Mangaluru: Dakshina Kannada’s SSLC pass percentage rose to 99.4% after the declaration of exam-2 results, marking an improvement of about one percentage point from 98.4% recorded in exam-1, officials said.According to the district’s SSLC examination nodal officer Laxminarayan, 27,633 regular fresh candidates appeared for the examinations in the district. Despite the overall rise in results, 189 candidates have still not cleared the SSLC, even after taking the second examination. “SSLC exam-2 has seen an additional 1% of candidates who could not clear the exam passing the same,” he said.Officials said the highest number of candidates yet to clear the examination were reported from Mangaluru South (42), followed by Belthangady (40), Puttur (38) and Mangaluru North (32). Education department sources indicated that targeted follow-up support would be needed in these areas for students who remain unsuccessful after exam-2.Laxminarayan attributed the improved performance this year to changes in the passing criteria. The minimum passing marks were reduced to 33%. Out of the total 100 marks, 20 were earmarked for internal assessment, while students wrote the public examination for 80 marks. He said the revised pattern helped more students, particularly those from govt high schools, to clear the examination.On preparations for the ongoing academic year, Laxminarayan said a preliminary meeting chaired by the deputy director of public instruction (DDPI) had already been held with block education officers. With the first summative assessment due in the coming days, officials plan to identify slow learners early and provide academic interventions, while also drawing up improvement plans for consistently underperforming high schools.
