STAFF CORRESPONDENT

Education Minister Dipu Moni yesterday announced that there will be no Junior School Certificate and equivalent Junior Dakhil Certificate exams this year.

She also said during a press conference that she saw no reason to hold the exams in 2023 as well, as the exams for class-8 students were not part of the new curriculum,which does not propose public exams before class 10.

JSC and JDC exams were not held in 2020 and 2021 due to Covid restrictions. The government decided to scrap this year’s JSC and JDC exams as education boards would not get enough time to conduct the exams due to the delayed holding of SSC and HSC exams, officials said.

SSC and HSC exams are set to take place after a four-month delay due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

“We don’t have enough time to conduct JSC exams this year,” Dipu Moni said at the press conference held at her Secretariat office.

Since no JSC and JDC exams will be held, students will get certificates based on evaluations by their educational institutions, she added.

The new curriculum, which is set to be implemented in phases from January 2023, will be fully implemented by 2025.

Dhaka education board acting chairman Tapan Kumar Sarkar, said this year, SSC exams will begin on June 19 and HSC exams are likely to begin in late August and conclude in October. “So, it will not be possible to complete all preparations by November to conduct JSC and JDC exams,” he said.

Since introduction in 2010, JSC and JDC exams usually take place in November.

Many educationists have criticised the exams, calling them unnecessary and a source of stress for students.

Dipu Moni at the press conference also said the government will announce inclusion of more non-government educational institutions in the government’s Monthly Pay Order (MPO) scheme within this week.

She said roughly the same number of new schools will be brought under the scheme as in 2019, when 2,730 non-government schools were included.

Dipu Moni also said the government is considering appointing principals, head teachers and assistant head teachers, through the Non-Government Teachers’ Registration and Certification Authority (NTRCA).

Now assistant teachers of non-government schools are being appointed through the central examination under NTRCA.