Irshad Ahmad Wani
abuaalim@gmail.com
In India’s education landscape, every reform brings along new buzzwords — NEP, NCF, FLN, and now PARAKH. Among these, PARAKH has emerged as one of the most frequently discussed and critically important terms in recent times. From classroom teachers to top education officers, everyone is now expected to understand what PARAKH stands for, how it functions, and why it matters so deeply to the future of our learners.
PARAKH, an acronym for Performance Assessment, Review and Analysis for Holistic Development, is a constituent yet independent body under NCERT. It serves as India’s assessment standard-setting body, responsible for developing a common understanding of learning outcomes, promoting competency-based assessment, and ensuring that all learners are evaluated not just for what they remember, but for what they can apply and create.
A Health Check of the Education System
Traditionally, examinations in India have focused on testing memory. But the 21st-century learner demands something far more meaningful — an education that promotes reasoning, creativity, and problem-solving. This is precisely where PARAKH steps in.
Through its large-scale assessments — most notably the Rashtriya Sarvekshan (National Achievement Survey) 2024 — PARAKH has conducted a comprehensive “health check-up” of the school education system. The survey has provided data-driven insights on learning levels across different stages and subjects, giving policymakers and educators a factual basis to reflect upon.
As a participant in the UT-level Dissemination Workshop on the Rashtriya Sarvekshan 2024 held recently in Jammu and Kashmir, I found the exercise not just informative but transformative. Witnessing officials and teachers engage deeply with the data underscored for me that assessments, when interpreted correctly, can be powerful diagnostic tools — identifying learning gaps, guiding pedagogy, and inspiring actionable reform.
Unearthing Insights That Matter
The PARAKH Rashtriya Sarvekshan 2024 is much more than a report; it is a mirror that reflects both our achievements and our challenges. The findings reveal that while progress has been made in bringing Competencies into our classrooms, there remainsa lot to do in touching benchmarks. The persistent gaps between rural and urban learners, between different social groups, and among school categories is vividly evident in the report.
The five pillars of NEP 2020 — access, equity, quality, affordability, and accountability — continue to serve as guiding principles, yet the survey underscores that these are not fully realised in practice. For instance, rural students still lag behind urban peers in certain competencies; quality remains inconsistent; and accessibility, though improved, needs further strengthening.
Most concerning is the finding that rote memorisation continues to overshadow competency-based learning. This shows that despite sincere efforts, the classroom transition from “teaching for tests” to “teaching for understanding” is still incomplete. The report is, therefore, both a reality check and a call to action.
Turning Data into Direction
As an educator and teacher trainer, I firmly believe that data by itself does not change systems — the interpretation and use of data do. Each statistic in the PARAKH report tells a human story: of a teacher’s effort, a learner’s struggle, and a school’s context. The true strength of PARAKH lies in transforming numbers into narratives — stories that guide improvement rather than assign blame.
The report urges teachers to revisit their methods, making students co-constructors of knowledge rather than passive recipients. It calls for assessments that are continuous, competency-based, and contextual, helping every child learn at their own pace. For administrators and authorities, it offers insights to fine-tune teacher training, revise learning materials, and reallocate resources strategically.
The J&K Perspective: From Reflection to Reform
In Jammu and Kashmir, the UT-level Dissemination Workshop organised by the School Education Department in collaboration with PARAKH has laid the foundation for this new culture of reflection. The workshop brought together JKBOSE, SCERT, and DSEK — alongside private school representatives — in a rare convergence of institutions, all committed to making purposeful and assessment meaningful.
As a representative from District Budgam, I witnessed first-hand how the deliberations went beyond numbers to address pedagogy, inclusivity, and accountability. What made the initiative remarkable was its bottom-up approach — districts are now tasked with holding their own dissemination sessions, analysing local data, and framing district-level intervention plans.
This model ensures that decisions are context-sensitive, emerging from the classroom upward rather than the conference table downward. The goal is to make sure that grade-specific competencies are achieved and learning gaps addressed locally and effectively.
Redefining Assessment and Accountability
Perhaps the most profound shift PARAKH advocates are in how we perceive assessment itself. It moves away from the culture of judgement to one of growth and guidance. Assessment, in PARAKH’s philosophy, is not the end of learning — it is part of the learning process.
For teachers, this means moving from merely “testing knowledge” to interpreting learning. For students, it means being evaluated for how they think, not just what they recall. For education officers, it implies re-examining accountability frameworks to focus on outcomes, not outputs.
Such an approach also highlights the need for continuous professional development of teachers. PARAKH’s vision aligns closely with the NEP’s emphasis on building teacher capacity to design competency-based tasks and interpret learning outcomes effectively.
The Way Forward: From Buzzword to Backbone
The Rashtriya Sarvekshan 2024 is not the final word on our education system — it is the first word in a new conversation. It challenges us to use its findings constructively, to innovate, and to take collective responsibility for improving learning outcomes.
Education reforms cannot succeed in isolation. They require an ecosystem where teachers are empowered, learners are engaged, and policymakers are informed by evidence. PARAKH has initiated this dialogue between data and decision-making — a dialogue that must now reach every school and every classroom.
The buzz around PARAKH, therefore, is not just about a new acronym. It signifies a new mindset — one that values reflection over routine, understanding over memorisation, and progress over perfection.
If the NEP gives us the destination, and the NCF charts the route, PARAKH shows us the milestones along the way. It is, in every sense, the pulse of India’s school education system — guiding us towards an equitable, inclusive, and competency-based future where every child can truly learn and thrive.
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