The Bihar government is set to remove the word “Fail” from the marksheets of students who do not clear the Class 10 and Class 12 board examinations from the current academic session.Instead, their certificates will carry the phrase “Eligible for Skill Development”, allowing them to pursue vocational training programmes offered through the Bihar Board of Open Schooling and Examination (BBOSE), officials said on Saturday.The change is part of an effort to ensure that students who do not clear a board examination do not lose access to further learning and skill-based opportunities.What will change on the marksheet Bihar Education Minister Mithlesh Tiwary said the Education Department will amend the existing rules to implement the change.
Necessary instructions will then be issued to the Bihar School Examination Board (BSEB).“Instead of ‘Fail’, the certificates will carry the term ‘Eligible for Skill Development’,” Tiwary told reporters, according to PTI.The revised wording is intended to give students another route after an unsuccessful board examination.
Those who do not secure the required marks will be able to pursue vocational training programmes through BBOSE rather than being limited to the conventional academic route.Tiwary said a student's abilities should not be judged only by their performance in a particular examination.
“Students' talent does not disappear merely because they fail to secure the expected marks in an examination,” he said, according to PTI.The Education Department will have to formally amend the rules before the new wording can be introduced on the certificates.Special sessions for supplementary exam students The government is also planning additional academic support for students appearing for the Class 10 board supplementary examinations.Tiwary said these students will be given special sessions for one month to help them prepare for the examination and improve their chances of clearing it.The move is aimed at providing remedial support to students after an unsuccessful attempt and helping them avoid falling behind in their studies.The focus, officials said, is to provide students with another opportunity to continue their education or move towards skill-based training instead of treating an unsuccessful examination attempt as the end of their academic options.Bihar's push beyond textbook learning The change in the marksheet comes as the Bihar government is also trying to give students greater exposure to activities beyond conventional classroom and textbook-based learning.One such measure is the introduction of a ‘no-bag day’ on Saturdays in government schools.Under the arrangement announced on August 6, government schools will function from 9:30 am to 1 pm on Saturdays.
From Monday to Friday, the schools will continue to operate from 9:30 am to 4 pm.The Saturday arrangement is intended to give students time for activities beyond their regular textbook-based lessons.Taken together, the measures point to a broader approach in which students who struggle in examinations are given additional academic support as well as opportunities to explore vocational and skill-based learning.For now, the key change is in the wording used on board examination certificates.
The Bihar government will first amend the rules and issue instructions to the BSEB before the new terminology is implemented.
