BSEK mockery of mock test
BSEK makes a mockery of preparations for annual exams
Karachi, March 26: If arrangements made for the mock examinations reflect the preparedness of the
Board of Secondary Education Karachi (BSEK) to conduct the actual papers for the
annual examination of 2011, then the candidates could be in for a rough
ride.
Arrangements made by the Board of Secondary Education Karachi came under fire on Friday, with parents and students saying that if things continued in this manner, the candidates would be unable to secure decent marks in the actual exams.
The board conducted the mock exam for the English Part-I paper for the Secondary School Certificate of the Science and General Group. This is the very first time that the board had held mocks before the actual examinations and the paper was scheduled from 9:30am to 12:30pm.
A number of the venues lacked the required seating space to accommodate the candidates. Some of the parents said that when their children had reached the Pakistan Model School in Gulshan-i-Hadeed to take the mock exam, they were surprised to discover that the building was locked. The students were subsequently shifted to another building which was located nearby.
The alternative venue also had its fair share of problems. The ground-floor could not be used as it had been rented out to a family and students were made to take their exams on the first floor. In an effort to accommodate those students who were unable to find a place inside the building, the school's management erected tents outside.
Things didn't seem much at the KTS-11 school of Korangi. Despite the fact that this particular school had been blacklisted, it was chosen as an examination centre. Although the board had previously decided that only two candidates would be seated on a single bench at the centres, students could be seen sitting three abreast at this examination centre in Korangi. Since there was a massive lack of seating space, some of the students were forced to give their papers in the corridors of the school.
There were also reports of examinations getting underway after the scheduled start time as students giving their papers at the Madressa Talim-ul-Islam in Baldia town claimed that the exam did not begun until 10:00am.
The students said that although the management of the school had requested the BSEK to provide extra furniture to seat the candidates, no action had been taken in this regard. As a result, the Madressa Talim-ul-Islam was forced to hire additional benches from a decoration service.
Over at the PAF Government Girls Higher Secondary School on Drig Road, female candidates were forced to endure the humiliation of having to give their exams directly in front of the washrooms of the school.
The school, which had a capacity of 700 at the most, was forced to house over 1600 female candidates. Apart from the fact that there was no electricity or water at this centre, the candidates were also forced to sit on broken benches and chairs. The administration of this school was also forced to hire extra furniture to entertain the students and the start of the exam was delayed by at least half-an-hour due to the lack of seating space.
Earlier this week, a high-level committee constituted by the Governor of Sindh, had announced five grace marks for those students who were ready to participate in the mock exams and urged the candidates to take advantage of the opportunity and ensure their attendance.
The committee also decided that only one student would be seated on a single bench at the larger examination centres and directed the concerned departments to supply the necessary furniture. However, these instructions appeared to have been overlooked.
Invigilators and superintendents also had great difficulty in monitoring the mock exam. Secretary BSEK Hoor Mazhar said that 122,562 candidates had appeared at 166 examination centres. A high-level committee visited different examination centres, she also stated.
Board's employees also visited the centres and the chairman BSEK has called for a meeting of all members, who visited the examination centres, on Sunday, March 27. They would present their reports to the chairman and also highlight issues and problems pointed out at the examination centres, she further said. Mazhar said that the BSEK also established a complainant cell at the Board Office. Adding that the complaints received and recommendations which would discussed during the meeting on March 27. The Board would like to address these matters before holding the annual examinations, she added. The news
'One bench to one student' demanded in coming exams
Karachi: Chairman All Private Schools Management Association,
Sindh chapter Syed Khalid Shah Friday appealed to Sindh Governor Dr Ishratul
Ibad Khan and Chairman Board of Secondary Education Karachi (BSEK) Anzar Zaidi
to allocate one bench to one student in the coming examinations. In a statement
here on Friday, he also demanded to establish more examination centres in big
schools of the city. He said that the examination date could be extended 15
days, if the BSEK faces problems in arrangements. Shah said that all private
schools would collect fees by March from class-X students. ppi
BIEK dispatches mark sheets
Karachi: Controller of Examinations, Board of Intermediate Education Karachi (BIEK), Professor Agha
Akber Mirza on Friday said that the mark sheet of HSSC supplementary
examinations 2010 for private candidates of science group had been dispatched to
their residential addresses.
The failure of supple exams 2010 (private candidates of science group), who are eligible to appear at the HSSC annual examinations 2011, are advised to submit their examination forms and fees at the booth of the UBL, BIEK, he said.
Meanwhile, these candidates could submit examination forms without late fee from March 28 to April 7 and with late fee of Rs200 from April 8 to April 14, he added. Moreover, such candidates could submit forms with late fee of Rs500 from April 15 to April 19 and with late fee of Rs1,000 from April 20 to April 23, Mirza said. Furthermore, all leftover private candidates of science group could submit their forms with late fee of Rs1500 from April 25 to 28.
SPLA threatens to boycott classes
Karachi: The Sindh
Professors and Lecturers' Association has demanded of the government to
immediately approve the summary of timescale and issue a notification in this
regard or else they would resort to boycotting classes.
Addressing a hurriedly-called press conference at DJ Sindh Government Science College on Friday, President SPLA Mirza Athar Hussain said that if the government did not issue the notification by April 21 then their association would boycott classes from the next day across the province.
He said that the students enrolled at public sector colleges did not belong to elite class and they were very serious to complete their terms on time, but the government did not seem serious in solving teachers' problems and that was why the SPLA had been left with no option but to resort to boycotting classes.
"We will call a general body meeting at DJ College on April 21 following which the SPLA members would march towards Chief Minister House to press for their demands regarding timescale and shortage of teaching staff at public sector colleges," he said.
He announced that the association would be holding general body meetings and staging rallies outside any two public sector colleges of Sindh from March 26. He said that the government should fulfill its promises or else the boycotting process may also upset the preparations and holding of annual examinations in the province, he warned.
30 college teachers bailed out
Karachi: Around 30 teachers of the public sector colleges were bailed out on personal surety of Rs5,000 each on
Friday. The 30 teachers of the public colleges along with their hundreds of
colleagues were marching towards Sindh Chief Minister House to stage a sit-in
for acceptance of their demands, were taken into police custody the other day.
All the 30 were produced in the court of Judicial Magistrate (South) Nadeem Badr
Qazi on Friday and were granted bail on personal surety of Rs5,000 each. The news
Suspension of UHS VC demanded
Lahore: Pakistan Medical Association (PMA) has demanded immediate suspension of
vice chancellor of University of Health Sciences Dr Hussain Mubashir Malik and
new appointment purely on merit.
The PMA alleged that the VC had allowed his son Imtiaz Mubashar, who has recently graduated from Wah Medical College to appear in the four professional exams of the MBBS despite having an attendance less than 75 percent. He not only allowed him to appear in all the exams in violation of rules but also get medals and positions in a number of subjects. The nation
'Change in curricula must for tolerant society'
Lahore: Speakers at a discussion, underlining the importance of a tolerant society, stressed the need
for revisiting the curricula with an ultimate aim of sensitising the people of
the country to take care of the weak.
The discussion was held at the Dorab Patel Auditorium of Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) on Friday.
Renowned artist and writer Salima Hashmi and prominent feminist activist Nighat Said Khan, who was also the Executive Director of ASR Resource Centre Pakistan, were among the key participants while some participants also spoke on the occasion and put forward suggestions to achieve peace and supremacy of human rights in the Pakistani society.
Earlier, two different documentaries, including the Bangladesh War of Liberation in 1971: "War Crimes 71" by Shahriar Kabir and "Women and War" by Tarique and Catherine Masud, were screened, highlighting the denial of the peoples' will in 1971, which led to the break-up of the country. The Friday's programme was titled "Forty Years of Silence 1971-2011".
According to Nighat Said Khan, Pakistan cannot move forward unless it confronts the tragic past, saying the country must uphold the international principles on war crimes and crimes against humanity.
She said in the first instance, Pakistan must make a public apology to the people of Bangladesh. At the same time, it must hold those specifically responsible for ordering or perpetrating the violence and suppression to its own citizens by putting those responsible on trial even if they were no longer alive, she added.
She further said this would not only work towards restoring our own humanity but would also establish that impunity would not be given under any circumstances.
Nighat Said Khan was of the view that giving impunity whether to the military, paramilitary forces; police; non-state actors, those responsible for communal and individual violence and crimes had led to a society in which those with power were made to atone for their crimes.
"Unless this begins to happen, the history will repeat itself while Pakistan descends into further chaos and uncertainty," she went on to say.
She also said it was unfortunate that Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah's speech in which he categorically stated that religion had nothing to do with the state was not being taught to the students.
Salima Hashmi stressed the need for questioning, saying "Everything should be questioned". She further said there was a need to raise voice for the weak, adding it was unfortunate that the same was not being highlighted by the curricula taught to the students. She went on to say that bias and superiority were being promoted through education.
According to her, the media in Pakistan is not fully independent today, saying: "An independent media is still a dream in the country."
PU courtyard
Lahore: The White Pearl
Courtyard established at the Punjab University's College of Art and Design
(PUCAD) was inaugurated on Friday. The theme of the courtyard is peace and
beautiful pieces of artwork which haven painted on the back wall and contributed
by artist Iftikhar Butt. The courtyard was illuminated with white lights, white
paper doves and other art items. The news
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