While over 30 lakh candidates take the state board exams annually, and the number for CBSE cross 23 lakh, those appearing for their ICSE and ISC exams are less than 3 lakh. This disparity in numbers has left many surprised, primarily because the ICSE board is a private education body, unlike the state and CBSE boards, which are government bodies.
While over 30 lakh candidates take the state board exams annually, and the number for CBSE cross 23 lakh, those appearing for their ICSE and ISC exams are less than 3 lakh. This disparity in numbers has left many surprised, primarily because the ICSE board is a private education body, unlike the state and CBSE boards, which are government bodies.
Malini Gupta, mother to a class X student of an ICSE school, said that if parents have a transferable job, they usually opt for an ICSE or CBSE school. "In Mumbai, we see more ICSE schools than CBSE ones, so naturally ICSE gets preference. We don't really care about its private board status," added Gupta.
Mumbai-based counsellor Ryan Pinto said: "If the transfer is restricted to metros or urban areas, parents usually opt for ICSE or a CBSE school. If they go in tier-2 cities also, CBSE schools are the only option as ICSE schools are still a rare concept in smaller towns."
Additionally, syllabus followed by the ICSE board is regarded as comprehensive and extensive, which gives all fields equal importance – like science, maths, language, arts, home science, agriculture, fashion design and cookery.
A teacher from St Mary's School said, "ICSE curriculum focuses on overall growth and practical knowledge, which gives students an edge in the long run. Hence, those who want to send their children abroad for higher education prefer the ICSE board."
Since most ICSE schools are in metropolitan cities, they have better infrastructure, teacher-student ratio and offer various extra-curricular and sports activities. However, most ICSE schools have less number of seats in class XI, forcing many low scorers (under 75%) to opt for other boards for further education. Also, a large number of ICSE high scorers leave the board after class X.
Another parent, Ritika Goswami, however feels that the ICSE and CBSE boards have lost their tags of 'most sought after'. "Today, it's the international schools offering International Baccalaureate (IB) / International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) curricula that rule the roost," said Goswami.
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