Bengaluru: The school education department has launched a series of district-level interactive programmes with teachers and officials to strengthen preparations for the upcoming SSLC and II PUC examinations and improve pass percentages.The initiative began in Dharwad Friday, where the district has set a target of ensuring that every student scores above 60%, with a 100% pass rate. Dubbed ‘Target-60’, the goal is an improvement over last academic year’s target of 40%. Officials said targets would vary across districts.Teachers have been asked to focus on model question papers, question banks for lesson-based assessments (LBAs) and board examination blueprints. A student tracking system will monitor individual performance from LBAs and Summative Assessment 1 to the ongoing preparatory examinations.“Every Saturday, headmasters and teachers will analyse students’ performance and work collectively to improve outcomes. Meetings at the BEO and DDPI levels will be held fortnightly, while deputy commissioners will review progress once a month. The focus is on reaching the last child,” said Rashmi V Mahesh, additional chief secretary, department of School Education.Initiatives such as buddy pairing and morning alarm bells will continue. The department will also raise awareness about the rural quota reservation coming into effect this year and motivate students to explore higher education opportunities.Addressing concerns over absenteeism, Mahesh said although many students registered for exams last year, a significant number did not appear for either the preparatory or final exams. Parent-teacher meetings (PTMs) will be held this year, with teachers asked to visit students’ homes if parents do not attend school, to stress the importance of appearing for exams.School education minister Madhu Bangarappa said the absence of nearly 60,000 students from last year’s examinations was a concern, but cautioned against holding teachers solely responsible. “Personal and family-related problems faced by children could also have been responsible,” he said.Crediting teachers’ efforts, including special classes and additional learning support, for Karnataka’s record pass percentages of 98.08% in SSLC and 92.25% in II PUC last academic year, Bangarappa said teachers must now work towards achieving a 100% pass rate.
