FYJC cut-off shrinks, students in Pune demand revival of internal marks system

There has been a significant decline in the number of colleges with 90 per cent or above cut-off in the first merit list for the first-year junior college (FYJC) admissions this year. The first merit list for Class 11 admissions was declared on July 12.

According to educational experts, the reason for this decline in the cut-off margin is the removal of the internal marks system which was implemented from this academic year.

Due to this decline, educational experts and students have now asked the state body to bring back the internal marks system in the syllabus from next year, as it is going to affect FYJC admissions.

As against 86 colleges with 90 per cent or above cut-off in the 2018-2019 academic year, only 27 had the above 90 per cent figure in the current academic year. Among these 27 colleges, 20 are for the Science stream, three for Arts and the remaining four are for the Commerce stream.

Vasant Kalpande, former director of the Maharashtra state board and a senior educationist, said, “Marks of most of the students has been affected this year, due to the removal of the internal marks system. And now, due to this, the cut-off margins have also seen a decline. The state government has appointed a committee to look into this issue and we hope a solution will come out to avoid problems in admissions next year.”

“My suggestion is that the internal marks should be included in the state syllabus, not to increase the marks of the students, but to test all the necessary aspects of the students. It is not possible to test a student’s calibre through written examinations only and hence, by conducting internal examinations, the students can have the ability to improve in all aspects,” added Kalpande.

Ramesh Jadhav, a parent, said, “My son and several other students of Class 10 have suffered this year as they have scored less percentage due to the removal of the internal marks system. There will be issues while seeking admission in the desired colleges. We demand that this marking system be brought back so that students who will appear for the examination the next academic year will not suffer. My daughter will be going to Class 10 this year and we do not want her to face the same problem again.”

Mukund Kirdat, an educational expert, said, “To create a level playing field, it is necessary to have internal marks as a part of the syllabus. So, the demand to bring back the internal marks is logical. This year, thousands of students were affected due to the removal of this marking system and now the cut-off has also gone down. This will be a constant point of contention as there will be a difference between marks of the SSC board students and other board students. We need to find a permanent solution to this problem.”

“I suggest that the state board should bring back the internal marks system from the next academic year. The education syllabus needs to be upgraded and regular assessment of examinations should be done by the state government,” Kirdat added.

Oral examination row

This year the Maharashtra State Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education (MSBSHSE) removed the internal marks system from the State Secondary Certificate (SSC) examination.

Initially, out of 100 marks, 20 marks were given as internal marks, wherein the school would take viva (oral) examinations of the students in languages and social sciences. These marks were given by the school.

With the removal of this marking system, the students who appeared for the SSC examination this year, had to give a 100 mark written examination.

This year the state passing percentage of SSC was 77.10 per cent and last year, it was 89.41 per cent.

The removal of this marking system has affected the FYJC admissions, as most of the students have received less marks and are not able to take admissions in desired colleges.