A maths situation puzzles CBSE students in UAE

Dubai — Thousands of Indian students of CBSE Grade 12 in the UAE are pinning hopes on liberal evaluation and grace marks in their extraordinarily tough maths exam as sitting for a retest will be practically impossible for most of them.

The mathematics exam that took place on Wednesday has been dubbed the most difficult in the past decade and students and teachers are afraid not even the brightest students will score full marks.

Students depressed over the test paper, that can affect their higher studies and future, told Khaleej Times that their only hope is to get some moderation and a liberal evaluation policy from the CBSE rather than sit for a retest, the second option being mulled by the board following a barrage of complaints in India.

“We would like to get a re-exam. But it won’t be practically feasible for most of us, as we are going back to India for entrance exams,” said Hajara Hilal, a student of The Indian High School, Dubai.

Midhuna Murali, from Our Own Indian School, said most students have booked their tickets to India for attending medical-engineering entrance tests and also to join regular courses in colleges.

“In my case, the entire family is cancelling visas and going back. I just cannot come back and take a retest,” she said.

Some students, whose exams are over, have already left the UAE and many are just waiting to finish the remaining exams.

Maths teachers said most questions were not asked in a traditional way.

“The questions were totally unfamiliar and were never discussed in textbooks or previous exam papers. Most questions required high order thinking skills and many students became panicky,” said one teacher.

Another teacher said the marks in this paper will not only affect the future of the students, but also the KHDA ratings of schools here. -sajila@khaleejtimes.com