Mangaluru: Five of the six students selected from Dakshina Kannada in the NTS examination of 2017-18, are students of Centre for Advanced Learning (CFAL), Mangaluru. Success in the National Talent Search Examination (NTSE) examination is a great achievement. These selected students have carved a name for themselves and for our region by qualifying in the statewide NTSE examination. They will now appear for the final stage of NTSE that will be held on May 13.

The students that have been selected are K Annapoorna Prabhu, Anmol J Shetty, Mohan Nayak, Prerana G Bhat, and Amogh B Shetty.

The NTSE is conducted by the National Council for Education Research and Training (NCERT), Government of India. The purpose of the exam is to identify outstanding students of 10th standard and help them get the best possible education in India. For this, NTSE scholars receive generous financial assistance from the government. Every year 1000 students from all over the country get selected as National Talent Scholars and receive the scholarship.

The NTSEs test analytical and logical skills. A good understanding of the subject is needed and rote learning or memorization will not yield results. In earlier years, there were very few selections from Mangaluru in NTSE. Since CFAL began instilling an interest in math and science in the students of Mangaluru, this number has consistently increased and currently, CFAL is breaking all records in the region with outstanding performances by its students.

CFAL aims to promote a passion for math and science learning among students and has the best results in Mangaluru in all STEM related examinations including JEE, NTSE, KYPY, Olympiads etc. The outstanding results of the students proves that, given the right learning environment, children from the region can outperform their peers from the Tier 1 cities. While rote-learning and learning for the sake of marks characterizes many institutions in the region, passion for the subject is what CFAL aims to attain. The outcome is a deeper understanding of the subject and excellence in math and science. The vision of CFAL is to inculcate an interest in basic sciences and to encourage research and innovation in the field of math and science.

Change in pattern of Stage -2 exams: From this year the language test (LCT) will not be held, only two subject papers (SAT & MAT) will be conducted and there won’t be any negative marking in the stage-2 examination. Now, the time allotted for the examination will be 120 minutes for each paper. The selection of the awardees will be made on the basis of the total marks scored in the MAT & SAT.

More Information: In Karnataka, 81,698 students took the examination which was held on November 5, 2017 and only 194 students (0.237%), including all categories, have been selected. A total of 5,235 students had appeared from Dakshina Kannada and 6 students among them have been selected (0.11%). This shows that the selection rate of our district is less than the average for the state. The Department of State Education, Research & Training (DSERT) conducts the first stage of NTSE.

Exam: National Talent Search Examination (NTSE)

Eligibility: Students studying in 10th standard