CBSE launches mental wellness service with pre-exam counselling for students

The counselling services will cover a wide range of areas, including stress management, anxiety reduction, time management, and coping strategies.

The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has taken a step towards prioritising the mental well-being of students by announcing the provision of psychological counselling facilities starting January 1, 2024.

This move comes in anticipation of the upcoming board examinations, with practical exams scheduled to commence on January 1 and theory papers on February 15. The initiative reflects the board's commitment to supporting students and their parents during what can be a stressful period.

"The CBSE will provide psychological counselling facility to students and parents from January 1, 2024. The exam schedule for practical and theory papers has already been announced from January 1 and February 15, respectively. The psychological counselling has been aligned accordingly for students' facilitation," CBSE said in a press release.

The counselling services will cover a wide range of areas, including stress management, anxiety reduction, time management, and coping strategies. Additionally, counsellors will offer guidance on career choices and academic pursuits, fostering an overall positive environment for students.

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The services include a free IVRS facility which is available 24x7 for students and parents on the Board's toll-free number 1800-11-8004. Through this, information and suggestions about stress-free preparation for examinations, time and stress management, frequently asked questions (FAQs), prevention from Covid, important contact details of CBSE offices, etc. in Hindi and English can be accessed.

Besides, there would be bilingual podcasts on the same subjects available on the CBSE website, along with a tele-counselling facility which is a voluntary and free-of-cost service, provided by CBSE from 9:30am to 5:30pm from Monday to Saturday.

Since 1998, the board has been providing psychological counselling in two phases, before the examination and after the result, to keep the students of Class X and XII of CBSE-affiliated schools stress-free during the examinations.

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