2.4 million students are taking the JSC tests across Bangladesh

The Junior School Certificate (JSC) and Junior Dakhil Certificate (JDC) examinations have started across Bangladesh on Tuesday.

More than 2.4 million students started taking the exams at 2,734 centres across the country from 10am.

Students take the JSC exams on completion of 8th standard in school. On Tuesday, the students are appearing for Bangla first paper, while madrasa students are taking tests for Quran Majid and Tazbid.

Education Minister Nurul Islam Nahid visited a centre at the Dhanmondi Govt Boys' High School in Dhaka but did not enter the exam hall.

Nahid said all possible efforts have been made to prevent cheating and leak of question papers.

>>Students from  28,761 schools and madrasas are taking the JSC-JDC exams this year. They have been asked to report at the centres 30 minutes before the exams start.

>>1,124,373 male students and 1,288,402 female students are taking the exams.

>>2,380,303 school students are taking their JSC exams under the supervision of eight school boards. 374,472 madrasa students are taking their JDC exams under the supervision of the Madrasa Board.

>>Last year 2,325,933 students sat for the exams. The number of students has increased by 86,842 this year.

>>91,861 JSC examinees and 14,698 JDC examinees who had performed poorly in 1-3 subjects last year will be taking the exams again

>>681 students will be taking their exams at eight examination centres outside Bangladesh.

Question papers, apart from the Bangla second paper and the English first and second papers, will have questions that will test students’ creativity, said the education ministry.

Students with disabilities will be given an additional 30 minutes to complete each exam. Assistance will be available for students with visual, mental or physical disabilities.

Students will pass if they score a total of 33 or more on the multiple choice and creative sections of the exam. Unlike the SSC exams, students do not need to pass the two sections separately.

The education ministry has organised the examinations this year after the primary and mass education ministry declined to do so.