The Central Board of Secondary Education is being heavily criticised over a Class 10 English question paper which promotes "gender stereotyping" and "regressive notions."
After receiving heat on social media platforms, the board has referred the matter to subject experts.
Here’s what happened-
On Sunday, a comprehension passage in the CBSE Class 10 English question paper sparked controversy as pictures of various excerpts showing women in a bad light and questioning women's
right to freedom went viral on Twitter.
The question paper for the Class 10 English exam held on Saturday had a comprehension passage with statements like "emancipation of women destroyed the parent's authority over the
children" and "it was only by accepting her husband's way that a mother could gain obedience over the younger ones", among others.
“Wives stopped obeying their husbands and that is the main reason children and servants are in-disciplined," reads one extract from the paper while another state, “Women
gaining independence is the main reason for a wide variety of social and family problems.”
“Emancipation of the wife destroyed the parent’s authority over the children. The mother did not exemplify the obedience upon which she tried to insist"; “In bringing
the man down from his pedestal the wife and mother deprived herself, in fact, of the means of discipline," read the portions from the passage.
Following this, the question paper asks students to comment on the tone of the passage. "Writer is a male chauvinist pig" was one of the options. The correct answer, according
to the CBSE, was "Option B, the writer takes a lighthearted approach to life."
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The education board has now found itself at the receiving end of heat with teachers parents and politicians slamming CBSE for "adding retrograde and chauvinistic views into the education
system.
Netizens have been criticising the board for promoting "misogynistic" and "regressive" attitudes. #CBSEinsultswomen is trending on Twitter.
Political reaction
Congress leader and General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra have slammed the question paper. "Unbelievable! Are we really teaching children this drivel? Clearly, the BJP Government
endorses these retrograde views on women, why else would they feature in the CBSE curriculum?" she tweeted.
"This outrageously nonsensical reading passage appeared in the 10th CBSE board exam paper today. What are we teaching our children? CBSE has to give an explanation and tender an apology
for inflicting our children with this," said the spokesperson of the Tamil Nadu Congress Committee, Lakshmi Ramachandran.
CBSE responds
"The passage in one set of the English paper of CBSE Class 10 first term examination held yesterday has received mixed reactions from a few parents and students stating that 'it
seems to support regressive notions on family and allegedly promotes gender stereotyping."
"The matter will be referred to subject experts for considered views as per the preset procedures of the board. As regards the correct answer option and the answer key released by the
board, it is clarified that if the experts opine that the passage elicits multiple interpretations, appropriate action will be taken to protect the interest of the students."