The prestigious Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) may soon introduce an aptitude test to screen candidates for writing the Joint Entrance Examination (JEE). This is one of the major recommendations of a committee formed by the IIT council which submitted its report on the restructuring of the JEE to the Centre. The Committee of Eminent Persons (CEP) under the chairmanship of Professor Ashok Misra submitted its report recommending major overhaul to the examination method. The committee’s recommendations, if accepted, will come into effect from 2017. The Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) said in a statement on Saturday, “A National Testing Service shall be set up by early 2016, mandated to conduct an aptitude test, which should test the scientific aptitude and innovative thinking ability. The aptitude test may be offered two or more times in a year and would be an online test. The testing shall test the scientific thinking and cannot be gamed through coaching.”
Based on performance in the aptitude test, about 4 lakh candidates would be short-listed for taking the JEE. The panel proposed that the JEE itself will be on the lines of the current JEE (Advanced) and designed to test knowledge in Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics; and will be conducted by the IITs. Ranks will be issued to over 40,000 students who will be eligible to seek admission in IITs and NITs based on common counselling. The MHRD has requested the IITs to set up mock JEE exams to help students prepare for JEE significantly and wean them away from the entrance-exam coaching industry. The statement said measures would be taken to improve school education and method of examination of the Boards. Till such time, that is for 2016 and 2017, the practice of two-tier JEE exams will continue. “The top 200,000 students from JEE (Main) shall be allowed to appear in JEE (Advanced). Over 40,000 ranks will be issued in JEE (Advanced) to develop a better system for selection of candidates.”
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