreak and they were to end on March 31. However, the nationwide lockdown to contain the spread of the coronavirus pandemic came into force from March 25.

The CBSE notification recorded by the apex court said that keeping in view the request received from various State governments and the changed circumstances as on date, it has been decided that the examination for Classes X and XII, which were scheduled from July 1 to 15, 2020 stand cancelled.

It said the assessment of the performance of students in the cancelled examinations will be done based on the assessment scheme as suggested by a competent committee of the CBSE for declaration of result for both Class-X and class-XII.

The board said that the results based upon the assessment scheme will be declared by July 15, 2020, so that candidates can apply and seek admissions in Higher Education Institutions in India and abroad, based thereon.

It, however, said that for Class-XII, CBSE will conduct an optional examination in the subjects whose examinations were scheduled to be conducted from July 1-15, 2020 as soon as conditions are conducive, as assessed and decided by the Central Government.

Candidates whose results will be declared based on the assessment scheme will be allowed to appear in these optional examinations to improve their performance if they wish so, the CBSE said, adding, that the marks obtained by a candidate in these optional examinations will be treated as final for those who have opted to take these examinations.

It said that for candidates in Class X, no further examinations will be conducted and the result declared by CBSE on the basis of the assessment scheme will be treated as final.

The CBSE's assessment scheme approved by the top court said that for the students of both classes 10 and 12, who have completed all their examinations, their results will be declared based on their performance in the exams.

It said that students who have appeared in the examinations in more than three subjects, the average of the marks obtained in best three performing subjects will be awarded in the subjects whose examinations have not been conducted.

The scheme said that for students who have appeared in the examinations in only three subjects, the average of the marks obtained in the best two performing subjects will be awarded in the subjects whose examinations have not been conducted.

"There are very few students of class 10, mainly from Delhi, who have appeared in the examinations in only one or two subjects. Their results will be declared based on performance in the appeared subjects and performance in internal/practical project assessment," the CBSE scheme said, adding that these students will also be allowed to appear in the optional examinations conducted by CBSE to improve their performance if they desire to do so.

The board said that result of these students will also be declared along with other students.

Regarding CICSE, the bench said that it has agreed in principle to come out with a similar notification as that of CBSE with some additional aspects.

The CISCE in its affidavit told the top court that the remaining papers in the ICSE (Class X) and ISC (Class XII) board examinations, scheduled from July 1-14, 2020 as per its notification of May 22, shall stand cancelled.

It added that the results of all the candidates for the remaining papers in the ICSE and ISC Year 2020 Examinations will be declared as per methodology decided and adopted by CISCE.

If the situation is deemed conducive, in the near future, CISCE may give an option to candidates to write any or all of the remaining papers of the ICSE/ISC Year 2020 Examinations at a later date whereby the marks so obtained by the candidate in that written examination(s) shall be considered as their final marks, the affidavit said.

The two additional aspects, which were highlighted by CISCE and recorded by the court was that unlike CBSE, it may consider conducting optional examination for ICSE (Class X). The CISCE said that the second aspect is that its assessment scheme is different from that of CBSE, which would be notified within one week from today on the website of the ICSE.