CBSE drops some elective, vocational subjects

Mumbai: The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has decided to drop seven academic electives subjects and seven vocational subjects for the forthcoming examination of the year 2018. The option of 27 vocational subjects still remains with students if they have to opt for the standard 12 exam as per CBSE’s latest circular to schools across the country.  

Students pursuing these subjects currently in standard XI shall continue with them in standard XII in 2017-18 and appear for exams in the same subject.  The CBSE has withdrawn these subjects due to low-enrolment issues.

Kalpana Dwivedi, principal of St Joseph school CBSE school, Panvel explained that previously, there were five mandatory subjects. “Now, since the options have been reduced, it will be difficult for the students to choose. Students who are weak in main subjects will not benefit from this decision. But the decision is of CBSE so we have to accept it,” she said.

Avnita Bir, principal of R.N. Podar School, Khar (west) said, “The decision is good. Students who opted for these subjects in standard XI will be allowed to pursue them this year and appear for board examinations too.”

Satwik Tripati, a standard XI CBSE student said, “It has both positive and negatives. Basically, we are loosing the choice of choosing the subjects.”

Subjects such as poultry, nutrition, physiology, management of dairy animals, health education, communication, confectionary, music aesthetics, office communication, first aid and emergency medical care, and integrated transport operations have been removed from the vocational stream. Daiwik Tadikanda, as standard XI student from R.N. Podar school said, “Now I have only a limited options to choose from.”