Mumbai: The members of the Mumbai Association of Heads of Secondary and Higher Secondary Schools have appealed to the Maharashtra State Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education (MSBSHSE) to reduce the syllabus of Classes 10 and 12 by 50 per cent.
The association has also appealed to the board to extend the deadline for examination form filling and submission as Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) Class 12 board exams are scheduled to be conducted post April 15 and Secondary School Certificate (SSC) Class 10 after May 1, tentatively.
The association in its letter dated January 11 to the MSBSHSE appealed for reduction of syllabus for Classes 10 and 12 in order to ease the burden on students. The letter said, "The burden on students will reduce if the board reduces the syllabus for Class 10 and Class 12 by 50 per cent as there is less time left to complete the syllabus. State board schools in Mumbai are shut offline and have not reopened regular offline lectures yet, so it is difficult to complete the syllabus in such a limited time."
The state school education ministry reduced the Class 10 (SSC) and Class 12 (HSC) board exam syllabus by 25 per cent due to shift to online mode of education on account of the Covid-19 pandemic. Prashant Redij, Secretary of Mumbai Association of Heads of Secondary and Higher Secondary Schools, said, "Reducing the syllabus by 25 per cent is not sufficient."
Redij added, "There are only three months left for the start of HSC board exams. Teachers will not have enough time to complete the 75 per cent syllabus. Students will not be able to understand concepts clearly and prepare for board exams within such a short period. The board should reduce the syllabus by 50 per cent to ease the burden on both students and teachers."
In addition, the association has requested the board to extend the deadline for board exam form filling and submission due to technical delays.
