The first session to discuss school assessments, examination practices, and equivalence of boards across the nation was organised by the Union Ministry of Education (MoE) and the national assessment body PARAKH.
There are now 60 school examination boards operating in various Indian states and Union Territories. According to Sanjay Kumar, School Education Secretary, “the goal is to create a single framework that permits smooth transitions for children switching between various boards or areas.”
“This includes aligning curriculum standards, grading systems, and evaluation methodologies to enhance the credibility, recognition, and results of certificates and grades obtained across boards,” he continued.
The National Education Policy’s PARAKH reform will establish assessment norms for all boards to assist eliminate score inconsistencies among students registered with various state boards.
All accredited school boards will be required to follow the norms, criteria, and guidelines specified by the Performance Assessment, Review, and Analysis of Knowledge for Holistic Development (PARAKH).
The National Council for Education Research has picked Education Testing Service to establish the regulatory platform. Education Testing Service administers important exams including the TOEFL and GRE.
“The workshop’s main topic was equivalency between educational boards. Several stakeholders were made aware of PARAKH’s conception. The conversation focused on the requirement to reevaluate the prevalent culture of rote assessment in our educational system. There is a growing understanding that comprehensive evaluations, which consider many aspects of a student’s abilities and potential, are equally significant, according to a top official in the Ministry of Education.
“Further, the discussion underlined the necessity for well-designed, standardised test questions to ensure fairness and uniformity across schools and boards. There is also a demand to balance formative and summative tests in order to lessen the strain of high-stakes exams while still accurately gauging a student’s progress. He said, “An analysis of the intermediate and higher secondary boards’ examination results was also presented.
