Human Resource Development Minister Kapil Sibal's statement on introducing grading in class XII has welcomed by many students Governance Now spoke to.

Divya Wadhwan, who is busy preparing for her class XII exam this year, will not be affected by the change. But she is happy as she feels that this step will de-stress a lot of students. She says," It is difficult for us to prepare for the board and the entrance exams at the same time. And today many universities have entrance test for various courses, so what is the need of the marks scored in board exams when you are again being judged."

Shubham Bansal, a student of Banyan Tree echoes similar sentiments and says, "The phobia that surrounds the board exam creates un-necessary pressure on students".

Sibal on Thursday said that the idea of introducing grading system at class XII level will be examined under a committee. And the  committee will then submit its report to the Central Advisory Board for Education and Council of Boards of School Education in India (CoBSE), before a final decision is taken.

Sibal's statement, on the other hand, is getting mixed response from the educationists. Jyoti Bose, principal at Springdales School (in Dhaulan Kuan) says, "Till now, on the basis of the percentage that students score in class XII, colleges have been deciding their cut-offs. If the grading system will be introduced then thousands of the students will have the same grade. So the colleges will have to introduce their own system of judging the students, otherwise the situation will become very complicated."

Onika Mehrotra, principal at Kalka Public School says that there is still not much clarity on the new assessment system  introduced in class X and it will take time to adapt the new system. But she feels that grading in class XII is required after its introduction in class X. She adds, "grading in class X will certainly reduce pressure from the student but if it is not done in class XII, students will feel presurised. This step will help in balancing the situation."

Sibal, in June last year, proposed to reform the exam system in schools and "de-traumatise" education by making the Class X board exams optional. Students studying in CBSE recognised schools won't have to give board exams from the upcoming academic session and will be graded for their performance through the year and not on the basis of just one exam.