First Board Exam is Mandatory But Why?

CBSE has introduced two board exams in class 10th this year, stating that it will relieve stress and students will get a second choice the same year. But the first board exam is mandatory. You can not skip it. So, the second board exam is not so helpful. Let’s understand in detail.

If you are new to myCBSEguide portal, you can install the myCBSEguide app or browse the myCBSEguide website to get CBSE sample papers, notes, important questions, previous year question bank and much more.

The Rule

If a student is not able to appear in 3 or more subjects in the main examination, s/he cannot be permitted to appear in the 2nd Board Examination as per the policy of the Board.

1. It is mandatory for all the students to appear in the first Board examination.
2. All passed and eligible students will be allowed to improve their performance in any of the three subjects out of Science, Mathematics, Social Science and languages.
3. If a student has not appeared in 3 or more subjects in the first examination, then $\mathrm{s} /$ he will not be allowed to appear in the 2nd examination. Such students will be placed in the “Essential Repeat” category and can take the examination only next year in the main examinations in the month of February next year.
4. For students whose result in the first examination is Compartment, such students will be allowed to appear in the second examination under the Compartment Category.
5. Additional subjects will not be permitted after passing class X. Students will not be allowed in stand-alone subjects.
6. The eligibility to appear in the second examination will be:
   (a) Improvement category up to 3 main subjects
   (b) First/Third Chance Compartment
   (c) Compartment + Improvement
   (d) Improvement for the students who passed by the replacement of the subject.

What’s Wrong with it?

Most students expect the flexibility to appear in one or both board examinations based on their preparation or study plans. For instance, if there are five subjects and a student feels prepared for only three, they may wish to take those in the first board exam and attempt the remaining two in the second. However, this is not permitted. Students are required to appear for all subjects in the first board examination.

Secondly, even if a student passes all five subjects but is dissatisfied with the marks and wishes to reappear in the second board examination for all five subjects, this will not be allowed. CBSE permits reappearance in a maximum of only three subjects.

Thirdly, if you have additional subjects, such as a skill subject or a third language and wish to reappear in the second board examination to improve your marks, this will not be permitted. The second board examination is conducted only for the three main subjects—Mathematics, Science, and Social Science—and for languages.

What Does it Mean?

This clearly shows that the so-called second board examination is merely a jumla. In reality, it is nothing more than a renamed combination of the Compartment and Improvement examinations, with the schedule advanced from July to May this year.

So, the first Board exam is the actual Board exam and it’s mandatory as mentioned earlier. The second board exam is only a compartment-cum-improvement exam, which is meant for those who want to improve their marks.