Don‘t miss the cloud behind the silver lining.(CLAT 2020)

Don‘t miss the cloud behind the silver lining. The Class XII CBSE pass result has soared to
an all-time high of 88.8%. The number of students scoring 95% and above has more than
doubled. If only these higher marks were a reflection of students getting more skilled and
more competitive. Instead, the odds are they simply mirror an assessment scheme relaxed to
compensate students for the many disruptions originating in the pandemic. The goal of
reducing student stress levels during this turbulent time is excellent and laudable. But it is a
fallacy that high marks can accomplish this by themselves. The real stressor, after all, is
shortage of opportunities. When every bout of grade inflation raises cut-offs for higher
education even higher, it is no succour. That India‘s Gross Enrolment Ratio is only 27%
compared to Indonesia‘s 36%, Thailand‘s 49% and the US‘s 88% is just one measure of the
toll taken by our failure to build adequate colleges and universities. Licence raj continues to
suppress autonomy and expansion in this sector. For example, a new national education
policy is reportedly mulling at least 20% of students being able to attend private higher
educational institutions through freeships and another 30% through scholarships, besides fee
caps. On top of the stasis already wreaked by reservations, this would be disastrous.
Browbeating the private sector to make up for public sector deficiencies is counterproductive.
As the pandemic has underlined the key role of good government services in healthcare, so
too is raising the standard of publicly funded schools and universities essential. What the
students need is an ecosystem where government institutions deliver quality education and
private options are plentiful. It is better prospects alone that will best alleviate students‘
stress. Meanwhile, crudely chopping syllabi will only worsen their disorientation and should
be reconsidered

1. What is the ‗cloud behind the silver lining‘ in the passage above?:
a) The Pandemic which is impacting the current education system.
b) That, the Governmental educational institutions are not able to deliver quality education.
c) Scoring Higher marks or percentage in school education does not guarantee skilled and
competitive candidature of the student.
d) License Raj has negatively impacted Higher education.

2. Which of the following statements weakens the argument that chopping the syllabi in
the times of Pandemic will only worsen a student‘s disorientation and hence should be
reconsidered?:
a) It does not matter even if syllabi is chopped. The students who don‘t want to study will
even not study in the minimal syllabi structure even during the pandemic.
b) Students don‘t care about syllabi. They study only for marks and grades.
c) Reduced syllabi will help in achieving the teaching-learning targets in due time and hence
won‘t put pressure on students.
d) All of the above.

3. The number of students scoring 95% and above in XII class board exams has more than
doubled. Which of the following statements serves as a plausible explanation for the same?:
a) Students have started studying with sincerity and concentration.
b) Evaluation of answer scripts has become liberal.
c) Question papers these days are easier to solve.
d) All of the above.

4. For developing a student friendly ecosystem of education, which of the following serve
as need of the hour, as per the Author?
I. Increasing the Syllabi in School education.
II. Building adequate number of public colleges and universities.
III. Eliminating Reservation in admissions to Higher education system.
IV. Creating a quality based education system:
a) Only I and II.
b) Only I, II and IV.
c) Only III.
d) Only II and IV

5. Which of the following can be inferred from the passage above?:
a) Scoring High marks in XII class can help in reducing stress amongst students in the times
of Pandemic.
b) High Cut-off of marks also contribute in reducing opportunities for the students.
c) Private institutions should not be regulated.
d) License Raj should be done away with