The aim of reducing the stress of taking multiple tests for students. The common
entrance exam, planned as a SAT-type test, is likely to be held online from 2014.
A common aptitude-cum advanced knowledge test will replace
the IIT Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) and the All India Engineering Entrance
Examination (AIEEE) in 2013. Test scores will have 60 per cent weight in deciding
admissions; school board marks will have 40 per cent. Test and board scores will
determine admissions to all centrally funded engineering institutions. The common
entrance exam, planned as a SAT-type test, is likely to be held online from 2014,
and could be given twice a year, highly placed sources said: “The paper test is
likely to stay on until the online system stabilizes”. The NIT council has approved
the new format. All the IITs have agreed too, and are likely to give their formal
approval at a meeting of the Joint Admission Board (JAB) on February 18th, 2012.
The human resource development (HRD) ministry has formed a committee of IIT directors
and CBSE officials to work out the modalities before the meeting. The ministry has
been working on a common entrance format for over a year, with the aim of reducing
the stress of taking multiple tests for students just out of Class 12, checking
the coaching business which promotes learning by rote, and reinforcing the importance
of school education. HRD Minister Kapil Sibal plans to take the proposal to the
Central Advisory Board of Education (CABE) to help in building the acceptability
and consensus for the common entrance test among state governments. “The common
entrance exam will have two elements—simple aptitude testing to assess scholastic
levels, and an advanced section which a student can choose to either continue with
or skip,” said a source.
“This test will essentially produce only scorecards for
each student, and the concerned institute will then decide how it will use the 60
per cent weight”, say an IIT can rely more on scores achieved on the advanced level
section than on aptitude. It could be a 30-30 aptitude - advanced knowledge format
for IITs, and 40-20 for NITs,” the source said. “While AIEEE and JEE will go, the
JAB and the Central Counseling Board (CCB) will stay to work on these finer points
and modalities of admission.” The JEE currently decides admissions to the 15 IITs;
the AIEEE to the 30 National Institutes of Technology (NITs), 4 Indian Institutes
of Information Technology (IIITs), and 5 Indian Institutes of Science Education &
Research (IISERs). A host of private engineering and technical institutes in the
states also use AIEEE scores. Over 10 lakh students apply for AIEEE and 5 lakh for
JEE every year.
Courtesy: The Indian Express
