Undue pressure on 10th and 12th graders’ exam results creates a culture of stress and cheating, rather than an emphasis on learning.
Images of people scaling the walls of an examination center in Bihar have gone viral on social media.
Inside the building, 10th grade students are writing their board examinations. These exams are usually the culmination of two years of preparation and their results determine which "stream" of subjects – science, commerce, or arts – a student pursues in their 11th and 12th grades.
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The people scaling the walls are said to be friends and family of exam-takers, passing pieces of paper with answers written on them to the students inside.
This is not the first time such an incident has taken place in the state Bihar. In 2013, over 1,600 students were expelled after they were caught cheating during their board exams.
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Some of those aiding in the cheating had set up ladders to reach the windows of specific exam halls.
To many Indian colleges and companies, board exam results are the only measure of applicants' worth, therefore creating a culture that emphasizes high exam results over effective learning.
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Another consequence of such a high-pressure exam culture is the prevalence of coaching classes and centers.
Thousands of students attend several hours of academic coaching per week in preparation for their exams. There are even coaching classes to help get admission into other, more prestigious coaching classes. Several students abandon extracurricular pursuits in favour of more rigorous academic prep.
