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Indian Express
23-07-2025
- Health
- Indian Express
CBSE, CISCE fitness initiatives: ‘First conscious step, but behavioural change need of hour'
Alarming health concerns among school-going students, particularly the rise in obesity, have prompted India's two national education boards to roll out targeted initiatives. The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) and the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE) have recently launched separate programmes/ boards aimed at promoting physical activity and nutrition as essential pillars of a child's overall well-being. Through steps like the sugar board, oil board and Active CISCE, these national education boards seek to transform school campuses into centres for fitness, encouraging students towards a healthier, more balanced life while supporting their academic growth. While Indian schools and their curricula have already introduced the topics of physical fitness, health, and nutrition, however, initiatives like the sugar and oil boards are considered a first conscious step by both CBSE and CISCE-affiliated schools. Even before the notice, many schools in the country had a no-junk food policy with regular physical fitness activities. In its directive, CBSE has asked the schools to visually display such boards, use health messaging, and promote healthy eating and physical activity. Speaking with Sameer Arora, the principal of Shiv Nadar Public School, a CBSE school based in Gurugram, said, 'We have partnered with a nutrition company and enlisted parent volunteers to assist us in designing the school's food menu. For instance, in our cafeteria, students get a burger, but the bun is made of wheat, and instead of potatoes, we stuff it with soya and other vegetables.' The school, in its menu, add traditional Indian drinks that use jaggery instead of sugar. Arora said that it's a dichotomy in India that our young population in future might be plagued with health issues, if they are not addressed at the right time. He claims that the change has to be driven by three primary forces: home, school and society. Suchita Malakar, principal of WITTY International School, a Mumbai-based CISCE-affiliated school, who is also a mother of two boys, told us that it was a much-needed step by the Boards. 'In my school, I have witnessed many juveniles facing issues of obesity and diabetes. We received an email from one of the parents to display sugar boards in our school campuses, which we did. Before its implementation, we had a meeting with cafeteria staff, teachers, students and parents to know their points of view,' she said, adding that the school has banned canned items and they have mutually decided to have one fresh fruit juice every day. When asked whether India is late compared to other countries, Malakar agreed. CISCE, which conducts ICSE and ISC exams annually, has developed a portal named ACTIVE CISCE to monitor school students' fitness. The fitness data of the students from Classes 1 to 12 will be monitored. It is the first time in India that all students of the CISCE will receive personalised fitness report cards and fitness indexes based on their age group and gender. Dr Jaya Parekh, principal of the Delhi Public School, Hinjawadi, claimed that both students and parents were excited to participate in such activities. As stated by the principal, she got good responses from students, which has encouraged the school authorities to introduce more health education-related activities. 'CBSE has asked us to share photographs of the activities along with apprising them about meetings, conferences held by the school to spread awareness,' Parekh said. At The Oxford Senior Secondary School in South Bengaluru, the management has pinned posters on bulletin boards raising awareness against diabetes and high sugar content food items. 'We implemented the sugar board in June, wherein we have put up posters containing infographics which create awareness on avoiding food with high sugar content, eventually leading to diabetes. We have warned against eating excessive chocolates, sweets and other items, which could potentially lead to high sugar levels. Additionally, the posters are also placed inside classrooms to ensure the message reaches every student,' a teacher from the school said. Manju Sharma, principal, Delhi Public School, Mysore, said, 'We have put up the (sugar and oil) boards across the school with posters detailing the sugar level in various food items. For middle school, the teacher talks to students in the first period about their food intake and keeps a tab on their carb and sugar content levels. For high school, we have conducted a survey wherein students have submitted their nutritional intake, based on which we will advise and create awareness accordingly. Moreover, we also have a wellness club in school, which will now be preparing a detailed presentation to explain the effects of consuming high sugar and oil content food.' Additionally, the school is specifically focusing on creating awareness against hidden sugar food items, like biscuits, sugar-free ice cream, among others. Besides physical fitness, teachers and parents are equally concerned about the attitude of the kids when asked to choose between a fruit juice or a carbonated beverage, especially when they are out of sight. Suchita Malakar claimed that she used to find loads of canned juices hidden behind the pillow or under the bed in her home. She said, 'Due to cheap rates of junk foods and easy accessibility, things have become harder for parents. During our time, dining out or eating junk foods were done once or twice a month, and therefore, we didn't face multiple issues that this generation is facing.' Another parent, Aarti Srivastava, a businesswoman, said, high academic pressure and competition promote a sedentary lifestyle. 'The thing which school has to work on is its sedentary structure of a typical day — long hours of sitting, minimal movement breaks contribute to fatigue, poor posture of students, and a lack of physical stimulation. Many urban schools also lack playground space, which limits outdoor activity. Additionally, unhealthy food options in school canteens are always available to the kids,' said Srivastava. Another parent, who requested anonymity, recalled how her daughter in Class 2 would often ask for money to buy chocolates from the school canteen. 'The canteen was right next to her classroom, and she saw her classmates buying chocolates and chips every day. She'd come home insisting I give her money for those junk foods, but I refused. I even raised the issue with her class teacher, but nothing changed,' she said. Aprajita Gautam, President of Delhi Parents Association (DPA) and Sukhpal Singh, founder of the NCR Parents Association, agreed that steps are good, but ground reality and inspection of the schools can do more wonders than just displaying boards in the school campuses. 'Long-term impact and behavioural change can only be created by spreading the words through school, social media, family and initiatives of the government in this direction,' said Singh. Gautam argued that in schools, important topics such as nutrition, health and menstruation are taught just from the exam perspective rather than with the responsibility of building the future and attitude of the kids. 'For the sake of business, some schools set up a canteen where Coke to chocolate, to chips are sold. In the classroom, they teach not to eat junk and unhealthy food, but keep a canteen on the campuses,' she said. Before India, countries like the US, UK, Australia, Canada, Japan and others have already taken steps to ensure the complete well-being of their school students. For instance, Japan introduced a school health system in 1872, particularly focusing on cholera and smallpox. It was in 1898 that the school physician system was introduced nationally, under which a school physician was allocated to all public primary schools. Gradually, these health initiatives were expanded with immunisations, health instructors, till the enactment of the School Health Law in 1958. The country ensured collaboration between schools and the local community to make it a success. Regular and comprehensive health checks have been conducted in Japan. On the other hand, Canada, for a comprehensive school health approach, has roped in four elements: Policy, Teaching and learning, partnership and services and social and physical environment. While the United Kingdom has a different health and well-being setup for students, which is based on students' grade level. The US supports schools through funding, training, and professional development. As mentioned on the official website of the CDC, they partner with states, school systems, communities, and national partners to prevent students' chronic disease and promote their health and well-being. The country has adopted the Whole School, Whole Community, Whole Child (WSCC) framework. With inputs from Sanath Prasad Sheen Kachroo is the Senior Sub-Editor working with the Indian Express Digital. ... Read More
Time of India
03-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
City's CISCE-affiliated schools begin process to admit Class XI students
Patna: With the Indian Certificate of Secondary Education (ICSE) board exam results now released, CISCE-affiliated schools in the city have commenced the admission process for Class XI for the 2025-26 academic year. Admissions are being conducted based on Class X board results, written examinations and interviews. Several schools have published their selection criteria and cut-off marks for various streams, including science (PCM and PCB), commerce and arts. While admission forms are available at school counters, some institutions are accepting only online registration forms. Mary Alphonsa, principal of Don Bosco Academy, said the prospectus and preliminary application forms are available at the school office between 8am and 12 noon. "The form will be available until the CBSE Class X results are announced. The cut-off marks for Boscoites are 80% each in English, science and mathematics for those opting for the science stream. For other students, the required marks are 85% each in English, science and mathematics. For students from CBSE and other boards, the requirement is 90% in each of these subjects," she said. For admission to the commerce and arts streams, students must have secured either 75% in English, science and mathematics or 75% in English, economics and mathematics. Students from other boards will need to appear for an entrance examination while ICSE students will undergo an interview. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like [Click Here] - 2025 Top Trending Search - Local network access Esseps Learn More Undo At St Xavier's High School, 60 seats each are available in the arts and science streams. According to the school's notification, CBSE and ICSE candidates may fill in the online registration form. A minimum of 70% overall marks is required for the science stream while 65% is needed for the arts stream under the ISC. School principal Fr KP Dominic SJ said for students from the Bihar School Examination Board, the minimum eligibility to apply for admission to the science and commerce streams is 55% in Class X. "Offline forms are available at the school between 9am and 12 noon from May 1," he said. Sr Josephine CJ, Principal of St Joseph's Convent High School, said admissions are open for all three streams. "Students can collect the form from the school counter during office hours. The school will select students based on their board results," she said. Carmel High School has also opened offline admissions for Class XI in all streams.
Time of India
30-04-2025
- General
- Time of India
Rise in ISC 90% achievers, board plans to hike critical-thinking questions by 40%
Kolkata: The pass percentage of this year's ISC exams at 99.02% is slightly higher than last year's by 0.82% and could provide students from CISCE-affiliated schools an edge over those from other boards. The state higher secondary board and CBSE are yet to announce their results. The high pass percentage has been further reinforced by a large number of students scoring more than 90% in the aggregate. Principals and teachers attributed the high scores to competency-based and high-order thinking questions. The Council increased the weightage of competency-based and higher-order thinking questions from 10% last year to 25% this year. "It is planned that the weightage for application-based and high-order critical thinking questions will be 40% for both exams from next year. The aim is to ensure that learning is based on application, where students use their critical mind and creativity to write answers," Emmanuel told TOI. School principals feel that though the competency-based questions in each paper this year were tricky, the students were better equipped to tackle those questions as they were trained to think. You Can Also Check: Kolkata AQI | Weather in Kolkata | Bank Holidays in Kolkata | Public Holidays in Kolkata In La Martiniere for Girls, out of 162 examinees, 74% of students scored above 90%. At Modern High School for Girls, 87% out of 154 students scored above 90%. Similarly, at Future Foundation School, 54% of 98 students scored similarly, as did 41.5% of 123 students at Calcutta Boys' School. In Delhi Public School, New Town, 62.5% of 288 examinees scored above 90%. At Heritage, 43.4% out of 221 students scored more than 90%, and 36.4% of 66 students similarly at Rammohan Mission High School. School principals said this year, students in the 90% club are higher than last year. "This year, 120 students scored more than 90%, which also increased the school average to 92%. Last year, the school average was 87.9% with 95 students scoring more than 90%," said Rupkatha Sarkar, principal of La Martiniere for Girls. According to Modern High School for Girls principal Damayanti Mukherjee, the number of students scoring above 90% marks is much higher than last year. "The school's average score is 94.6, which is also higher," added Mukherjee."The documents and specimen CISCE shared with schools really helped us build those skills," said Rahee Sarkar of Modern High School for Girls. The Heritage School Principal Seema Sapru said, "This time, children were aware that there was a new pattern coming in. The sample questions were sent to us quite early, so they got time to prepare for it. This year, a lot of training was given to the children, and the council arranged a lot of training for the teachers, too" Shoujasdipta Das from Modern English Academy, Barrackpore, said, "Some questions caught me off guard in the exam hall, but our training in analysis helped me get through." Sydney Francis Menezes, in charge of La Martiniere for Boys, said the hard work and motivation of students and teachers are behind the good scores of the students. Principal of Rammohan Mission School Sujoy Biswas said, "Students have understood the need to read between the lines so that concepts can be built properly."
Time of India
30-04-2025
- General
- Time of India
All students clear ISC exam in Assam & 4 other NE states
Guwahati: Schools across northeast have delivered an impressive performance in the ICSE and ISC examinations, with Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Meghalaya, Nagaland, and Manipur achieving a perfect 100% pass percentage in ISC (Class XII). Meanwhile, ICSE (Class X) results across the NE states remained consistently above 98% except Tripura, as announced by the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE) on Wednesday. Assam schools reported 99.81 pass percentage in ICSE, with 526 candidates appearing for ICSE and 238 for ISC. Girls outperformed boys in ICSE, achieving a perfect 100% pass rate, while boys recorded 99.66%. From Arunachal Pradesh, 774 candidates appeared in ICSE and 56 in ISC. The ICSE pass percentage for Arunachal Pradesh was 98.19, with girls performing better than boys, achieving a pass percentage of 98.86, while boys reached 97.64. In Meghalaya, 547 candidates sat for ICSE and 125 for ISC, with boys holding a slight edge over girls with a pass percentage of 99.15, compared to 99.04 for girls in ICSE. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Forget Hearing Aids: This Simple Spray Changes Everything Stop Hearing Loss Learn More Undo In Manipur, 18 students took ICSE and 21 appeared in ISC, with both exams seeing 100% pass rate in the state. Nagaland had 142 ICSE and 39 ISC candidates, achieving a 100% pass rate. Mizoram does not have any CISCE-affiliated schools. From Tripura, 542 students participated in ICSE and 577 in ISC. The ICSE pass percentage was 96.31, while ISC's was 95.32. In ICSE, boys outperformed girls with a pass rate of 96.48, compared to 96.12 for girls.
Time of India
30-04-2025
- General
- Time of India
ICSE Class 10, 12 results 2025: Girls lead the charts again, outperform boys across the board
TS Inter Results 2025 Declared: Girls Outperform Boys in Both Years, Overall Pass Percentage Improves. (AI Image) The Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE) has officially announced the ICSE (Class 10) and ISC (Class 12) Board examination results 2025 today, April 30. With an impressive combined candidate strength exceeding 3.5 lakh, this year's results not only highlight academic excellence but also reflect significant strides in gender parity within India's school education system. Girls have emerged as the clear academic frontrunners across both examinations. In ICSE, they achieved a remarkable pass percentage of 99.37%, comfortably ahead of boys, who registered 98.84%. The trend was even more pronounced in the ISC results, where girls scored a pass percentage of 99.45% compared to 98.64% for boys. These outcomes mark a steady evolution in academic dynamics, with female students increasingly dominating performance metrics in national board exams. Last year too, girls had higher pass rates than boys in CISCE exams In 2024, too, girls had outshone boys across both ICSE and ISC boards — a pattern that has only grown stronger this year. For the ICSE (Class 10) exams, girls secured a pass percentage of 99.37%, while boys recorded 98.84%. In the ISC (Class 12) results, girls achieved a stellar 99.45% pass rate, outpacing boys who stood at 98.64%. The consistency of this performance not only highlights the academic diligence of female students but also signals a sustained shift in gender dynamics within India's schooling landscape. Massive participation, consistent excellence The ICSE examination saw a participation of 2,52,557 students — comprising 1,34,700 boys and 1,17,857 girls. On the other hand, 99,551 students appeared for the ISC examination, with 52,339 boys and 47,212 girls. Despite the high volume of examinees, the CISCE maintained its tradition of academic excellence, with overall pass rates standing at 99.09% for ICSE and 99.02% for ISC — a near-universal success story. These stellar outcomes not only underscore the strength of instruction across CISCE-affiliated schools but also reinforce the board's commitment to maintaining high academic standards across diverse educational contexts, both within India and abroad. For real-time updates, follow our AP SSC 10th Result 2025 Live Blog.
