GUWAHATI
Assam’s Secondary Education Department has served show-cause notices on 102 State-run schools for poor results in the Class X examinations.
The total pass percentage this year was 56.49%, a drop from the 93.10% in 2021 when the exams were not held due to COVID-19 and the results were declared through an evaluation formula based on the past performances of the students and internal assessment.
The success rate did not deviate much from “normal” years, but the Secondary Education Department’s attention was drawn to 25 schools with “zero per cent” result and 72 others that recorded a pass percentage of 10% or less.
The “pathetically dismal” result made Mamata Hojai, the director of Secondary Education, shoot off a letter to principals and headmasters of these schools, asking them to explain why their students could not perform. They were threatened with dismissal from service if their written replies were not received within a week from June 9.
According to the Board of Secondary Education, Assam, Cachar district led the table with 14 poor performing schools, followed by Karbi Anglong district with 11, Goalpara district with nine, Jorhat and Nagaon with eight each, and Kamrup (Metro) with six.
Dibrugarh and Karimganj districts have five such schools each, Dhubri and West Karbi Anglong four each, and Barpeta and South Salmara districts three each.
On the other hand, the Assam Higher Secondary Education Council has requested educational institutions across the State to promote all students of Class XI to Class XII. They have been asked to cooperate in view of many students who could not appear for their exams, primarily due to natural disasters.
The Class XI exams were scheduled from May 4 to May 28. Heavy rainfall causing floods and landslides forced the authorities to push the dates by more than 10 days, but the situation did not improve.
“Some students could not appear for their exams, some could do so partially while local council polls affected the examination in two districts,” an Education Department official said.
