Girls continued to outshine boys in CBSE Class X and XIIth examinations while the pass percentage and the number of students scoring above 90 and 95 per cent marks dipped compared to last year.

The pass percentage in Class 10 stood at 93.12 per cent, a dip of 1.28 percentage points from last year.

The pass percentage in 2019 (pre-pandemic year) was 91.10 per cent.  Similarly, the pass percentage in the CBSE Class 12 exam has gone down by 5.38 percentage points and stands at 87.33 per cent as against 92.71 per cent last year. In 2019 (the pre-pandemic academic session), the pass percentage was 83.40 per cent.

In conversation with The Pioneer, some secondary school educationists and principals attributed the sudden decline of passing percentage to the introduction of the Common University Entrance Test (CUET) for undergraduate admissions as the board candidates focused more on securing a seat in a college.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated students who successfully cleared the CBSE Class X and XII  examinations, saying he is proud of these youngsters for their hardwork and determination.

“I congratulate all exam warriors who have successfully passed the CBSE Class 12 examinations. I am proud of these youngsters for their hardwork and determination,” Modi said in a tweet.

He also congratulated the parents and teachers of these students for their monumental role in the success of the youngsters. On his part Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said, “One exam does not define a person’s ability” and “success comes to those who never give up.” 

“It is a moment to rejoice the success and cherish the fruits of hard work that you put (in) all year round. Best wishes for a happy and bright future. Many friends might not have met (their) expectations. I appeal to them to not lose heart. One examination does not define a person’s ability,” Pradhan said in a series of tweets.

CBSE Controller of examinations Sanyam Bhardwaj said a comparison cannot be drawn with last year’s statistics as the academic session then was split into two terms because of the Covid pandemic and this was the first full fledged academic examination after the pandemic era. 

“It is a very satisfying day for us because we have declared both (10th & 12th) results...more than 22 lakh students appeared for 10th exams this year and they’ve performed very well. The result is more than 93 per cent pass percentage,” Bhardwaj said.

The board also announced that it will conduct exams for Classes 10 and 12 for the 2023-24 academic session from February 15 next year when a section of multiple choice questions (MCQs) will be introduced for the first time as part of competition based aptitude (CBA).

Over 3.08 lakh students have scored above 90 per cent in the CBSE Class 10 and Class 12 exams, while over 66,000 secured scores above 95 per cent. While the number of students who scored above 90 per cent and 95 per cent has gone down in both the classes when compared to last year, CBSE officials said it would be wrong to draw a comparison as the academic session was split into two terms last year because of the pandemic.

Last year, over 3.71 lakh students scored above 90 per cent marks and 98,340 candidates scored above 95 per cent in both the classes.

The board has decided against publishing merit lists to avoid “unhealthy competition” among students. Officials said the board has also scrapped awarding first, second and third divisions based on students’ scores.

“No merit list will be declared by the CBSE to avoid unhealthy competition among students. However, the board will issue merit certificates to 0.1 per cent of students who have scored the highest marks in the various subjects,” a senior board official said.

The CBSE has also decided to change the ‘compartment’ exam nomenclature to ‘supplementary’ based on recommendations made in the National Education Policy 2020. The board has also decided to offer more opportunities to students to improve their performance in board exams.

While Class 10 students will get an opportunity to improve their performance in two subjects in the supplementary exam, Class 12 students will get the chance to improve their scores in one subject.

“For students who are placed in the supplementary category and those who wish to improve their performances, the exam will be conducted in July and the dates will be announced soon,” he added.