SSC exams: Best-five policy keeps worry at bay


Arun Shetty looks quite composed for a student who is set to write a lengthy Marathi paper, the last of the secondary school certificate (SSC) examinations, on Wednesday. But then, has been the picture of tranquility because of the knowledge that he can choose to give only top five subjects’ scores during admission to a college.
“Students usually start worrying about their results as soon as their examinations end. My science and Hindi papers did not go well. But, I am not too worried since I have the ‘best five’ option,” Shetty says with a smile.
On August 18 last year, the state government won the battle in the Supreme Court, which allowed it to continue with its two-year-old ‘best five’ subjects policy for junior college admissions. The vindication came after Indian Certificate of Secondary Education (ICSE) board students’ parents challenged the policy on the grounds that since it was not extended to their children, it would leave them at a disadvantage during admissions. The apex court not only upheld the state government’s policy, but it also extended the same to students from the ICSE board.
The court judgment has eased the pressure off hundreds of SSC and ICSE students.
Under the ‘best five’ policy, scores of subjects from group C are not considered at all during admissions. Students can pick five of their highest scores from subject groups A and B to calculate percentage.
Jayant Jain, president of Forum for Fairness in Education, says, “As papers of group C subjects are examined by schools, discrepancies may creep in. But now, such a possibility has been ruled out. Parents and students are both happy with the judgment.”
With the policy being extended to ICSE students as well, it is expected to create a level playing field during junior college admissions. The CBSE already has such a system in place.
“Everyone will get an equal shot at the first-year junior college online admission. Seats will be given out strictly on the basis of merit. This year, too, we might see high cut-offs, as students will score more due to the ‘best five’ policy,” said a senior education official.
This year will be the last when the state government will award 25 marks for students excelling in sports. This policy will be discontinued from the next year and only athletes who need grace marks will be considered.

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SSC ‘history paper’ on sale at Rs1,400


Even before the Secondary School Certificate board examination had started, there were rumours that important questions had been leaked and were up for grabs.
When DNA bought a copy of the “leaked” history and civics paper,it found that seven questions, weighing a total15 marks, appeared in the 40-mark exam paper, which was held on Wednesday.
A student needs 14 marks to clear this exam.
But, Ophelia Barreto, principal of Podar International School at Santa Cruz, said this could be a mere coincidence.
“The board has a habit of repeating certain questions, so anybody who has studied the exam pattern closely can come up with such ‘important questions’,” she said.
On Monday, DNA got in touch with an agent — a college student studying science — through a class 10 student from Andheri and bought a copy of the “leaked” history and civics question paper for Rs1,400.
The reporter spoke to the agent over the phone as he refused to meet her.“I have got these questions from an internal source, a moderator of the state board. I will return your money, if these questions do not appear in the exam,” the agent had told the reporter.
State board chairperson Sarjerao Jadhav admitted that such agents are a menace.
“Most of these agents are college students, who want to make extra pocket money. Parents should be alert and if someone approaches their ward claiming to have a leaked paper, they should lodge a complaint,” he said.
In their obsession to score high marks, many students fall prey to such agents. “Schools should tell their students not to buy ‘leaked’ papers as they will only be wasting their money,” Jadhav said.

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Math gives SSC students nightmares in Maharashtra


Ashwini Paranjape was tossing and turning in her bed on Monday night. The secondary school certificate (SSC) student from Dadar could only think of worst case scenarios, after a "tough" science and technology paper earlier that day, for the mathematics examination on March 15.
Several other students are working up a sweat over the upcoming examination, whose syllabus and question paper pattern were revised to be on a par with those of the CBSE board. Given the response to Monday's science and technology paper, whose syllabus and examination pattern were also revised, they may have reason to be jittery.
"I am still reeling under the effect of the extremely difficult science paper. Now, I have to score well in mathematics so that I can bring up my percentage. Mathematics has always been an unpredictable paper. And now that we know that the board is setting tough papers, I'm scared over what Thursday's paper has in store for me," said Paranjape.
High scores in science and mathematics are considered a must for students interested in pursuing the science stream Sudhanshu Athavle, a student from Bhayendar who is also preparing for the Maharashtra common entrance test, said for admission to top science stream junior colleges, his total score will have to be over 95%.
Individual marks in science and mathematics also have to be high. "The science paper was a disappointment. I am not going to be able to score more than 60 in that paper. Now, my focus is to do well in mathematics. I have been constantly solving practice papers and questions from outside the textbook," he said.
Experts, though, advised students to stay calm, to keep practising sums from the textbook and to understand concepts well.
Rutuja Shastri, a retired mathematics teacher, said students should solve at least 20 sums every day for practice.
"If we take the example of the science paper, it showed that the board is asking questions from every nook and corner of the textbook. I will advise students not to study from outside the textbook. Have your textbook down pat; be thorough with all the concepts in the book and their applications. Try to understand the concept so that no matter which way the question is twisted, you will be able to answer it," she said.
Only after they are thorough with the textbook should students refer to guidebooks, she suggested.

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Students find SSC science paper too HOT(S) to handle


Several of the three lakh-plus students appearing for the Secondary School Certificate (SSC) examination on Monday were taken aback when a gruelling Science and Technology paper, designed on the new syllabus pattern, was presented to them.
After this ‘extremely difficult’ paper, several students are now understandably apprehensive about their upcoming Mathematics papers, designed on similar lines.
For the first time this year, the state board has introduced new elements in the curricula, such as High Order Thinking Skills (HOTS).The questions in this section are apparently demanding enough to make the most intelligent students lose sleep.
Moreover, students had no precedents to fall back upon, since they were the first batch dealing with the new syllabus.
On Monday, students emerged from the exam halls seemingly dejected and disheartened. For most of them, section B, which consisted of biology and organic chemistry, was tough, while section A, comprising physics and compound chemistry, was relatively simpler.
Abhishek Nagwekar, a student from Andheri, said he was not confident of doing well in section B.
“The paper was very tough. The numerical problem was hard. I am worried whether I will even pass this paper. Section B was extremely hard. The pattern was also different from the ones we had been taught in school and coaching classes,” he said.
Surprisingly, students said they found the objective questions the hardest. Neha Jain from Thane said, “I am going to lose a lot of marks in the objective questions. This year they included questions such as ‘Odd man out’ and ‘Find the correlations’ in sections A and B. Generally these are restricted to biology and not compound physics. The small questions were tough.”

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Gometry Papers


Maharashtra Board is one of the boards in the country that conduct school level board exam. This is one of the best examination boards at the school level in the country. The students of this board during have to answer geometry papers. This is one of the most important papers as far as school students are concerned.
Detailed overview of the paper
The paper is purely based on geometry. The chapters include parallelogram, triangles, circles, chords, tangents and various other topics. The paper is totally descriptive and most questions are diagrammatic. The candidates need to answer after evaluating the diagram printed in the question paper. In some questions, the candidates are required to construct diagrams. Questions that require the students to make calculations are also present in the question paper.
Pattern of questions
The paper is devoid of any sections. There are five questions in the paper. All the five questions are compulsory. Internal choices are available in all the five questions. From question 1, 6 questions need to be answered. From questions two and three, four question need to be answered and from questions four and five three questions need to be answered. All the questions in the paper are descriptive.
Total marks and time duration
The total mark of the paper is 60. A candidate needs to score35% to pass. Three hours are allotted for completing the paper in addition to the 15 minutes that are allotted for reading the questions.
Tips to score well
The paper consists of geometrical questions only and the only way to master the subject and score well is by working out the questions repeatedly. Understand the concepts properly, refer to previous year question papers and cover the whole syllabus. This will help you to come out in flying colors.
Download Maharashtra Board, SSC, Geometry Papers

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Algebra Papers


The algebra paper revolves around simple maths topics but requires consistent practise for attaining high marks. A few chapters include H.C.F and L.C.M, arithmetic progression, probability and various other important topics.
Paper pattern
Maharashtra Board SSC-X Algebra question paper consists of five questions. There is no provision for choosing and the candidate has to attempt all the five questions. From the first question, the candidates have to attempt six sub questions. They have to attempt four from the second and third. Three questions have to be answered from Question 4 and 5. The use of calculators is not permitted and the candidates have to solve the problems manually. There are no sections in the question paper.
Distribution of marks
All the five sections are allotted equal marks, 12 marks. So, the whole paper is for a total of 60 marks. Within a question, all sub questions carry equal mark. The mark of each sub question will depend on the total number of sub question that you have to attempt in a section.
Duration of the paper
The exam is conducted for a period of two and a half hours. The candidates have to finish answering the paper within this allotted time. At the beginning of the examination, the candidates will be allotted 15 minutes for reading the questions and making choices. The candidates have to practise and should learn to do the numerical problems at a rapid speed if they have any notion of attempting all the questions.
Preparing for the exam
There is no other better way of preparing for the exam than working out the problems. There is no alternative when it comes to algebra. It is good to refer previous year question paper. This will enable you to familiarize the pattern of the question paper and face the exam without any difficulty.
Download Maharashtra Board SSC-X, Algebra Papers

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