Karnataka exam board may prepare common question papers for std 6-9 in state syllabus govt schools

BENGALURU: The department of school education and literacy is proposing common question papers — prepared by Karnataka School Examination and Assessment Board — for classes 6, 7, 8 and 9 in statesyllabus govt schools from the current academic year.Till now, question papers for summative assessment-2 (or term-2 exam) were prepared at the school level. The latest move is to have a standardised question paper for these four classes. However, valuation will be done at the school level, and there will be no detentions based on results.“Instead of focusing only on class 10 and 12, interventions must be made early. We’ll attempt interventions from class 6 so that the pressure on the child eases by class 10,” said a senior official.“This is a gentle exercise to ensure students are ready for adequate learning interventions. We’ll follow Right to Education — there will be no coercion, punitive action or detention,” the official further added.Question papers will be despatched to school logins from KSEAB in the morning of the exam days. The school headmaster has to print out the papers. This practice is followed for class 10 and II PU preparatory exams.Though the department had planned a similar move for classes 5 and 8 in 2024, private schools, which were brought under the proposal, challenged the move in Supreme Court. The top court stayed the exam.Though this proposal is only for govt schools, private schools are free to sign up. “We hope to introduce it for I PU students next year,” the official said. As per the Unified District Information System of Education 2024, Karnataka has 27,000 schools offering classes 6-9.A schoolteacher said the department should send in model papers and blueprints so that schools will prepare the ground for final exams. “This will also bring in desired seriousness,” she said.