CBSE: The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) is considering a proposal to allow the use of basic non-programmable calculators in the Class 12 Accountancy exam. This step is being taken to reduce the mental pressure of students related to calculations.

According to board officials, a panel will be formed for this which will prepare clear guidelines related to its use so that there is uniformity in all schools.

Other boards are already giving permission.

At present, CBSE allows students with special needs in classes 10 and 12 to use calculators. At the same time, the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examination (CISCE) allowed the use of calculators to class 12 students in 2021.

Permission will be given for limited functions.

According to a senior CBSE official, "The curriculum committee of the board has suggested that only basic non-programmable calculators should be allowed in the accountancy exam, which is mainly limited to calculation functions like addition, subtraction, multiplication, division and finding percentages."

He further said that a panel will be formed which will decide which calculator models can be used in the exam. It will be ensured that no advanced or programmable calculator is brought to the exam.

Students will benefit

The committee believes that this decision will reduce the mental pressure of the students related to calculations and improve their performance in the exam. This will enable students to pay more attention to analytical answers and case study-based questions.

Apart from this, this change will be in line with international standards and will also support the objective of the National Education Policy (NEP) to promote higher-order thinking skills.

Other new proposals of CBSE

The board is also considering some more important changes, including improvements in the on-screen marking (OSM) system and re-evaluation process.

An official said, "To reduce the time taken in sending physical answer sheets to the evaluation centers, the board has proposed to implement the On-Screen Marking (OSM) system. In this process, the answer sheets will be scanned and uploaded in digital form, which will make the evaluation process faster and more effective." This system will first be implemented as a pilot project in some selected subjects. In the 2024-25 session, it can be used in some subjects of the main examinations, supplementary examinations of science and mathematics of classes 10 and 12, and re-evaluation of mathematics.

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