Reversing the earlier decision by the previous government to conduct board exams for classes 5 and 8 in Karnataka, the current government has issued an order to conduct annual examinations for the Classes 5, 8, 9 and 11 (or first PUC) for the academic year 2023-24. As per the various media reports, only the students in Class 10 and Class 12 will appear for the board exams. The annual exams for Class 5 and Class 8 were first introduced by the Karnataka State Examination and Assessment Board last year.
The board updated the exam pattern for the remainder of this academic year stating that the yearly exams for classes 5 and 8 will be held as usual.
The Karnataka board made the announcement about the three-board exam regulation earlier this month. The best performance of a student out of three board examinations will be considered as his/her final performance, said the education department of Karnataka.
Currently, if a student who completed the second PUC test is dissatisfied with the grades they received in any of the subjects, they have the option to reject the marks they received in that subject and retake the supplementary exam.
By keeping the top results from the first, second, and third exams, the new board exam reform will provide students more chances to raise their board exam marks.
It is to be noted that schools and colleges using state board curriculum will be able to administer the annual exams for students in Classes 5, 8, 9, and the first PUC.