Agreeing that Covid-19 threat is a matter of concern for Punjab also besides health and economic challenges, another major setback to be faced is the education of the students. There are different views on promoting the 5th, 8th and 10th class students on the basis of pre-Board performance but the Board must come forward with its concrete strategy keeping in mind the private, re-appear and open student’s stake also.Chief Minister, Punjab Capt Amarinder Singh in his tweet has already opined that all the students who were to appear for the PSEB Class 10th exam will be promoted to the next class based on their performance in pre-board exams, Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh announced. Further, students of Class 5th and 8th will be promoted to next classes.Even prior to this, the Maharashtra government had announced that all final year students would be appearing for their exams between July 1 and 30 across its various universities. Further, those in the first and second year would be promoted to the next year based on their performances in previous semesters.On the decision of the Chief Minister, the Punjab School Education Board is yet to announce the official decision on the issue of promoting the students on the basis of their last performance. All aspects including the legal, must be taken care of especially keeping in mind the students who have done badly in their pre-boards exams and they are failed on the basis of their previous pervious performance, by stopping them to appear for their board exams. Online classes has substituted to fill up the gap of curfew-lockdown period but it is not possible for all classes of students and the educationists are of the view that there is no harm in promoting the students up to Class 11 on their pre-board results or internal performance in the exams.
However, the exams for Class 12 has to be conducted, which decision NCERT has already taken, as the future plans for higher studies are based on the performance of this exam.When talked to few educationists – Dr.Satinder Singh, Dr.Rajiv Arora, Rajesh Mehta, Shivani, Anmol – all were of the view that when the human life is at the risk of coronavirus all over the world, there is no harm even in skipping the one academic session or taking exams when the situation is normal so that shining students may not feel embarrassed. But promoting on the basis of previous performance is the only solution to this problem at this stage. However, Dr.Satinder Singh pointed out that the Board should also take a simultaneous policy decision on the students who appear as ‘Open Class students’ and those who are likely to reappear in September adding they too can be promoted to the next class except for Class 12 students. No doubt the students who are preparing to excel in the ‘merit list’ must be disappointed with the decision of promoting on the basis of pre-board results.So far as the exams of Class 12 students are concerned, before July the same are not possible and the start of next academic sessions depend upon the status of Covid-19 impact in the State in the coming few days when the curfew has been lifted but the lockdown will continue. The exams can be taken when the situation is normal by following the medical protocol in the wake of virus threat and advisory issued by the health department. In case there is increase in Covid-19 cases, then the situation will altogether will be different, he added. But not taking any decision so far has definitely put the students in distrust and in such circumstances, the Board must taken immediate decision taking care of the future of the students who are already under stress due to lockdown, seen for the first time in their life, due to coronavirus pandemic.