HYDERABAD: Like other districts of Sindh, candidates who secured between 50 and 54 marks in the Junior Science Teacher (JST) test staged a peaceful protest in Hyderabad, demanding that the cut-off score be reduced from 55 to 50.
The demonstration was held outside the Hyderabad Press Club under the leadership of Rida, Kaneez Fatima, Aqib Mumtaz and other candidates. The protesters called upon the Sindh government to revise the qualifying criteria and set 50 marks as the cut-off score for the Junior Science Teacher recruitment process.
The candidates said that those who secured more than 50 marks had already waited for nearly five years for employment opportunities. During this period, they said, several candidates had exhausted the age relaxation allowed for government employment and could therefore become ineligible to apply for future vacancies.
They maintained that in several institutions across Sindh and other parts of Pakistan, candidates securing 50 or more marks are considered eligible for employment and recruitment processes.
The protesters pointed out that the passing score is also set at 50 in several examinations conducted by Sukkur IBA, including the Teacher Licensing Test.
They argued that candidates obtaining between 50 and 54 marks were only a few marks behind those who secured 55, and declaring otherwise capable candidates ineligible merely because of such a narrow difference would be unfair.
The candidates further complained that Sukkur IBA had issued the syllabus for the Junior Science Teacher examination very late, leaving applicants with insufficient time to prepare properly for the test.
They said that under such circumstances, securing more than 50 marks within the limited preparation period should itself be regarded as a significant achievement and taken into consideration while determining eligibility.
The protesting candidates appealed to Sindh Education Minister Sardar Shah to adopt a flexible approach towards the passing-marks policy and reconsider the existing cut-off.
They urged the provincial government to reduce the qualifying score from 55 to 50 and issue offer letters to all eligible candidates who had secured 50 marks or above in the Junior Science Teacher test.
