Different School Boards in Indian Education System, One Should have knowledge

Different School Boards in Indian Education System, One Should have knowledge

About a decades ago one, you were not required to look into the information regarding the various school boards in Indian Education system. Deciding the appropriate school board for your ward out of number of options is a confusing matter for parents. The Central Board Of Secondary Education(CBSE) and The Indian Council Of Secondary Education (ICSE) were the two prominent leading Boards in Indian School Education. But in this advanced and upgraded era number of more best options have been added to the list of Boards for best schooling for parents. With more choices comes more confusions. 
                               Here we bring solution for parents to provide help in knowing the details of different school boards in Indian Education System including Examination, assessment, curriculum criteria. Here you will get a fair idea about the features and benefits offered by different school boards in India.

India Schools offer both Indian and International Syllabi namely:
1. CBSE: Central Board of Secondary Education
2. CISCE: Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE)
3. IB: International Baccalaureate
4. IGCSE: International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) Cambridge University
5. State Board:State Government Recognised Board

Let’s consider each one of them….

CBSE (CENTRAL BOARD OF SECONDARY EDUCATION)

The CBSE is the most popular board in India Controlled and governed by UNION GOVERNMENT of INDIA. A Board which follows universal pattern is the first choice for parents with transferable Jobs. CBSE affiliates All Kendriya Vidyalayas, All Jawahar NaVodaya Vidyalayas, Private Schools and Schools approved by Central government Of India.The Board has global presence with nearly 145 affiliated schools across 21 countries.CBSE always works with a vision to provide stress-free education by adapting innovative teaching methods infused with psychological and instructive principles.

                The Board has decentralised its administration which helped to execute its functions effectively and mantain the educational standards across the country. Regional Offices have been set up in different parts of the country to be more responsive to affiliated schools. It has its regional office in Ajmer, Chennai, Allahabad, Guwahati, Chandigarh and Delhi.

SYLLABUS: CBSE syllabus more or less focuses on preparing students for Engineering and Medical Entrance Examination. All National entrance Examination are conducted as per CBSE syllabus. The Board emphasis on the use of NCERT books which forms the basis of all Entrance exams.

EXAMINATION: The two major examinations conducted by CBSE are All India Secondary School Examination (AISSE) for Class 10th and All India Senior School Certificate Examination(AISSCE) for Class 12th. It also conducts JOINT ENTRANCE EXAMINATION(JEE) for admission to premium Engineering Colleges in India and All India Pre-Medical Test(AIPMT) for admission to medical colleges in India.

FACTS

• Total Number of Schools Affiliated with CBSE: 14808
• Areas of Operation: 25 Countries including India, Malaysia, Dubai etc
• Major entrance exams syllabus based on CBSE viz. IIT, AIPMT etc

ADVANTAGES

1) The diversity factor in schools with CBSE board is high as more students from different backgrounds are likely to end up in the same class.

2) Quality of Content (No Errors/ No Printing Mistakes) in Textbooks’ is good.

3) Continuous And Comprehensive Evaluation (CCE), a new system of education implemented by CBSE for students of sixth to tenth grades. It removes the marking system and introduces grading system based on a series of curricular and extracurricular activities.

4) Easy to find tutors, books and activities for all classes.

5) Focus on Science and Mathematics as well as application based subjects.

6) Recognition by all colleges in India.

7) Centralized system for transferring across all CBSE schools.

8) Numerous talent search examinations and scholarship exams such as SSTSE, NSEB, NSEC etc held at local and national level base their content on CBSE syllabus just because it is more prevalent.

DISADVANTAGES

1) Although Major Entrance Exams syllabus is based on CBSE, the fact that the seats for those courses are open for all students in India. And colleges which are coming under state universities have more reserved seats for students from state boards. So students from CBSE board who wouldn’t crack entrance exams face problems in getting admission in state university colleges as they have very less number of seats for CBSE Board quota.

2) Fees can be on the high side for some schools.

3) There aren’t enough options to explore in the field of Arts and Literature.

CISCE (Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations)

The Council for the Indian School Certificate Examination(CISCE) is a private non-governmental board of school education in India. The main objective of ICSE is to provide high quality education to students through a practical approach. It Encourage students to choose across diverse streams/subjects for Class 12th by putting equal emphasis on science, arts, and language subjects especially English.

SYLLABUS: CISCE syllabus is more vast and comprehensive in comparison with that of CBSE. It has structured in away to give practical knowledge and build analytical skills required for the overall development of a student.

EXAMINATION: This body conducts 3 examinations, namely

• ICSE (Indian certificate secondary education) exam for class 10

• ISC (Indian school certificate) exam for class 12

• CVE (Certificate for vocational education) exam for class 12

FACTS

• Total Number of Schools Affiliated with CISCE: Approx. 1000
•  Subjects Offered ICSE in 2013-14 with 23 Indian languages and 12 are foreign languages.
• Areas of Operation: India, UAE, Singapore, Indonesia
• Subjects Offered ISC in 2013- 15 with 23 Indian languages and 12 are foreign languages.

ADVANTAGES

1. Course curriculum is wide, covering a range of topics to explore overall growth of students.

2. CISCE prefers to give more practical Knowledge and focus more on analytical skills.

3. Subject selection options available to students to follow their liking for a particular subject.

4. The CISCE board has equal focus on languages, science and art and encourages students to choose across diverse topics / subjects for their Class-12 exam.

DISADVANTAGES

1. Students may find syllabus a bit difficult.

2. Students would find it hard to shift to other boards or Pre-Science Colleges (11-12 Standards)

3. Higher Fees

4. Although Major Entrance Exams syllabus is based on CISCE, the fact that the seats for those courses are open for all students in India. And colleges which are coming under state universities have more reserved seats for students from state boards. So students from CISCE board who wouldn’t crack entrance exams face problems in getting admission in state university colleges as they have very less number of seats for CISCE Board.

 IB (INTERNATIONAL BACCALAUREATE)

Formerly the International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO), is an international educational foundation headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland and founded in 1968. It is a a no-profit educational organization that offers prime quality programmes for children aged between 3 to 19yrs. The IB schools are considered prestigious at the same very expensive. It focuses on Analytical skills, language, Arts and HUmanities. The purpose of the IB is to produce global citizens.

SYLLABUS: IB has international curriculum where subjects are taught in an integrated way in order to avoid a fragmented approach. Students are given free liberty to explore across countries.

EXAMINATION: It offers 3 educational programs, namely

• PYP or Primary year program for KG to Class-5

• MYP or Middle year program for Class-6 to Class-10

• DP or Diploma program for Class-11 and Class-12

FACTS

• Number of Schools: Approx 3500 worldwide & 130 in India.

• Areas of Operations: 144 Countries including India, USA, UK, Australia etc.

ADVANTAGES

1. International Board recognized by most of the Universities of the world.

2. Students can apply to Foreign Universities wherein CBSE and ICSE board is not recognized.

3. Recognized by UNESCO, Council of Europe, Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie (OIF)

4. Curriculum based on application and experimentation.

5. Better Infrastructure of Schools.

6. Best option if parents are NRI, or are planning to move abroad.

DISADVANTAGES

1. Fee is on the higher side.

2. Found only in metropolitan cities and Tier-1 cities of India

3. Difficult for students to shift boards if need arises.

4. Tuition, Books not easily available.

IGCSE (INTERNATIONAL GENERAL CERTIFICATE OF SECONDARY EDUCATION)

IGCSE is an academically rigorous, internationally used, specialised, English language curriculum which is offered to students to prepare them for International Baccalaureate and CIE A-level.

SYLLABUS: Cambridge International offers a choice of over 70 subjects at IGCSE level and over 55subjects, which makes it one of the most flexible education boards in India. Schools can shape the curriculum around how they want students to learn. A lot of emphasis is put on English Language and students are encouraged to propel their creativity through a variety of writings. Then there is additional focus on foreign language too.

EXAMINATION:

• Cambridge Primary, typically for learners aged 5 to 11 years

• Cambridge Secondary 1

• Cambridge Secondary 2 is typically for learners aged 14 to 16 years. It offers learners two routes: Cambridge IGCSE and Cambridge O Level.

• Cambridge Advanced is typically for learners aged 16 to 19 years who need advanced study to prepare for university and higher education. It offers learners two routes: Cambridge International AS and A Level, and Cambridge Pre-U.

FACTS

• Number of Schools: Approx 200 in India

• Areas of Operations: 120 Countries including India, USA, UK.

ADVANTAGES

1. International Board recognized by most of the Universities of the world.

2. Students can apply to Foreign Universities wherein CBSE and ICSE board is not recognized.

3. More advanced curriculum and variety of subjects to choose from.

4. More emphasis on English and Technical Subjects

5. Best option if parents are NRI, or are planning to move abroad.

DISADVANTAGES

1. Fee is on the higher side.

2. Found only in metropolitan cities and Tier-1 cities of India

3. Difficult for students to shift boards if need arises.

4. Tuitions, Books not easily available.

STATE BOARDS

Every State Government imparts Primary, Secondary and Higher Secondary Education in its respective state. State boards are specific to each State and follows separate syllabus and grading methodogy. It focusses on State Level topics and content of Local Relevance which helps students in preparing for state level engineering and Medical Entrance tests.

SYLLABUS: Regional languages and culture have a prominent place in the syllabus. The syllabus is usually limited when compared to other. some state boards have ordered all their schools to follow NCERT books only which are important for students to prepare for All India Examinations.

EXAMINATION

• SSC: Secondary School Certificate, 10 Board Exams

• HSC: Higher School Certificate, 12 Board Exams

FACTS

• Areas of Operations: Every State and Union Territory of India

ADVANTAGES

1. Favourable for parents without Transferable Jobs.

2. Easily available Textbook, Teachers.

3. Moderately loaded curriculum giving options for Students to explore more extracurricular activities like Dancing and Sports.

4. Lower Fees.

5. More reserved seats within the state recognised colleges

DISADVANTAGES

1. Depends wholly on the State government’s competence to maintain quality of education.

2. Quality of Teaching varies according to school.

3. Might Lack in basic facilities.

4. Quality of Content (No Errors/ No Printing Mistakes) may be questionable.

Hope you have found more clarity regarding which board to select for your young ones.

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