Even as uncertainty surrounds the declaration of SSLC results this year, teachers’ organisations at a Quality Improvement Programme (QIP) monitoring committee meeting on Tuesday demanded that the results be declared as scheduled this week.

A stalemate over the Congress’ Chief Minister designate and delay in government formation have put a question mark over the declaration of SSLC results on Friday, as had been announced by the outgoing Minister for General Education V. Sivankutty earlier.

With result processing in the final stage, the SSLC exam board will meet on Wednesday to give approval to the results. The final results will be ready for publication on Thursday. Whether these will be declared on Friday remains to be seen, though officials are optimistic about it.

It is the Minister who usually announces the exam results, but in 2019 the then General Education Secretary A. Shajahan had announced the results instead of the then Minister A. Raveendranath since the model code of conduct was in place.

Dent to reputation

The Kerala School Teachers’ Association pointed out at the meeting that uncertainty over declaration of results could tarnish the reputation of the public education system, denting school admissions this academic year.

Teachers’ organisations say Sharmila Mary Joseph who is the General Education Secretary and General Education Director NSK Umesh can declare the results in a time-bound manner. Any delay will push back the process of admissions to Plus One higher secondary course. Changes in government should not come in the way of students’ opportunities for higher studies, the All Kerala School Teachers’ Union pointed out.

Both the CBSE class X and ICSE class X and XII results are already out, it is pointed out. Officials say they have done their best to speed up the declaration of results even though valuation of answer scripts began only on April 16 this year owing to election preparations.

School fitness

Against the backdrop of the Chief Secretary convening a meeting of District Collectors on the issue of school fitness on Wednesday, the teachers’ organisations demanded that steps be taken to issue fitness certificates in time for school reopening as in the previous years

Textbooks

The Director of General Education informed the meeting that textbooks will reach schools by May-end as dues amounting to Rs.6 crore to Tamil Nadu Newsprint and Papers Ltd. had been released. The remaining 7.5 crore would be sanctioned soon. Five-day online teacher training owing to fund unavailability was mooted at the meeting. However, teachers’ organisations demanded that the training be held offline, even if it was slightly curtailed.