ISC and CBSE schools reach out and try to help students beat fear of results, college admissions

The teachers are informally reaching out to pupils and counselling them following the cancellation of the Class XII board examinations

The uncertainty that was initially about exams but has now stretched to college admissions has aggravated the anxiety of students.: Shutterstock

Jhinuk Mazumdar   |  TT  |  Calcutta   | 07.06.21: Several ISC and CBSE schools are holding meetings with students of the outgoing Class XII batch to address their concerns and fears about results, college admissions and other such issues.

In some schools teachers are informally reaching out to students and counselling them following the cancellation of the Class XII board examinations by both the ICSE council and CBSE.

The uncertainty that was initially about exams but has now stretched to college admissions has aggravated the anxiety of students. Several heads of schools felt they the students need to be “assured” and their “fears allayed”.

Students across schools have been asking teachers about their board marks and how will it be calculated, how colleges are likely to set their entrance criteria and whether college admissions will be pushed back.

La Martiniere for Girls conducted a meeting with the outgoing Class XII batch on Friday.

“They have apprehensions about their marks and we addressed them to allay their fears... also colleges who would hold on site tests might change their pattern and hold short online tests and online interviews and the students should be prepared for that,” said principal Rupkatha Sarkar.

“We tell them it is not wrong to seek help. We want to strengthen them before they venture out because it is not going to be easy this year.”

Loreto House has a scheduled meeting on Monday with the Class XII students.

“This ISC 2021 batch needs our support even more and we need to assure them that we haven’t left them on their own. They have queries and anxieties about their marks since their college admission depends on it and we have to address and counsel them as they begin a new chapter in completely changed circumstances,” said Aruna Gomes, principal of Loreto House.

Some schools are reaching out to students informally where students talk to their teachers or counsellors over the phone.

“There is no clear understanding of how the marks will be computed and how it will impact their admission. This is causing anxiety among the students,” said Rita Chatterjee, director of North Point Senior Secondary Schools.

Chatterjee said that students have also been asking that if the board (CBSE) is lenient with marks, will colleges will be equally lenient in their admission criteria.

“The students also point out that with fixed number of seats in colleges, scrambling for seats is bound to happen,” she said.

Suvina Shunglu, principal of Sri Sri Academy, said that students are asking how they will be evaluated by colleges and even the toppers are feeling let down.

“Unfortunately anxiety has become a part and parcel of this batch of students whether it was during the practical classes in the pandemic, or uncertainty of exams. Now it’s about the results and college admission. Our job is to keep them motivated and we tell them to have faith in the system,” said Amita Prasad, director of Indus Valley World School.