All parents have a concern about which Board should they enroll their child in. To address this, GEMS Genesis International School (GGIS) organised a seminar where Sridhar Rajagopalan was the speaker. He addressed the parents and explained that parents are better off choosing a good school and not focusing just on Boards. The seminar answered numerous queries and parents were heartened to find answers to their issues.

2. Some years ago, we had organised a Maths quiz on Ramanujam’s
birthday for class 9-10 students. After it was over, a gentleman
approached me..
The quiz was really good – I
want my son to participate too!
I think this will help him do well in the Board Exams too, right?
How can he prepare for it?
Are there any books you recommend?
Is there any special training or workshop for this?
Oh! Actually he is only is class 1 now, but
I am very keen he should start preparing!

3. Background
About the Different Boards
Comparative Analysis
Some Recommendations
Question – Answer Session

4. Studied in Calcutta and Delhi in ICSE and CBSE Schools, then
IIT Madras and IIM Ahmedabad
Our school principal became chairman of CBSE…
Co-founded Eklavya School and Eklavya Institute of Teacher
Education in 1996
Co-founded Educational Initiatives in 2001 – to promote
‘learning with understanding’
Different studies which indirectly compared the performance
of different Boards
Work with about 1500 schools and 18 state governments on
assessments and learning
Examination Reform Committee Member, Gujarat Govt, 2010
sridhar@ei-india.com

5. The school matters much more than the Board!
Though there are differences between the Boards, these will tend
to reduce in the years to come
Expect drastic changes in Education over the next 10 years.
There will be 2 main drivers: Technology and Policies
Skills will become more important than Marks – ‘Rote Learning’
will not work
All-round development more important than marks alone
Stress comes from lack of quality options, not ‘Board Exams’
It is best if primary education can be in the mother tongue
Support your children – let them discover their strengths,
do not overload them because you are anxious 

7. Outside
BOARD India India
CBSE 10000 150
Gujarat Board 6000 0
ICSE 2000 10?
IGCSE 300 8700
IB 97 3400

8. Formed in 1962 by Government of India, the Board has
jurisdiction over all of India
Affiliates about 10,000 schools including about 150
schools outside India.
Conducts 10th (AISSE) and 12th (AISSCE) Board Exams. The 10th
Board Exam is now optional for schools that have 11th and 12th
The CBSE also conducts other tests like the Pre-Medical Entrance
Test, JEE (Main), etc.
All these schools are affiliated to the CBSE: Kendriya Vidyalayas,
Navodaya Vidyalaya, Sainik Schools, many chains like DPS, DAV,
Chinmaya (though they may have some other board schools)
Board with the strongest all-India presence. Uses NCERT
textbooks (which are good).

9. The CISCE was mooted in the 1950s to replace the British
‘Senior Cambridge’ examination
It is registered under the Societies Act and recognized
as an all-India Examination Board (like the CBSE)
It is a private body unlike the CBSE / Gujarat Board and
conducts Class 10 (ICSE) and Class 12 (ISC) exams
Schools must be English medium – claims that its alumni
(Arundhati Roy, Vikram Seth) have won many Pulitzer Prizes and
other awards
A number of elite schools that were affiliated to the Senior
Cambridge moved to the ICSE
Overall its numbers are about 2000 schools today – it gives more
schools space and freedom (true, compared to the CBSE)

10. Based in Geneva, Switzerland
Formed in 1968
3513 schools in 144 countries – India 5th with 97 schools after
USA, Canada, UK and Australia
Offers 3 programmes
Primary Years Programme (PYP)
Middle Years Programme (MYP)
IB Diploma Programme (IB)
No 10th Board Exam – only in the 12th
Emphasis on enquiry learning and original thinking, individual-
focussed – rigorous in its own way
Expensive

11. Part of UK based Cambridge International
Examinations (CIE)
The IGCSE is part of Cambridge Secondary 2
About 300 schools in India; over 9000 totally worldwide
Was the most well-known International Board in India before the
IB ‘caught on’
Curriculum seen as not as enquiry-based and activity / learner
oriented as the IB
Many schools that offer IGCSE also offer an Indian Board
5-6 schools in Ahmedabad offer IGCSE; about 35 schools in
Gujarat

12. Formed and run by the Gujarat government’s
Education department.
Conducts the class 10 and 12 exams
Schools affiliated to it must be Gujarati or English
medium
Recognized by all Indian Universities, equivalencies available for
most foreign universities also
Among the more progressive Boards in India today – in line with
other wings of Gujarat government. Working on an ambitious
Examination Reform project
However, the government itself is aligning to the NCERT
curriculum and open to schools going for the central boards

13. Boards like the NIOS (National Institute of Open Schooling) are
also available but are seen as lower quality options.
All Boards are by and large recognised by colleges across the
country and even the Indian boards are recognised by most
international college programmes
For example in Gujarat 5.052% of seats are reserved for CBSE
and 0.661% for ICSE! (International Board students face issues
including due to the timings of their Board results)
Transferring from 1 Board to another may require some
documentation but is usually possible.
Though subjects and offerings vary (mainly in terms of the
number of subjects and languages) – core subjects are common.
There are schools offering multiple Boards

17. No.. Actually we cannot say
It only means that the schools that perform the best have been
ICSE schools..
In general many elite schools have been ICSE-affiliated.
We cannot say that the ICSE Board is the *cause* of the good
performance..
.. though it could be 

18. Marks – Up, Up and Away…!
Why we chose the ICSE Board at Eklavya School
IGCSE vs ICSE – a discussion at Mallya Aditi School, Bangalore
The problem chain – boards – schools – parents - students

19. CBSE uses NCERT books – which are better than most other
books available in India
Maths – Science focus in CBSE is good. Language focus in ICSE
is good, higher than CBSE’s
ICSE has made Maths optional in class 10 – though most schools
do not give than option. Many feel Maths important till 10th
CBSE – more dynamic and changes are happening, but much
more interference from (the central) government
CBSE’s move to make the 10th Board optional has not found
support from any other board!
ICSE – not very dynamic – curriculum not changed for a while,
textbooks not prescribed, some may see as advantage
ICSE has stagnated a bit after its secretary was forced to leave
due to infighting

20. Gujarat Board Paper
CBSE Paper
IGCSE Paper
Source: Examples are from Gujarat Board, CBSE and IGCSE Class 10 papers of 2009
20

21. • What is the weight of the pituitary gland?
• Who were the parents of Benito Mussolini?
• How many members are there in the U.N.O.?
• Describe the method of irrigation prevalent in India
• Our highest import is from (Hong Kong, Italy, Kuwait)
• Write a short note on the scope of Ethics.
• Is Marxism relevant today? 2 marks
• Approximately how many stars are there in the universe?

22. 1. Repetition of identical (or very similar) questions from year to
year (hence playing into the hands of coaching classes)
2. Ambiguous phrasing of questions or questions phrased as ‘Write a
note on…’ (both of which require students to pour out all they
remember from the textbook on that topic)
3. Inordinately lengthy (perhaps in an attempt to ‘cover’ all chapters
of the textbook), hence allowing little time for actual thought, and
discriminating against thoughtful reflection
4. Designed to test a detailed knowledge of the textbook (including
trivia and/or errors within it) rather than competencies and core
concepts
-NCF Position Paper on Examination Reforms, 2005

24. The school matters much more than the Board!
Though there are differences between the Boards, these will tend
to reduce in the years to come
Expect drastic changes in Education over the next 10 years.
There will be 2 main drivers: Technology and Policies
Skills will become more important than Marks – ‘Rote Learning’
will not work
All-round development more important than marks alone
Stress comes from lack of quality options, not ‘Board Exams’
It is best if primary education can be in the mother tongue
Support your children – let them discover their strengths,
do not overload them because you are anxious 

25. Thank You
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