CBSE Moderation Policy & Latest Updates: Well, CBSE Moderation Policy or simply we can say it Marks Moderation Policy is basically a provision for providing Grace Marks. This policy states that if any student falling short of a few marks in CBSE Board Exams then by this policy provision he will get grace marks and he will be able to clear Board Exams. There is one more provision in this policy for providing Grace Marks to those students who have attempted very difficult questions and out of syllabus questions as CBSE provide different sets of Question Papers for same subject. How Marks Moderation Policy works: Marks moderation was introduced in the year 1992, during the time when different education boards across the country, were attempting to curb the disparity in the results and compensate the marks difference during a difficult paper or tougher set of questions on the same subject. After receiving several complaints about the difficulty level of a paper, the concerned board members would form an expert panel and decide the quantity of extra marks (which could go up to 15 %) to be provided to each student for such tougher questions. An expert in The Times of India report stated that, spiking the scores of below average students and awarding up to 10 extra marks for candidates who failed to achieve the qualifying score, was causing harm to an otherwise progressive policy of marks moderation. State boards like Maharashtra, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Bihar have no such moderation policy while Goa, Uttarakhand, Tamil Nadu follow this provision to improve and redeem their overall pass percentage in the state. This serves to be unfair for those candidates, who inspite of working just as hard are not able to clear the cut-off for admissions in colleges nor are they able to meet the criteria of getting selected in universities abroad. Reason behind abolishment of CBSE Moderation Policy: Eventually, this policy has created a lot of controversies as it resulted in inflation of students who score more than 95 per cent marks. Hence, in order to curtail the percentage of students scoring more than 95% marks, CBSE decided to banish the marks moderation policy this year. But, since the other state boards retained the pattern, it was bound to lead the C.B.S.E students at a disadvantage. Thus, the declaration of the class 12 C.B.S.E 2017 results was postponed, as according to the orders of the Delhi High Court, the moderation policy was to be followed by the next academic session. Latest Updates on CBSE Moderation Policy: After long debates and rebuttal, the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) along with 32 other boards have finally planned to do banish the moderation policy or grace mark system for the upcoming session, to ensure uniformity in the grading system. HRD Ministry has issued an advisory to all State Boards regarding this policy. In this advisory, it is clear that States can provide Moderate Marks only when there the mistake in Question Paper or it is not clear. In this advisory States are asked for suggestions on making a Standard formula for Question Paper Assessment by 31-Oct-2017.
The most important aspect of parenting is good communication. Irrespective of age and gender, there should be a cordial relationship between a parent and a child, to develop mutual respect and understanding. A child is most dependent on a parent, but sometimes, due to lack of interaction and involvement they fail to share their problems, and waste their time over thinking and hurting themselves. Thus, it is the job of the parents to always be present for their kids and monitor their activities without interrupting and being over obsessed. Basic Principles for Good Communication between Parent & Children Attention: Children constantly seek attention, love and appreciation, thus parents must inflict positive feedback rather than dwelling on the negativity. A child wants a warm and loving connection with each of their parents and this is only possible if the parents make extra efforts to communicate with their children and make them feel safe and loved. Involvement: A parent should always be involved in their child`s activities and make them feel important and worthy. A child develops self-esteem, once they understand that their parents are proud of them. Thus, irrespective of the fact whether a child is verbose or reserved, a parent must spend some quiet time with them and encourage them to open up when they need to. Being a good and attentive listener, makes a child feel that they are being heard and thus boosting their confidence. Avoiding lectures Interventions are necessary when a parent notices their child is following the wrong path. But lecturing and nagging won’t help the child understand a parent better; rather it will drive them away. Mutual understanding is important in such cases, and both should consider each other`s perspectives. Inflicting Positivity: Children get boosted by positivity, thus it is the job of the parents to maintain positive vibrations around the house, and inflict enthusiasm. Narrating good funny stories, going out on meals, discussing about school life, all these aspects are extremely important for building a healthy communication. This gives a chance to have an interaction on a daily basis, and make each other aware and curious about each other’s life. As working parents, having a tight schedule makes it difficult to spend all the time with the child, but as parents one must consider taking some time off and build ways to communicate and improve the overall relationship. While the interaction habits will evolve with time, practising these communication skills will support the foundation of a healthy relationship into the future.
SECURITY AT SCHOOLS “It is not who you attend school with but who controls the school you attend”, a famous quote by Nick Giovanni, correctly states the essentiality of school management. An institution like school provides formal education to a child, in an environment which is favorable and challenging yet safe and secure. Thus, the primary aim of the Department of Education is to implement security measures to create a harmless ambience for staff and students and to protect school property. Concerns: Alarming incidents at schools, all around the country, has forced the public to question the judgment and quality of the school authorities and their lackadaisical approach towards the safety of the students. Recent acts of violence and destruction has raised concern among parents and guardians, as their children spend half of their day at school in a similar environment. Security Measures fro Schools: The Growing public anxiety over such incidents in public schools has prompted educators and lawmakers to drastically heighten security and safety measures in schools in order to reduce and prevent violence and ensure safety in schools. Some of the immediate measures the authorities must adapt are Zero Tolerance Policy, Increasing physical security, providing Self Defense classes, increasing liaison with law enforcement and private security agencies and offering students types of violence prevention programs. Increased Physical Security: There should be limited access inside the school premises and all unmonitored entrances must be locked while the main gate should always be under CCTV surveillance and monitored 24*7. The visitors should not be permitted to enter without checking in at the main office, and a distinct identification must be issued, that they have to wear while on campus. The security officials are to be assigned at specific campus perimeters and hallways and they should be provided with a two-way radio for better communication. There should be regular inspections of the exterior and interior of the campus and any suspicious activity must be immediately reported to school officials or the police. Apart from installing a minimum of 25 security cameras around the school in classrooms, hallways, gyms, cafeterias, parking lots, football fields, and on each school bus, walk-through metal detectors should also be acquired by school authorities for the screening of weapons or explosives that promote violence and threat. Disaster Plans: A variety of approaches are needed for implementation of effective security and other uncalled disasters. There should be special arrangements and solutions for security breaches and associated vandalism like arson and theft in schools. There should be adequate security exits and students should be given special classes to tackle such aversions. These incidents severely disrupts the normal daily routine of schools, and often results in the loss of valuable and irreplaceable resources and sometimes even innocent lives. Zero Tolerance Policies: Public schools should have zero tolerance policies for firearms and other weapons, alcohol, illegal or legal drugs, tobacco, and violence. There must be predetermined penalties for the students and staff and they shouldn`t be forgiven under any circumstances. There should be rigorous action taken against students who disobey the rules and the same applies to the teachers as well. This is the duty of the principal to keep an eye on all activities and be alert in every situation. Liaison with Law Enforcement and Private Security Agencies: Security guards and police officers can identify places in public schools that must be monitored for situations where property damage, crimes, or physical violence may occur. These places are usually the halls, toilets, restrooms, cafeteria, and the parking lot. By being at the right place at the right time, security guards or police officers can avoid and minimize mishaps effectively. Hence, such professionals must be appointed to perform multiple tasks such as patrolling school grounds, assisting with investigations of students who break school rules, conducting searches for substances like drugs, alcohol, cigars, etc, and arresting intruders who sneak into the school. Violence Prevention Programs: These programs put forward the examples of students who have been punished for violating school rules and try to prevent these students from committing future acts of violence by making them realize that their actions are unacceptable. Banning a criminal does not kill the crime, thus this program seeks to avoid criminalizing offending students and keep them in the classroom, which avoids disrupting their education. Perpetrators who snoop around the campus doing inappropriate activities should be penalized and students should be aware of such happenings and trained to be alert. Conclusion: School authorities and Security Department should identify the specific problems that are currently taking place at their school and determine how to rationally address them without further delay. At this time when parents continue to fear crime and violence, increased security is unavoidable. Prevention measures, outside of security devices, should also be considered that include peer mediation, parental involvement, and more easy access to security personnel. Children need a healthy and an uninterrupted ambience and their parents should be willing to send them to schools without fearing anything unfortunate happening to them and this can only be achieved if the school management promises a better and a safe environment for the students.
Recently in different parts of country like Gurgaon, Noida, Mumbai, Bengaluru and in other cities also, Parents are protesting against Fee hike by Schools Annoyed by rapidly hike in school fees. A few parents of Whitefield, Bengaluru decided to launch a School on their own, which will be managed by Parents only. The School will be run on ‘no profit, no loss’ model. One of the Whitefield, Bengaluru resident, Software Engineer by profession with the help of other parents are planning to open their own school. At present they are about 20 members in committee. Anybody who want to join them can fill a form on Google website. They are now looking for land to set up School. They said that they will prefer if government provide land for their school and they are also working on If Corporates or NGO’s can help them or a land owner which can give land on lease at minimum cost. Parents and their committee is planning to register the school as a trust and run it. In India school education system is very costly and every year Schools are raising their fees. Every year parents do complaints against schools and do protest. A report in 2015 by The Associated Chambers of Commerce of India, ASSOCHAM, stated that the costs of private school education in the last decade have increased at a pace faster than incomes, showing a 150% hike between 2005 and 2015. The report further stated that the cost of educating a child in a private school has risen from Rs 55,000 in 2005 to Rs 1,25,000 per annum in 2015. An estimated 3 crore children in the country study in private schools, says the survey. In Bengaluru, Committee of School Trust will decide the fee of students and all the expenses and accounts will be transparent. If there is any profit then it will be used in school development and in teachers’ salaries hike. Parents are initiating new school models. In a developing country like India education system should be focused on quality education. Because development of any country depends on the education of that country. So in a developing country education should be affordable so every child can get education and can contribute to society and the nation. Above mentioned some stats show that quality education in India is so expensive that common man can not provide best education for their kids. So Schools should provide quality education to students in affordable fees. So every child can get better education. The decision of opening a school by Bengaluru parents show that time has come when schools have to focus on education not on money making. Hope this type of initiative will make a difference in Indian Education System and will make Big Schools to rethink about their fees and policies.
Does School listing Websites really help Schools to grow? The answer to this question is definitely “YES”. ` Here are some facts which schools should consider why they have to make a presence on these platforms. First one is – “How Schools do Promotion” and the Second one is – “How Parents and Students search and select best schools”. In today’s Digital Era everyone prefers to go through online search first. For this Parents and Students try those platforms which provide accurate and genuine information and reviews about different schools on a single platform. Where they can compare schools and can select better school for themselves. So those schools which are not using these platforms may lack in School Reputation and may lose admissions also. From the school’s point of view here are some more reasons why Schools need to join these Platforms. Reputation Building: – By making a presence on School Listing websites and on other platforms School’s can build their reputation because these platforms have a large number of visitors on their platforms. Parents and Students share their views and do lots of discussion about schools on these platforms. By listing Schools on these sites can help Schools to build their reputation and it will also help Schools to grow. Increase School Reach: – School listing websites and similar platforms have millions of searches per day from different areas and locations and have a good reach in a country and abroad. For an example suppose some parents are relocating in near future and want to find out best school for their kids at this point parents found these types of websites and platforms very helpful to find best schools. Generally, Schools promotes them by Hoardings, Banners and by Pamphlet distribution in an area. This is a very conventional method and it covers a very limited area. So Schools can increase their reach by making a presence on digital platforms and websites. Showcasing School Infrastructure and Facilities: – School Listing websites provide space for Schools to showcase their infrastructure and facilities. Schools can upload Photos and Videos of their School Building, Classrooms, Library, Labs and other facilities. By showcasing School infrastructure and facilities Schools can get more admissions and can make a good visual impact on parents and students. Lead Generation: – Presence of Schools on School Listing websites and on other platforms will definitely generate more admissions as these types of websites have a good audience and are frequently used by parents and students. Ideas & Suggestions: – New Ideas and Suggestions always help to grow. By making a presence on School listing websites and other platforms Schools can get more Ideas and Suggestions and can improve and grow their School accordingly. School Website is not enough: – Today most of Schools have their own websites and believes that owning a school website is enough. But it’s not true because first of all parents searching for school should know the school name and its website and it is not possible. So parents try other Platforms where they can get more schools on a single So these types of platforms are very useful for schools to grow. Trust Building: – Trust of Parents and Students is the key factor for any School to grow. Web sites and other digital platforms help schools to make a trust between School, Teachers, Parents and Students by their Suggestions, Ideas and by their Views about school.
Choosing a Play School for your kid is not an easy task. You have to invest lots of time and energy to find a best school for your tiny-tots. A good playschool with healthy environment will play a significant role later in child’s life. Because selection of playschool is not an easy task we suggest some tips which will help you to find a best playschool for your lovely kids. Understand your Child first:- First thing as a parent you have to understand your kid and his/her requirement and nature like : What are the food choices of your kid? Does your kid show interests in playing? When your kids get sleep? When they go for toilet? How they react with unknown person at first time? Does your kid scare about anything? As a parent you should have these types of basic knowledge about your kid and you should observe you kids for better understanding. Make a list of questions: – Parent should make a list of questions which they want to ask to a playschool like, School Timings, Playing Area, Security, Hygiene etc. Further in this article you will find some more tips and questions. Location: – Distance from home to school is a major factor which parents should consider. If there is any emergency like kid not feeling well or some other emergency Parents can pick their child quickly or school can drop them timely. Day boarding: – In today’s scenario most of the parents are working in that case Day Boarding is good option for parents. Parents should check complete day activities, timings, food, hygiene etc. So kid can comfortably stay at a Day Boarding School. Safety: – Safety is also a major concern which should be check by parents at Playschools. Parents should make an enquire about safety features of schools like in case emergency how school deals with emergency situation, does school have CCTVs in rooms for watching kids activities. Does school infrastructure, furniture, toys and other playing aids are safe for their kid. Hygiene: – Parents should check is school clean and hygienic. Classrooms, playrooms and other areas like kitchen are hygienic or not. Parents should check toilets also Food: – Parents should know which types of food school are providing. Food must be hygienic and healthy. Parent Involvement: – Does school have active parent involvement like regular feedback about kids, about kid’s habits and other activities. If school has good parental involvement than definitely it will help parent to better understand their kids. Teacher Student Ratio: – Parents also need to check Teacher Students Ratio so that your kid can get proper attention. Also need to check school’s workers which help little students in their activities like helping students in feeding, helping to use wash rooms and in other activities. Talk to other Parents: – For better suggestion ask parents and friends of you society because they can share firsthand experience about schools in that area. Also parent should know in which school their kid’s friends are going. It will also help parents to select better school. Visit School Websites: – By visiting school personally it better to visit websites. By visiting websites parent can get an idea about schools. This can help parents to save time and energy. Personal visit: – After short listing a few schools parents should visit personally to make final decision because parents know their kid and his/her requirement better than anyone else. These are some tips which can help parents to select a better school for their kid. Once all information is collected and assessed then select a school. Don’t depend only on data; parents should consider other factors also because play school will make a difference in your child’s academic in future. Hope these tips will help you to search & make a decision for Best School for Your Kid. I wish you the very ‘Best of luck’!
In this article, Sridhar Rajagopalan, Managing Director of Educational Initiatives, suggests 10 initiatives that can help transform the quality of education in India. Most of the steps needed to transform the quality of education in India do not require policy change or a new educational policy. Yet, these steps are not getting taken because there is no visible crisis pushing us to act. Only a few points in my list below – like the creation of a cadre of Indian education civil services, replacing the policy of schools within a kilometre of every habitation with a free transport to the nearest school policy – are policy-level issues. Initiative 1: Make the problem visible Regular assessments are needed to measure progress in learning and make the current levels visible in a way that can be understood widely. India should participate regularly in international assessments like Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study and Programme for International Student Assessment so as to set goals and benchmark its performance and progress. The quality of national assessments should be improved and third party assessors like Annual Status on Education Report and Educational Initiatives should be encouraged to provide periodic feedback. The District Information System for Education (DISE)1 system should be upgraded to a ‘Student Progress Tracking System’ which will track learning levels of individual children and provide diagnostic data to serve as a basis for improvement to schools and teachers. Initiative 2: Build systemic and institutional capacity The biggest problem in the educational system today is a severe shortage of capacity. Consider two initiatives – the Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluation (CCE) and the Teacher Eligibility Test (TET). Few people disagree that these initiatives are based on sound principles and good ideas. Yet, many – some may say most – well-intentioned ideas do not achieve their goals due to people across the system not having the required skills. In the case of the TET test, pass percentages have been between 1% and about 15% and the initiative has not had the intended impact. It raises questions both on our teacher training capacity and also the capacity to understand and execute the assessments successfully. Strengthening research on learning is the first step and only long-term solution to this crisis. I recommend establishing a ‘science of learning’ centre, either as a part of National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) or as a separate institute, with a mission of promoting research on how children learn. This institute can undertake research on reading, elementary mathematics, intelligent teaching systems and assessments. However, research needs an ecosystem and we now need to kick-start such an ecosystem. We recommend the creation of a research fund (similar to the American National Science Foundation Fund), which will provide grant support for innovation to take root and grow in research institutions non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and private players based on their track record and quality of research, and direct research towards areas of national and state priorities. Initiative 3: Establish a reading mission If we can ensure that 80% of our children can read and write well in any one language by the time they are nine years old, we would have solved 80% of our educational problems. Reading has to become a focus area of both action and measurement and a movement which involves all. A national-level centre for reading research is more important for India than any Indian Institute of Technology and is not so difficult to create. Specialised training programmes need to be created for teachers on reading skill development and measurement. Reading tests need to be made available on computers, tablets and mobile phones so that parents can determine the reading levels of their children. Initiative 4: Build teacher and head teacher capacity Starting with regular assessments of teacher needs which will determine individual gaps/needs in teachers, high-quality training programmes need to be deployed for teacher training. Information and Communication Technology should be used as a tool to provide many of these courses on an on-demand basis. The resources available in the National Repository of Open Education Resources (and other open education resources) should be moderated by experts to ensure that high-quality resources – including videos, teaching material and assessment questions – are available to every teacher. Rather than depending solely on government organisations like the NCERT to create all this material, this work should be carried out through ‘request for proposals’ that would allow talented individuals and organisations to participate and contribute. Initiative 5: Change the goal post by reforming board exams to test understanding, not recall India’s rote-based Board Exams are a source of the learning crisis observed even in primary schools. The focus on students, parents and teachers is on maximising exam marks and not on learning, which needs to be corrected by having Board Exams that measure learning. This is not difficult to do because there are so many exams that can serve as a benchmark for this change. Initiative 6: Invest in technology for education Hand-in-hand with educational research inherent in all the initiatives above, there is a need to research and develop ways to use technology to drive the change we desire. The focus should not be on installing hardware but creating new, high-quality content such as intelligent teaching systems and tools that will help students to hone basic skills like reading and mathematics, and developing content in multiple Indian languages. ICT-based remediation programmes should be encouraged, in which the service provider is reimbursed based on the measured student improvement. ICT should also be used to track teacher attendance. Free high-speed internet connections can be provided to all schools through a simple scheme by which the government reimburse internet service providers directly. Initiative 7: Introduce school-based practices for learning improvement This includes initiatives like monthly tests in school with academic support from State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT) or District Institute of Educational Research and Training (DIET) and quarterly parent-teacher meeting days which encourage parents to visit schools and build a…