‘I hope no info is lost down the line’

‘I hope no info is lost down the line’Vineet Joshi, chairman and secretary of the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), spoke to Hindustan Times about the board’s new Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluation System:

Why is the board implementing the grading system in the middle of the term? We want to prepare teachers for the task next term. They can get used to the system, and if they make mistakes, it is better to deal with them now. It appears scary, but we had to start somewhere.

What is your biggest fear? We have explained the concept to principals and teachers in workshops. They will play the role of master trainers and teach the system to others. Teachers will forward the information to the final stakeholders -- students and parents. I just hope no information is lost or misinterpreted down the line.

How are the stakeholders reacting to the radical decision taken by the board? The board carried out an intensive all-India study on expectations and apprehensions of parents, principals, teachers and students regarding the new system of evaluation. We have their views in mind. The teachers’ manual has detailed checklists that can be used to evaluate students on non-quantitative subjects like life skills and thinking skills, which are a part of this grading system.