The Board Exam Experience

A phrase that has been haunting us for a year, at the minimum, has been 'Board Exam'.

Take my word for it, unarguably, it has been doing so for generation after generation, and, for as long as the Earth remains the only habitable planet in our Solar System, it will continue to, unfortunately, do so.

We who stand at the threshold of this perilous festival (by anywhere between a year and a day) should plaster it onto our foreheads, in big, bold, black letters, "BOARD EXAM," so that nobody questions our morose faces, our sunken spirits, our listless behavior. 

And everyone leaves us alone, to-be-warriors, immersed in our carnival preparations. 

Of course, we need some encouragement. A few inquiries to pamper our morale. A few prods to sharpen our swords and pledge to surrender all else before the enormity of this mighty war.  

So people keep asking us to give them pedas after we triumph. This battle is like no other that we have fought. The countless other victories that we have had matter precious little if we don't surmount this feat. 

Our spirits aren't uplifted, they are dis-tempered because so much rests on this one victory. 

 But why in the world?

Board Exams are like ordinary exams and your life doesn't have to come to a standstill because of them.

Clip away the word 'Board' and see if it makes you feel better. Okay, clip away both, do away with the phrase 'Board Exam'. Because a Board Exam is An Exam, at the end of the day. With the word will be clipped off all pressure and expectations. Imagine: No pressure, no expectations. If Exams aren't your friends, call them Seedis (ladders). Because they are not the end, not the finish line, not your destination. They are a part of the path to the destination, say the highway. And does everybody take the highway? No, that'd crowd it too much and make every single traveler prone to accident. So some choose the sidewalks, the by-lanes, the gallis, the kutcha roads. Perhaps they all don't lead to the same destination. But you know yours and you know what will get you there.

So don't give this exam undue importance. It's an item on your checklist of things that have to happen, as unjust as you think they are. Like going for your annual dentist's checkup. Like a blood test. Don't let it overwhelm you. Prepare for it like an ordinary exam.

The Pressure and Expectations

Maybe you defeated the pressure and expectations mentally, but they are, in essence, hovering all around you still in various forms. "Crucial year", "Board Year", ''Your Future Rests on This", 'Waiting for the pedas', and other such drivel.

But do you want my honest opinion?

All of this has tapered down substantially. Nobody tells you to hammer on, they ask you, take note, and tell you to relax. Again, the attention- they wouldn't do that for any other annual exam. 

Your job is just not to thrive too much on it. Let it go as a pertinent inquiry. That's what I feel it is these days; people are consciously playing it down. 

So don't worry a bit. The buzz is all the hype that comes from nowhere in particular and won't reach anywhere in particular. Particularly not to you. You won't that zest be sapped out of you. 

The Truth with Thanks: They're much more comfortable than even School Exams

Thanks to the foresight of educationists, the Board Exam experience is cushioned with support, help and sensitivity. 

Let me tell you what I've always pictured and you tell me if it matches your visualization.

A huge hall, enormous. Desks far, far apart. Single desks.

No clock. A sullen-faced invigilator.

Stretch it to sour-faced.

No assistance, no support.

When you ask, he or she will glare you down.

And you'll keep thinking about it and ruin your exam.

What a fantasy!! 

Everything is the exact opposite, after all this jog your imagination has been on.

A regular classroom in an ordinary school, with a clock most of the time.

Carry a watch to be on the safe side.

Two friendly but firm teachers as invigilators who will help you with the technicalities if you really need it. 

They will give you time-bulletins and front-sheet-filling advice. And ask you later if the paper was hard, which shows they really care.

All this made the experience much better than one I have ever had or imagined.

I felt supported and could concentrate on my task, which was to write the paper, instead of feeling the strain of half a dozen other little things that board exams inevitably bring with them.

Thank you to those who made it possible and who cared for us kids.

So I consider it my duty to clear all confusion and not let anyone be as disillusioned as I was. After all the efforts that have been taken to size-down the importance of this exam to what is due, it's the least I can do, isn't it?