Editor,
When the Department of Education and Research Training (DERT) issued its notification — Letter No. DERT/EDN/EXAM-IX/2025/37, dated 15th April 2025, on the Implementation of Uniform Syllabus and Evaluation Scheme for Classes VI to IX — it was seen as an appropriate and a timely step toward standardizing education.
The intention behind the circular was noble: to bring all schools under a uniform academic framework so that students across the state could learn and be evaluated on equal terms. However, as the academic year has progressed, and the Half-Yearly Examinations have already been conducted in MBOSE State Board schools, one important concern has surfaced among teachers and parents alike — how exactly should the final examination be conducted under this directive?
The DERT’s letter, though comprehensive in its vision, did not clearly mention whether the syllabus was to be divided into two terms or if the Final Examination would again cover the entire syllabus. This lack of clarity has led to widespread confusion in schools. Teachers, who have already assessed students on the first term’s syllabus, now wonder whether the same chapters will need to be re-taught and re-tested.
Many educators believe this would be unfair and impractical. “We have already completed and tested the first half of the syllabus,” says a teacher from West Garo Hills. “It would be unreasonable to expect students to go through the entire syllabus once more when even national boards like CBSE and ICSE follow a term-wise structure.”
In many rural and semi-urban schools, where resources are limited and students rely solely on classroom teaching, the challenge is even greater. Revising the whole year’s syllabus within a couple of months would not only overburden teachers but also create unnecessary stress among learners. Parents, too, have echoed this sentiment. “Our children need focus, not fatigue,” remarked a parent from Tura.
The purpose of exams, after all, is to measure progress — not to test endurance. A term-wise syllabus division ensures that students can concentrate on smaller portions of content, understand it better, and perform with confidence. It also allows teachers to plan lessons more effectively and evaluate learning outcomes in a balanced manner.
What is now urgently needed is a clarified follow-up circular from DERT, specifying the exact syllabus for the Final Examination of 2025 for Classes VI to IX. This would not only bring uniformity across schools but also restore a sense of direction among teachers and peace of mind to students and parents.
The DERT’s effort through its Letter No. DERT/EDN/EXAM-IX/2025/37 is undoubtedly a step in the right direction — towards standardization and fairness. But without a clear roadmap for its implementation, the system risks creating confusion where clarity was intended.
To make this initiative truly successful, the department should now issue an addendum or clarification, stating in clear terms how the syllabus is to be divided between the Half-Yearly and Final terms.
Education must be structured, but it must also be humane. For students, teachers, and parents across Meghalaya, a little clarity from DERT would go a long way in ensuring that fairness remains at the heart of our evaluation system.
Yours etc.,
Jairaj,
Via email
Walking in another’s shoes
Editor,
The write up authored by Patricia Mukhim on empathy recently was very educative and enjoyable to read. Going through the write-up took me back to my school/college days as a student where we read the poem, “Home they brought her warrior dead/She nor swooned nor uttered cry/ All her maidens watching said/She must weep or she will die” That lady who was engulfed in shock at the sight of her dead husband’s body could not express her emotions. She could neither weep nor show any feeling. There was no one there to tell her, “I am with you.” Had somebody just sat with her and told her they are there for her, the lady would have been able to express her grief openly and got over her shock.
Empathy is about understanding and sharing the feelings of others. It is what moves humans as well as animals too. Empathy, not sympathy is what solves many ailments in our daily lives. Today’s social media existence often takes an ugly turn. Empathy is often described as feeling with someone as opposed to simply feeling for them which is closer to sympathy.
Yours etc.,
Deepak Chhetry,
Tura
Crystal Clear Umngot buried
Editor,
Umngot River, once nature’s gift to Meghalaya, now a muddy broth of progress. Who needs transparent and clean rivers, which was one of the main tourist attractions in a Tourism dependent state, right? The National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL), with its shiny machinery and unstoppable enthusiasm for dumping debris, has managed what centuries of nature could not, turning our Meghalaya’s pride into murky ecological disaster, so much for “Eco Tourism” huh! The video of Umngot river now, is truly heartbreaking to say the least, a true representation of human greed, negligence, and our relentless “talent” for destroying what we once called paradise.
Let’s not forget the Meghalaya State Pollution Control Board (MSPCB), now gallantly ordering the “immediate removal” of waste after the damage has been done. A polite bow to the government officials supervising it all, the custodians of accountability who appear only after the headlines break, offline in print media and especially online. Even Byrnihat pollution got attention only when it made it to the National Headlines, “World’s Worst Air” as deemed by The Indian Express dated March 13, 2025. Type in “Byrnihat” on google and you will find all data along with international news covering this. Our pride, our heart and soul has been polluted by greed and unsustainable development. Tour boatmen now paddle through silt instead of serenity, tourists squint to find the river under the mud, and the “eco-tourism dream” quietly drowns under construction waste of “development.”
Perhaps next time, we can build a glass bridge and bungee jump over the ruins of responsibility. That way, everyone can cross safely without getting their boots and hands dirty. Let us bury our heads in concerts and broken roads while our Meghalaya gets featured in “Most Polluted List” internationally.
So, who takes the onus? The contractors? The officials? The agencies? Or shall we blame the river itself for not being strong enough to withstand the weight of our ‘development’? When will we learn from the fall of Goa/Shimla tourism & the recent failed cloud seeding in Delhi, a desperate bid to pull curtains over the skyrocketing AQI. Enough with the political blame game. We do not need statements, we need action. Restore what is left, and make sure this disaster never repeats itself ever again by putting in strict rules to be adhered with penalties.
I pray to the government with folded hand to please take action on a war footing, the restoration of our gem, our pride, our heart- Umngot River, before we go the Goa/ Shimla way, a point of no return. Yes, we all want development but at this cost? We all look towards you with hope in our eyes, please don’t let your mango citizens down.
When the last tree is cut down, the last fish eaten, and the last stream poisoned, you will realize that you cannot eat money – Alanis Obomsawin.
Your’s etc,
Shivani Pde,
Via email
