KARACHI, Oct 19: The plan of the Board of Intermediate Education to enable students to appear in biology and mathematics papers simultaneously has not materialized for lack of interest shown by the Board authorities.

A BIEK official informed the PPI that the proposal was tabled during a BIEK meeting held a few years back with its chairman, Dr Muhammad Sharif Memon, in the chair. It was resolved that students belonging either to the pre-medical group or the pre-engineering group would be enabled to appear in the papers of the other group in one academic session.

The proposal was aimed at saving the time of students who normally apply for taking papers of mathematics or biology as additional subjects on declaration of their results, to improve their results.

The meeting was further told that if students were allowed to appear in both the papers simultaneously, they would not have to wait for another one year for a chance to appear for an additional papers’ examination.

The BIEK official the Board was interested in approving the provision of allowing students on a voluntary basis to appear simultaneously in biology and mathematics papers along with other compulsory subjects (Urdu, English, Islamiat and Pakistan Studies), provided the heads of their colleges recommend their cases to the board for grant of permission.

According to the proposal submitted with the board, the principals of colleges were required to send the names of candidates desiring to appear in biology and mathematics papers simultaneously within three months of the start of the academic session.

Those who favoured the proposal put forward the condition that colleges would have to ensure the availability of a considerable number of such students and extra teaching classes for students of both of the groups, i.e , pre-engineering and pre-medical.

He further said that the details of terms and condition for such a facility had to be formulated and notified so that students could be in a position to avail themselves of the facility from the next academic session.

As far as the issue of results was concerned, the Board had planned to issue separate marks-sheets and certificates to candidates appearing in mathematics and biology papers simultaneously. Preparation of the results of such candidates was supposed to be taken along with other candidates of the groups which they belonged.

“In order to determine the grade of candidates, it was decided to consider 1100 marks of subjects pertaining to the groups under which the students are originally admitted and it would be up to the authorities at the educational institutions whether they consider the marks obtained in all papers, including the additional ones, or consider the results of any one of the pre-medical and the pre-engineering groups, for any equivalence or for admission purpose”, a source at BIEK informed.—PPI