Bangalore: Final exams for PU from Mar 13, SSLC from Apr 1
 
From Our Special Correspondent
Daijiworld Media Network - Bangalore
 
Bangalore, Feb 25: The annual examinations for 8.49 lakh SSLC students in Karnataka will commence from April 1 while the final examinations for the second year Pre-University Courses for 6.13 lakh students will begin from March 13.

Both the Pre-University Board as well the Karnataka State Secondary Education Board for  conducting annual examinations for the PUC and SSLC  students have made elaborate preparations, State Primary and Secondary Education Minister Kageri Visveshwara Hegde announced on Monday.

Speaking to reporters in his chambers in Bangalore, the minister said the second year PUC examinations will be held for as many as 6.13 lakh students in science, arts and commerce streams from March 13 to 28.

There will be a total of 961 examination centres throughout the State, the minister said.

The total number of students appearing for the SSLC final examinations, to be held from April 1 to 10, will be 8.49 lakh, which is a little more than 25,000 over the last year’s figure.

As many as 3,003 examination centres have been arranged throughout the State.

Kageri explained that the Karnataka State Secondary Education Board has made elaborate arrangements to help the students to overcome the examination fever and last minute anxieties. In addition to holding series of preparatory mock examinations, steps have been taken to ensure that the students have been given compensatory coaching.

More importantly, the minister said, all the SSLC students would be given 15 minutes additional time to carefully read the question papers before the actual commencement of writing the answers to the given questions.
 

Students Need to Learn to Write Signatures in Kannada
 
The minister said the State Government has asked all the headmasters and Kannada teachers in all high schools belonging to both aided and unaided categories, including all English Medium Schools, to educate the students to write their signatures in Kannada.

''The students will develop love for learning Kannada, the official language of Karnataka, only if they start writing their signatures from the high school level itself,” he said pointing out that majority of the adults have somehow become accustomed to signing in English as the practice had become a habit from the secondary education level itself.

Writing signatures in Kannada is part of the Education Department’s initiatives to help the students to write clearly and legibly from the primary level itself in order to help improve their handwriting, he explained.

In addition, he said all the schools have been directed to open special and separate signboards for display at a prominent place in their premises to mention the names of students who have won special prizes or awards at the district, state or national levels in arts, science, sports, literary fields etc as part of the drive to encourage such talented students and also inspire others to emulate their example.

Kageri mentioned that his directive to all schools to collect data about their history, especially of schools which have completed 100 years, proved a big success as he was flooded with invitations to regularly attend the centenary celebrations. ''I am happy to participate in such functions,” he said pointing out that a school celebrated 180 years in Haliyal taluk of his native Uttara Kannada district while another school in Mangalore celebrated 175 years.

There are a large number of schools, which have completed or nearing 100 years, he said and explained that the students, staff, alumni and local people were proud to collect details of their old schools and get them published as souvenirs.
 

Recruitments of Teachers Stayed in Hyderabad-Karnataka
 
The minister said recruitment process for as many as 1,900 students in the six districts of the Hyderabad-Karnataka region had been stayed pending finalization of the rules and procedures in accordance with the Special Status accorded to the region under Article 371 (j) 2b of the Constitutionm which would commence later.

However, recruitment for another 2,100 out of the total vacancies of 4,000 for teachers being recruited would be continued in rest of Karnataka.

In order to ensure that the education of students was not affected due to non-recruitment of the 1,900 teachers to fill up the vacant posts, the present system of guest teachers would be continued until the recruitment for the 1,900 posts was completed, the minister said.

Answering questions on the alleged irregularities in the implementation of the Sarva Shikshana Abhiyan (SSA), the minister said the government would examine the issue and take suitable action.