The Cambridge students in Pakistan led by social activist Jibran Nasir want cancellation of O and A levels exams in the country amid coronavirus pandemic but it can have dire consequences on the future of hundreds of students who are yet to pursue their higher studies in the years to come.
In Pakistan, A-Levels exams are scheduled to begin on May 10 and O-Levels from May 26.
In response to the date announcement, cases were filed by the Cambridge students in the high courts of Sindh, Lahore and Peshawar seeking cancellation of exams.
The students are also running a digital campaign against it and #ImranKhanCancelExam trended once again on Twitter today as well.
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The students insisted on getting promoted through the Teachers Assessed Grades (TAG) system rather than physical appearance in the papers.
In the last hearing of the case in Sindh High Court (SHC), the attorney general (AG) apprised that Cambridge exams in Pakistan would not be canceled as decided by National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC).
However, the counsel of the Cambridge students, Jibran Nasir, said that assembling students for exams amid the pandemic could be critical.
In another similar case, Peshawar High Court (PHC) also sought a response from the federal government regarding holding O and A levels exams in the proceeding on April 22.
Meanwhile, British Council Pakistan has assured the Pakistani government that it would ensure application of all Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) during exams.
Head of British Council and Cambridge in Pakistan came to see me today. They assured me that all SOPs for conducting the exam would be strictly followed pic.twitter.com/Y7UQIqBHx9
— Shafqat Mahmood (@Shafqat_Mahmood) April 8, 2021
As per Shafqat Mehmood, there are around 85,000 Cambridge students in Pakistan compared to four million students who appear in the local board examinations.
Thus, O and A levels exams can be carried out comparatively easier than the local ones.
In 2020, the Cambridge board had canceled examinations that were scheduled in May and June.
The decision was made in light of Pakistan’s request after the first positive case surfaced on February 26, 2020.
After vaccine roll-out and countries getting familiar with coronavirus Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), the Cambridge board has canceled exams in only 10 countries including United Kingdom (UK) this year.
However, the assessments would be carried out in the rest of the countries it operates with slight changes in schedules.
The cancellation of Cambridge exams could also result in a grim academic future.
Most of the students who pursue A levels in Pakistan aspire to continue their degrees in foreign universities.
The Cambridge board is still in talks with universities but it remains vague whether the students appearing in exams physically and those going to be promoted through TAG would be assessed fairly in admissions.