NEW DELHI: A staggering 65 lakh students across India failed to clear their Class 10 and 12 board exams in 2023, with the failure rate significantly higher in state boards compared to central boards, according to data released by the Ministry of Education (MoE). The numbers, which highlight a major challenge in India’s education system, have raised concerns about the effectiveness of both teaching standards and curriculum structure.
Disparities Between State and Central Boards
An in-depth analysis of the results from 59 boards comprising 56 state boards and three central boards revealed that students appearing for state board exams had a much higher failure rate compared to those enrolled in central boards. In Class 10, 33.5 lakh students failed to progress to the next grade, with 5.5 lakh not even appearing for the exams and another 28 lakh failing. This resulted in a 16 per cent failure rate in state boards, more than double the 6 per cent failure rate recorded for central boards.
Similarly, in Class 12, 32.4 lakh students did not complete the grade. This included 5.2 lakh students who did not show up for the exams and 27.2 lakh who failed. Here, too, state boards showed an 18 per cent failure rate, significantly higher than the 12 per cent recorded by central boards.
The lower pass percentage in state boards is contributing to declining retention rates and a lower Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) at the higher secondary level, a senior MoE official explained. The GER is a critical indicator that reflects the percentage of students enrolled in a specific level of education compared to the age group eligible for that level.
Gender Disparity in Exam Participation
Another key trend identified by the MoE’s analysis was the gender disparity in exam participation. In government-managed schools, more girls appeared for Class 12 exams compared to boys. However, this trend reversed in private and government-aided schools, where fewer girls sat for the exams.
Experts believe that this may reflect underlying social issues such as parental bias in spending on boys’ education in private institutions. “It may suggest that girls are more likely to remain in government schools, where education is more affordable, but parents are more willing to invest in private schooling for boys,” a senior official noted.
Despite this, girls consistently outperformed boys in terms of pass percentages across all types of schools government, aided, and private suggesting that when given the opportunity, girls excel academically.
Regional Variations in Failures
The data also showed considerable regional variation in student performance. Madhya Pradesh recorded the highest number of Class 10 failures, followed by Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. For Class 12, Uttar Pradesh had the highest failure rate, with Madhya Pradesh again close behind.
Students from open schools also struggled to pass the exams, with performance in both Class 10 and 12 showing particularly poor results. Open schools typically serve students who, for various reasons, are unable to attend traditional schools, and the low success rates indicate that this alternative system requires significant improvement to better serve its students.
Declining Performance Linked to Larger Syllabus
MoE officials pointed out that overall student performance in 2023 declined compared to the previous year. One possible reason, they suggested, is the larger syllabus introduced for the examinations. The pandemic-related adjustments made to syllabi in 2020 and 2021, which had reduced content, were rolled back in 2023, leading to more comprehensive exams.
“The larger syllabus could have posed challenges for both teachers and students who were still adjusting to the full curriculum after two years of reduced academic load,” an MoE official remarked.
The Ministry of Education is expected to review these troubling trends and work towards improving the academic environment, particularly in state board-affiliated schools. Efforts to reduce the gender gap in education and improve retention rates will also likely become a focal point of policy discussions in the near future.
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