Over 3,000 candidates appeared for the Central Teachers Eligibility Test (CTET), conducted by the CBSE in the city on Sunday.
The test has been conducted since 2011 to bring in national standards in the recruitment process of teachers. According to the CBSE Regional Office, 1,035 candidates had registered for Paper I in the city and 2,763 candidates for Paper II. While Paper I is for teachers seeking to teach classes I to V, Paper II is for those seeking to teach classes VI to VIII.
Feedback to the papers, however, was mixed. S. Anbarasi, who had attempted Paper I for the second time said that she was better prepared for the exam this time.
“The paper was easy and since I’d written it before, I was able to time myself better,” she said. First-timer Appini Subramanyam, however, found Paper II quite challenging.
Chandrika Prasad, Principal of Bhaktavatsalam Vidyashram, which was one of the centres for Paper II, said that 78 per cent of the candidates turned up at the centre. “Teachers should be encouraged to take the CTET since the standard of the papers is also quite high,” she said.
It is mandatory for teachers to clear the CTET to be eligible for appointment to classes I to VIII in schools of the central government such as Kendriya Vidyalayas and Navodaya Vidyalayas after the enactment of the RTE Act. Many private schools insist that candidates clear it.
The pass percentages in the exam have been consistently low nationwide so far.