The Cambridge Assessment International Education examinations for A Level students started across Pakistan on Monday, despite the reservations raised by students who called for cancelling the examinations.
In an online campaign on twitter through the hashtag, #NCOCcancelexam, the students of O and A levels demanded Prime Minister Imran Khan to cancel the examination. They
The students had raised reservations as there has been a surge in coronavirus case amid the third wave of the virus. Many students were unprepared as their course wasn’t complete in online classes as their studies were closed due to closure of educational institutes.
READ MORE: Cambridge exams commence under strict SOPs nationwide
The students said the disparity between the two modes of studies had left devastating effects on their performance last year. Most of the schools had not completed the course for many subjects due to online classes and additional school closures.
The students revealed that several schools had not disclosed coronavirus cases among their faculty and students, claiming that there were a lot of potential patients in schools who might choose to skip exams to recover from the infection.
They said the students of local education boards not only got their syllabus reduced, but were also given extra time to prepare for exams but they were deprived of any such relaxation.
#NCOC should save lives of #Pakistani students. #NCOCcancelexam as #PakistaniLivesMatter
When entire country is @ high risk of #Covid19 ,life of students should not be put at risk. @Asad_Umar rise to the occasion. Cambridge can take school assessed grades. pic.twitter.com/E5jV6f8Ye4— Arshad Sharif (@arsched) April 25, 2021
CIE O/A level exams need to be postponed, otherwise we might see a dangerous surge of #COVID19 patients in our teenagers! A apocalyptic situation indeed.#NCOCcancelexam
— Zain Khan (@ZKhanOfficial) April 25, 2021
Kids are traumatised! They’re being treated very unfairly; their careers are on the verge of being ruined. Many many will suffer coz of these exams; mentally, emotionally, as well as their health is at huge risk. Only person to be blamed for all this is #ShafqatMahmood https://t.co/Jdbe8s4Gn1
— Ayesha Saeed (@Ayesha2Saeed) April 25, 2021
I don’t want anyone praising the youth for being brave and giving these exams. We were not brave but were forced by the government to give these exams amidst the deadly third wave. We weren’t brave, the government was ignorant & selfish @Asad_Umar @ImranKhanPTI #NCOCcancelexam
— Lai (@laibausmantg) April 25, 2021
Federal Education Minister Shafqat Mahmood announced that Cambridge exams for A Level students will start on April 26, while for O Level students on May 10.
Last week, the Islamabad High Court (IHC), Lahore High Court (LHC) and Sindh High Court (SHC) had dismissed as non-maintainable a writ petition seeking cancellation of in-person O and A level exams.
Mahmood wished students the very best as they take their examinations. “These are tough times and difficult decisions have been made keeping the students’ best interest in view,” he said in a tweet.
Soon after this, #ShafqatMahmood became one of the top trends on Twitter. Many students urged him to stop risking the lives of the students while others claimed that SOPs were not being implemented at various examination centres.
Mahmood remarked that “some nobodies who have jumped into this situation for cheap publicity are going so far as to distribute fake pictures of examination halls.”
He claimed that their attempt to spread confusion has failed and will continue to fail because they are not interested in students but in self-projection.
