Expected Changes in 2015 CBSE Class 12 Paper Pattern

CBSE may make small changes in its 2015 Class XII board exam paper pattern, going by the current sample tests for CBSE board exams 2015. While questions in some subjects will be reduced, some will see an increase. As per hypothesis, subjects like Political Science, Economics, Business Studies and Accountancy will have reduced number of questions and the number of "long answer" questions may be increased and two-three markers reduced. These and other changes were noticed in the sample papers students attempted recently.

For example, the Political Science mock paper doing the rounds has just 27 questions as opposed to 31 earlier, in addition to analytical questions. Besides this there are five 1-mark questions and five 2-mark questions now, instead of a single question of 10 marks. This is will enable children to score more marks. However, the marking will be more subjective because of the stress on more evaluative and analytical questions.

The Mathematics paper for CBSE Class XII Board 2015 is also expected to change minutely. The paper for Mathematics for CBSE Class 12 board exam is expected to have 26 questions instead of the erstwhile 29. Business Studies will also have 25 questions instead of 30. The paper also does not allow students to choose among the 6-mark question as earlier, which required them to give elaborate answers. This is clearly a shift from the paper that has been followed since the previous years.

Accountancy too saw changes in the sample papers. The paper tested candidates on Higher Order Thinking Skills (HOTS), meaning that the questions are not limited to text books but are focusing on application-based or interdisciplinary questions. While this may be a boon to students with good cognitive skills, but others may struggle to assimilate the questions in relation to the textbooks. 

Similar changes were observed in Chemistry & Economics sample papers for CBSE Class 12 Board exams, where again, the focus was on application based questions.  Based on the pre-board papers, the total number of questions has reduced from 32 to 29 in Economics; there are eight 6-markers now instead of six; and the number of 1 and 3-markers has been reduced from ten to eight in each case. 

“Such changes are always based on the subject committee recommendations," says a CBSE official.

Whether these changes will nerve-wreck the students or help them soar high with flying colours or not is yet to be seen, but most education providers and teachers are pro this change in pattern. Primarily because they all believe that it improves the overall skill-set and learning of the children enabling them to crack more difficult questions in future and ‘learn’ in the process. They believe that this will initiate exploratory and evaluative learning amongst students and they will become better receptors of whatever they are learning rather than just studying to notch up a grade in the exams.