Tension-Free Exams On Demand !

New Delhi, Sep 25 (UNI) With student anxieties reaching phenomenal proportions, educators today suggested a possible answer-- a schooling system that lets students take examination when they feel ready.

Education should not be available just in the class room, Human Resource Minister Arjun Singh said, inaugurating the National Institute of Open Schooling at NOIDA-- New Okhla Industrial Development Area.

In modern age, education should be available at every level and in all circumstances-- not just in classrooms-- to help produce an educated nation, the HRD Minister said.

The concept of classroom education suffered from constraints of time and patience, Singh said.

Singh saw it all as part of an explosion of knowledge, which he called a ''peaceful explosion.'' Established 17 years ago, India's NIOS has certified almost a million candidates as having cleared the X and XII classes. It has currently 1.4 million students on roll. It is counted as the world's largest such facility.

A unique feature of the Open School is ''On Demand Examination System,'' which lets a candidate take the examination whenever he or she ''feels ready.'' NIOS Chairman M C Pant says this respects a learner's ''individuality and sovereignty'' and tries to remove the pressures linked with term end examinations and the stress of appearing in all subjects ''at a fixed time and schedule.'' Pant told audience that Nigeria was the latest among developing nations to show interest in NIOS knowhow for 'On Demand Examination System.' Asked about acceptance of NIOS certificates, Director Sushmita Mitra told journalists, ''we don't compromise on quality and standards at all.'' UNI MJ RP BS1641