The practice of internal assessment for college students shall be stopped, announced Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and Higher Education Minister KT Jaleel on Monday, reports The Hindu.
They were speaking at the Student Leaders' Conclave held at the Farook College in Kozhikode. The event was held for the Chief Minister to interact with student union members of colleges and universities. The first Student Leaders' Conclave was held in Thiruvananthapuram on December 10.
For the second conclave, there were students participating from various universities, including the Calicut and Kannur Universities, Kerala Kalamandalam, Kerala Agricultural University, Kerala Veterinary and Animal Sciences among others.
The Chief Minister said that students should not fail exams because they performed badly in internal assessment. He was responding to suggestions made by students in this regard.
Higher Education Minister Dr Jaleel said, “The Kerala Technological University has already decided that there will be no minimum marks for internal assessment. This will be extended to all other universities in the state in the next academic year.”
Among other announcements, the Chief Minister also said that the government was considering 50 per cent reservation for women in college unions since there are a large number of female students on campuses. Female students would also not have any restriction to enter University libraries at any time, and it should remain open 24 hours.
Pinarayi Vijayan also said that the Preamble of the Constitution should be read in schools every day. Another announcement was about the plan to introduce sex education for school students. The Chief Minister said that there was a need to change with the times.
At the first Students’ Conclave in Thiruvananthapuram, the Chief Minister had heard ideas from students to solve state issues. Nearly 500 student delegates attended the first conclave. The initiative was launched as part of the state's rebuilding process post the floods of 2018-19.