Karnataka - Mysore   

Examination duration to be reduced by half-an-hour

— Photo: M.A. Sriram

Ushering in reforms: Principals of various colleges at a meeting in Mysore on Thursday.

MYSORE: A meeting on the examination reforms system convened by the University of Mysore on Thursday resolved to recommend for a reduction in the semester examination hours from 3 to 2 and-a-half hours from the academic year 2008-09.

The meeting of the subcommittee of principals of various colleges under the jurisdiction of the university and representatives of teachers and students resolved this corresponding to the reduction in maximum marks fixed in the examinations under the semester scheme.

According to a statement from Registrar (Evaluation) A.B. Ibrahim, the examination hours had been fixed for three hours when the maximum marks were 100. But the duration had not been reduced when the maximum marks came down to 80 with the introduction of the semester scheme.

The participants of the meeting were of the opinion that it was “unscientific” to allot more than the required time for an examination in the competitive world. Hence, with a view to increasing the recollecting capacity and awakening the skills of students, besides helping them face the challenges of the globalised world, the meeting decided to recommend for a reduction in the examination hours, Mr. Ibrahim said.

The resolution will be placed before the next Academic Council meeting for approval.

Another significant decision taken at the meeting was to make certain changes in the examination calendar to accommodate repeater students to take up their failed semester examination soon after the semester examination. The carryover system proposed at the meeting permits a student appearing for odd semester (1, 3 and 5) to take up the repeater examination of even semester (2, 4 and 6) soon after the examination. Vice-versa, a student appearing for even semester can take up the repeater examination of odd semester if he or she had failed.

The participants observed that the number of students, who were failing in the examinations, had come down drastically after the introduction of the semester scheme. Keeping in mind the interests of students, the meeting decided to allow them to take up the examination on the “odd-odd” and “even-even” basis.

With a view to implementing this system, the participants suggested changes in the examination calendar so that the regular examination of even semesters such as 2, 4 and 6 are held in one stretch followed by the repeater examinations of odd semesters such as 1, 3 and 5 to help the repeater students to attend both the examinations in the same calendar.

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