Final year students upset over indecision on exams

Final year students upset over indecision on exams

TNN | Jul 24, 2020, 04.21 AM IST

Trichy: As the government cancelled even semester examinations for all but final year college students, the final year students, who are awaiting a decision on their pending exam, are a disappointed lot.

Students in the first and second year of their undergraduate courses in arts and science colleges, undergraduate engineering students in their first, second and third years and first year postgraduate students will not have to appear for their semester examinations that were initially scheduled for May 2020. But the students in their final year, many of whom are waiting to complete their course to join the companies where they have been placed, are an anxious lot. So are some others waiting to pursue higher studies at various places.

Faculty members in Trichy colleges opined that instead of cancelling the semester exam for final year students, who have faced examinations several times, exams should have been cancelled for those students who have been assessed lesser number of times. “There was no urgent need for cancelling examinations for students who are in not in their final years. The September deadline issued by the MHRD for conducting exams is yet to get over,” said a faculty member.

However, another section of teachers said that cancellation of the exam for the students will allow the colleges to begin the preparation for the next semester. Some of the colleges have already started engaging students in online classes and the rest of the colleges can follow suit, after the announcement to cancel the exams.

Saying that the possibility of conducting semester examination is remote, Tamil Nadu Government College Teachers Association (TNGCTA) suggested the state government can assess students based on their performance in previous semesters. TNGCTA general secretary, R Damodaran, said that 60 per cent weightage can be given for previous semester’s performances and 30 per cent weightage for the internal marks received in the last semester. Rest of the 10 per cent weightage can be given for attendance in the last semester.