Show leniency to visually impaired students, allow oral exams

Given the stress and anxiety associated with board exams, psychologists and psychiatrists believe there should be some leniency in the way the papers of visually impaired students are corrected. Such students are at a disadvantage because they have to deal with writers who appear on their behalf. Most of the times, the writers are younger than them and in case of papers like maths, it becomes even more difficult to interact with them as it involves calculations. Therefore, there is a growing demand to grant concession to visually impaired students and allow them to take oral exams.

"The writers are under a lot of pressure as they know they are responsible for someone else's performance. They have to write exactly what the student says. Dissonance can happen when the person is talking and writing, and can often be seen in the paper. The brain supports you when you are writing than when you are talking. So, there should be some leniency. If there is grading, it should be mild in such cases. There should be more flexibility in checking the papers of such students," said clinical psychologist Dr Seema Hingorani.

Psychiatrist Dr Anjali Chhabria said oral exam is an option in such cases. "If someone is visually impaired, why should they be stressed further by asking them to write the papers? International education systems are well equipped to suit disabilities. We should have the willingness to learn from them," she said.

Visually impaired students said introducing papers in Braille script would help. Physically handicapped students have a three per cent reservation quota in minority and non-minority colleges. Students with disability need to provide a certificate issued by the civil surgeon or the dean of any government/municipal hospital, showing at least 40% disability.