CBSE Board Examination Results 2017: Lower percentages this year as Boards decide against Moderation

CBSE Board Examination Results 2017: Lower percentages this year as Boards decide against Moderation

New Delhi, Apr. 25, 2017: CBSE Board along with 32 other state boards have agreed to do away with the practice of moderation from this year. The decision comes after the HRD Ministry in its April 12 meeting decided to consult the states on the possibility. Direct impact of the policy would be on the CBSE Board Examinations 2017 Results. With moderation discontinued, the students can expect lower percentages. This would in turn lead to lower cutoffs. With the HRD Ministry’s intervention, 32 other boards have agreed along with CBSE and CISCE to not spike the marks from this year onward.

CBSE had already decided to do away with the practice last year. It was however mindful of the negative impact of a single board deciding against the practice of moderation. Moderation of marks is a common practice wherein boards provide grace or additional marks. The practice of spiking or increasing the marks pushes percentages upwards. Moderation is one of the primary reasons for higher percentages. Up till last year, CBSE had an active policy of moderation wherein it provided the coordinators to increase the marks of students to the next grade in one subject. As a result of the same, students were recording nearly perfect scores in their Board Examinations. Direct resultant was high cutoffs in the degree programs. Also | CISCE ISC, ICSE Results 2017 to be delayed this year, reports

Under the moderation policy, students have been known to be awarded 15 percent more marks if the paper was said to be difficult. In 2016 alone, many students were reported to have been awarded 16 marks in the Mathematics paper for All India Question set. On similar lines, students were reported to have been awarded upto 15 marks for the Delhi’s set of the same subject. Under moderation, there is a policy of standardization, where in the board decided to award similar increase in marks to all students. Effectively, say a student actually received 82 marks in Business Studies. Given the standardization process, the student would end up scoring 95, effectively increasing the overall percentage and in turn cutoffs.

This practice, however, is being dispensed with. With moderation not done, it is expected there would be lower percentages, which would directly have an effect on University Cutoffs. Last year, Delhi University’s top Commerce courses, B.Com Hons posted a high cut off of 100 percent. Some courses even required a student to have over 100 percent last to last year, creating uproar.