Class 10 Board Exam 2023: Over 29 Lakh students failed; Odisha reports highest dropout rate of 49.9%

More than 29 Lakh students failed the class 10th board exam in 2013, as per the information shared by the Department of School Education and Literacy (DoSEL), Ministry of Education. The highest dropout rate last year was recorded in Odisha. Check details here.

The Education Minister, Dharmendra Pradhan informed the LokSabha that 15.5 per cent of students who appeared in the board exam last year have been declared failed. The highest dropout rate last year was recorded in Odisha, where 49.9 per cent of students discontinued their studies. According to the data shared by the government, 1,89,90,809 students appeared for the tenth class examination, of which 1,60,34,671 students were declared passed and 29,56,138 students failed to progress to class 11. 

Two years back, due to the COVID pandemic, no exam was conducted by most boards and students were promoted to the next class using alternative assessment criteria. According to the information, 3,98,039 students from the Board of Secondary Education, Madhya Pradesh did not qualify for the exam last year. Along with the data, the ministry revealed the data for the last four years. In 2019, the number of failed students was 109800, 100812 in 2020, which decreased to 31196 in 2021 but jumped drastically to 117308 in 2022.

In response to a question asked by Loksasbha Member Kalanidhi Veeraswamy on reasons for the failure to pursue education of students despite the measures taken by the government under the National Education Policy, the minister stated that there are various reasons for failure of students in examination depends on various factors such as not attending the schools, difficulty in following the instruction in schools, lack of interest in the studies, level of difficulty of question paper, lack of quality teachers, lack of support from parents, teachers and schools. 

During the 2021-22 academic year, most states and union territories witnessed a decline in dropout rates, except for a few such as Odisha and Bihar. In Odisha, the dropout rate surged from 39.4% to 49.9%, while in Bihar, it increased marginally from 41.6% to 42.1% compared to the previous year. Additionally, Goa experienced an escalation from 5.3% to 12.4% in dropout rates during 2021-22. Similarly, Maharashtra observed an uptick in dropout rates from 18.7% to 20.4% during the same period.

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