PHOTO: FILE
PESHAWAR: The rate of literacy might not be very high in Pakistan but when it comes to appearing in board examinations, most students take the matter quite seriously. Not being able to score a certain percentage means many students may not be able to get into the universities of their choices, while others may have their academic and professional futures hanging in the balance because of poor performance.
Under such a scenario, many students request a rechecking and retotalling service that educational boards offer to students who are confident that they might get a boost if their papers are retotalled or scrutinised anew. And although it’s a standard procedure across all the educational boards in Pakistan, it has, unfortunately, become a source of additional income in Khyber Pakhtunkhawa (K-P).
Even with the money involved, where each student is required to pay Rs500 to get their papers rechecked or totalled, students accuse the board of declining the majority of the requests while only entertaining a select few who have connections in the board.
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“Retottaling and rechecking of exam papers is standard practice and every student who requests that is entertained,” Bashir Khan, acting chairman of Peshawar Board told The Express Tribune. “It’s a misconception that only select students can avail the service.”
A student named Ikram*, who has passed his grade 11 exams through the Peshawar Board and had always been a high-achieving student, however, disagrees with Bashir Khan and thinks that the service is offered to those who are influential.
Ikram scored 1,025 marks out of a total of 1,100 in his grade 11 examination and wanted to seek admission in Peshawar’s leading Islamia College. He had been confident about his performance and was sure to get a boost after the rechecking process.
Therefore, he applied to the Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education (BISE) Peshawar for the procedure of retotalling but, after 10 days, he received an SMS from the board saying that there has been no change in his marks.
“One of my friends, who studied in a private school and whose father works for the health department in Peshawar, also applied for a retotalling and rechecking request and he got a significant boost in his percentage through the procedure,” Ikram explained. “In this way, he was able to get admission in the college of his choice.”
According to the current statistics, some 900,000 students appeared in the matric exams through the Peshawar Board this year, while 700,000 students appeared in their intermediate exams. Both the matric and intermediate boards are bound to check the papers and declare the results within 90 days.
A reliable source at the Peshawar Board, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said that the board has received a large number of rechecking and retotalling request from dissatisfied students, however, their papers have not been rechecked even after a payment of Rs500 from each student.
“All the papers are not treated in the same manner as only those students who have some connections within the board are given preferential treatment,” the board official confessed. “Influential students even get their desired marks during the retotalling process, while those without any references would receive an automated SMS saying that there has been no change in their total marks.”
Per details, parents of the students who applied for the rechecking and retotalling service have requested the higher-ups in the Peshawar Board to look into the allegations and urged the education minister and advisers to take immediate action against those involved.
*Names have been changed.
Published in The Express Tribune, August 6th, 2019.
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