A report by the Performance Assessment, Review, and Analysis of Knowledge for Holistic Development (PARAKH), a unit established within the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) to standardize assessments across school boards, recommends that a student’s performance in Classes 9, 10, and 11, including exams and ongoing classwork, should contribute to their final marks at the end of Class 12. This proposal, aligned with the National Education Policy, seeks to harmonize evaluation standards nationwide. After consulting with 32 school boards, PARAKH presented its findings to the Education Ministry, advocating for common assessment criteria and equivalence across boards.
A key recommendation is to incorporate performance from Classes 9, 10, and 11 into the final Class 12 report card, with weights of 15% for Class 9, 20% for Class 10, 25% for Class 11, and 40% for Class 12. The PARAKH report advises that evaluation should include a blend of formative assessments, such as continuous classroom assessments using holistic progress cards, group discussions, and projects, along with summative assessments like term-end examinations. The report proposes that in Class 9, 70% of the final score should come from formative assessments and 30% from summative assessments. In Class 10, the final score should be evenly split, with 50% from formative assessments and 50% from summative assessments. For Class 11, the breakdown should be 40% formative and 60% summative assessments. In Class 12, the weight for formative assessments should decrease to 30%, with 70% of the final score based on summative assessments.
According to media reports, the report will be distributed to all school boards for feedback. A preliminary round of discussions was held last week with officials from Haryana, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, and Bihar. In this meeting, state representatives suggested a different method for incorporating class-wise performance. PARAKH is scheduled to continue discussions with the remaining school boards in August.
