Pune:
For two weeks now, the phone at the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) center for counseling hasn't stopped ringing. And ever since the Std X results were announced, the helpline has been flooded with calls from students looking for post-result counseling.
Rama Sharma, CBSE spokesperson, said that on an average the board has received a record 14,000 calls in the past 10 days.
"The response to the helpline has been very positive from students and we have achieved the desired impact. Students not only call us because they are depressed but also to seek career guidance, especially about the courses they should opt for," said Sharma. "The whole counseling thing has gone far beyond just the psychological help aspect."
The vice-principal of a city school said, "Students have been calling, especially those who have received low marks in a particular subject or failed to pass in some. Many of those who call are concerned about admissions in colleges and schools."
Not only students but also parents, especially mothers, have started calling to discuss subject choices, said Sharma. The popularity of the helpline has climbed to such heights that the 37-odd counselors are attending to 40 calls each in a day.
The counseling was introduced a few years ago by the board to help students psychologically cope with stress and also seek answers to career-related queries. Toll free numbers were provided and about 40 principals and trained counsellors appointed from 38 cities, including the city, Delhi, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Faridabad, Bhubaneshwar, Vishakhapatnam, Jamnagar, Mumbai and Bhilai.
But school principals insist that along with counseling by the board, school counseling is also important.
Principal Venkataraman of Aundh's DAV School said, "Though the counseling is helping the students, we have realized that if there is someone who is physically present before them, the impact is more. This year because of the good results, we have not required the counseling much. But we had this student who had not appeared for her chemistry paper for the Std XII exam, and thanks to the counseling, she has now been coming to school for extra classes during the summer vacation."