ANXIOUS WAIT: Students searching for results of TNPCEE 2006 on terminals set up at Anna University on Sunday. — Photo : N. Sridharan

CHENNAI: The confusion surrounding the conduct of the Common Entrance Test for admission to professional undergraduate courses and the new syllabus seem to be the reasons behind the considerable drop in the scores in the Tamil Nadu Professional Courses Entrance Examination, the results of which were declared on Sunday.

Apart from the drop in centums (only 137 in biology and seven in physical sciences), the range of the marks scored by students is lower than last year. The mathematics paper, however, bucked the trend, with two centums this year, compared to none last year.

According to an exclusive analysis done for The Hindu by Salem-based analyst Jayaprakash Gandhi, student performances in physical sciences and biology have come down.

While 2,572 students scored 45 marks and above in physical sciences last year, only 1,401 crossed the mark this year. Last year, 7,680 candidates scored 40 marks and above, as compared to 4,742 this year.

Similarly, while 9,001 students scored above 45 marks in biology last year, only 2,975 have done so this year. Where 17,395 scored above 40 marks previously, this time the count was 7,504.

Reflects Board exam results

"The results of the TNPCEE closely reflect the results of the Board exam, which too showed lower scores in biology. All this is likely to throw up an entirely different scenario for the counselling session this year," Mr. Gandhi said.

"The change in the syllabus has contributed to the fall in performances," says K. Swaminathan, founder-director of the Chennai-based Aspire Learning coaching centre. "Apart from the fact that students did not have a model paper to fall back upon due to the change in syllabus, the uncertainty in deciding the conduct of the CET, was also a contributing factor as many students seem to have taken the situation lightly."

In a normal year, preparations for the CET would start along with the Board exam. This year, the uncertainty had led to a delayed start in CET preparation, all of which reflected in the low scoring pattern, he said.

Clarity sought

Parents and students too agreed that the apprehension over CET had taken its toll. "Though the Supreme Court had clearly said that the CET could not be done away with, the [previous] State Government's vacillations had given us a different picture. If the uncertainty is to be avoided next year too, the present Government should come out with a clear, legally-defined stand on the CET," said R. Sivaprakasam of Chennai, whose daughter's CET scores "have fallen well below expectations."

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