CISCE discontinues merit list, idea draws mix response
“The move is to avoid ‘unhealthy competition’ among students,” said Joseph Emmanuel, the new chief executive and secretary of the council.
The Council for Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE) did not declare names of ICSE, ISC toppers this time and thus for the first time there has been no official announcement about top 3 rank holders. “The move is to avoid ‘unhealthy competition’ among students,” said Joseph Emmanuel, the new chief executive and secretary of the council.
“We wanted to make ICSE, ISC results stress-free for students and parents. Students miss out on the top rank by one or two marks. They feel sad when their names do not figure in the merit list. Instead of doing anything good, it adds to frustration,” said Emmanuel. “Slowly and steadily people will understand the benefit of this practice,” he added.
While some schools welcomed the initiative, others had their own views on the subject.
Seth MR Jaipuria School principal, Promini Chopra said: “I’m glad that the council has done this. The concept of excellence is paramount. Merit list only puts the child under undue pressure. Now, a child will know that they must compete with themselves and not with any other students.”
“It will encourage children to be a better version of themselves, so I am happy that the council has started moving towards application-based questions in most of the subjects,” Chopra said.
ICSE Lucknow coordinator and principal, Hoerner College, Mala Mehra said: “This is a wonderful move. It will take pressure away from budget schools who can’t compete with bigger institutions. Thus, the move will provide for a more level playing field.”
But some like St Agnes Loreto Day School principal Debra Bunny, felt there was nothing wrong in declaring names of merit holders.
“I see no harm with the merit list as it prepares the students to test themselves in a competitive era where an all-India rank matters a lot,” she said.
Gauri Goel of La Martiniere Girls College who obtained 97% in ICSE said that the council has taken a great move by putting an end to declaring merit list because it puts unnecessary pressure on students. Gauri scored 99 in computer applications and Hindi.
Similarly, Mishti Srivastava, a class 12 student of Seth MR Jaipuria School who scored 96.5% also said that it will help students in long run. She got 100 per cent in political science and is all ready for CUET UG exam.
