Meet Praveen Kumar

Praveen approached us on a cold December morning. He was dressed in a neatly ironed white formal shirt tucked into clean black coloured trousers. He wore polished brown formal shoes and a belt to match.

‘Good morning sirs’, he said. ‘I want to do my SSC from the Telangana Open School Society board. I am worried that I am too old to enroll for the examination, I am 54 years old and I have only completed my 7th or 8th class, I cannot remember. But I have no documents to prove that I have studied till high school’.

‘Good morning, you speak good English for someone who hasn’t completed his schooling’, we said.

‘Yes sir, I attended English speaking classes for a year’, he said.

‘What are your future goals?’, we asked.

‘I want to complete my graduation and move on to do my MBA, I am currently working as a marketing manager for USHA water filters. My job requires me to complete my SSC (10th) for a promotion’, he said.

We assured him that the Telangana Open School Society SSC examination had no upper age limit and that anyone above the age of 15 can write the examinations. ‘The TOSS SSC examinations are specifically for people like you who have missed out on formal education’, we said.

Validity of the TOSS SSC certificate

‘Are the certificates from Telangana Open School Society of same value as the standard SSC certification?’, he asked.

‘Yes, it is given in the prospectus that the Government of India recognizes the Telangana Open School Society SSC certificate as equal to the standard classroom certificate’, we said.

Information about TOSS SSC examinations

We explained that he would have to pick 5 subjects out of the subject pool. And that he could pick a maximum of two languages (minimum of 1) from Group A alongside 3 subjects from Group B. After referring him to the subject table on our website, he chose English, Hindi, Mathematics, Science & Technology and Social Studies.

‘You will have to pick a study centre which is convenient for you’, we said.

‘Oh, there are study centres?’, he asked.

‘Yes the study centres hold contact classes. You will have to attend 30 contact classes (PCP; Personal Contact Programme) and submit 3 Tutor Marked Assignments (TMA’s) for each subject you choose’, we said.

‘I don’t think I have the time to attend 30 classes sir’, he said.

‘Do not worry, the PCP’s are held on weekends specifically to meet the needs of working people’, we said.

‘It seems to be a very good way to get students on track’, he said.

We told him that the examinations are held roughly on March/April of every year.

Requirements for application to the TOSS SSC examinations

‘You will require a scanned copy of your signature, photograph and Aadhar card for application to the Telangana Open School Society’s SSC examination. You can apply online at their official website’, we said, linking him to telanganaopenschool.org.

‘Thank you for clarifying my doubts sirs’, he said. We shook hands warmly and watched him depart.

We wish Praveen Kumar all the best with his Telangana Open School Society SSC(10th) examinations.