Telangana Class 10 board exams to start from May 17

Hyderabad: The Telangana School Education Department has announced the Secondary School Certificate (SSC) exam schedule for class 10. The board exams will be held from May 17 to 26. The announcement came as the academic calendar for the rest of the year for classes 9 and 10 was released on Saturday. 

Schools in the state will reopen for classes 9 and 10, starting from February 1. However, attendance is not mandatory but the students will need written consent from the parents or guardians. Classes will happen both online and offline. There have been nearly 115 working days of virtual classes for students of classes 9 and 10, from September 1 to January 30. There are only 89 working days remaining, including exams and assessments, from February 1 to May 26. 

According to the calendar, the two sets of formative assessments (ongoing class evaluations) must be completed by March 15 and April 15, while the summative assessments, or final exams, will take place from May 7 to 13. The SSC board exams for class 10 will be held from May 17 to 26. There will be no minimum attendance requirement for appearing for any of the exams. 

“Every child who is willing to write the relevant exam shall be allowed to do so without insisting on minimum attendance and no such child will be withheld from writing the examinations on any grounds,” the memo from the School Education Department said.  

The academic calendar also specified that 30% of the syllabus (which has already been communicated) must be completed at home, under the guidance of parents and teachers, and will not be part of the assessments or exams. The remaining 70% syllabus being taught by teachers in schools and online will be relevant to the exams. 

The timings for classes have also been announced. In Hyderabad and Secunderabad, schools will be open from 8.45 am to 4 pm, while in other parts of the state, they will function from 9.30 am to 4.45 pm. 

The dates for summer vacation have also been announced, from May 27 to June 13, which means that the next academic year for schools is likely to return to a conventional schedule. Schools in Telangana usually reopen every year around June 12.