HSC examinees will be tested under uniform question papers across all boards: Milon

He says the move aims to end disparities between boards and align standards nationwide

This year’s Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) and equivalent examinations across all general education boards will be conducted under uniform question papers, Education Minister ANM Ehsanul Hoque Milon has said.

The minister announced the decision at a press briefing at the Secretariat on Thursday.

“We have introduced a single question paper system for the entire country this year. Let’s see how it works. As you know, there is competition among boards. Some set easier questions, some harder. In the same country, SSC and HSC cannot have different question papers. That should not happen,” he said.

He added that question paper standards are uniform internationally.

“In O Level and A Level examinations, question papers are not different from one place to another. That is why we have done this -- for improvement,” he said.

The HSC and equivalent examinations are scheduled to begin on Jul 2.

The minister acknowledged that this period is often prone to natural disasters, which in previous years have led to exam suspensions in several education boards.

Asked what steps would be taken if a natural disaster affects any board area during exams under the unified system, the minister said disaster situations were unrelated to the question paper format.

“Disaster has nothing to do with the question paper. We have already sent the unified questions to respective upazilas. They go into our question bank. We have several emergency decision-making mechanisms in place for conducting exams during disasters. We will explain in detail later,” he said.