To maintain exclusivity, RPVVs will no longer offer vocational subjects

As per CBSE guidelines, if students do not pass in one of their main papers, those marks can be substituted with marks obtained in their vocational subject.




Vocational subjects will no longer be offered at Rajkiya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalayas (RPVVs) run by the Delhi government, citing the need for academic excellence in these exclusive schools. The decision was taken at an academic council meeting of the RPVVs in September 2019 and was communicated to teachers last month.

RPVV students will also not be allowed to opt for the easier ‘Basic Maths’ paper as these schools “should have a Mathematics standard”, the academic council has decided.

There are 22 RPVVs in Delhi which are supposed to be model government schools with the best teachers, infrastructure and resources. While other Delhi government schools are “open for all”, entrance tests are conducted for admission to these schools in classes VI and IX.

The academic council decided to scrap vocational and ‘non-academic’ subjects offered by CBSE in all these schools from the coming academic year of 2020-2021.

This means that students of classes IX and X can only opt for ‘main subjects’ offered by CBSE — Hindi, English, Science, Social Science, Mathematics and a choice of language subject. They will not be allowed to choose optional skill subjects offered by the board, which students can opt for in addition to the main subjects. These include IT; Artificial Intelligence; Media, and Introduction to Financial Markets.

The reason, as recorded in the minutes of the meeting, is: “There should not be any skill subject in RPVVs as RPVVs have been established for imparting quality education in main subjects.”

As per CBSE guidelines, if students do not pass in one of their main papers, those marks can be substituted with marks obtained in their vocational subject.

Similarly, senior secondary students in RPVVs will not be offered vocational subjects or Music, Fine Arts, Home Science and Physical Education as main subjects. While students opt for these subjects out of interest and affinity, many also opt for vocational subjects or Home Science and Physical Education to have a “high scoring subject” in hand to raise their overall percentage. In fact, in government schools across Delhi, students seen as “low performers” are encouraged to opt for vocational subjects to boost their chances of passing their board exams.

On the decision to not offer ‘Basic Maths’, the minutes read: “… RPVVs are trendsetters of DoE and are known for their academic excellence; all RPVVs should have Mathematics-Standard.”

Earlier this academic session, CBSE had offered students of class X the chance to opt for the easier ‘Basic Maths’ paper for their board examination, and a majority of students in Delhi government schools were encouraged to opt for this to increase their passing chance.

Some teachers, however, have raised apprehensions. “In a bid to increase pass percentages, they’ve been pushing students to opt for these subjects and now they’ve decided to completely deny the choice… These are offered by the board, and in the best private schools as well… This decision shouldn’t be taken unilaterally,” said a teacher at one of the RPVVs.

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