Why in news?
The Performance Assessment, Review and Analysis of Knowledge for Holistic Development (PARAKH) released its first Rashtriya Sarvekshan (national survey) report in July 2025. Conducted by the NCERT in December 2024, the survey assessed learning levels of students in classes 3, 6 and 9 across Indian states.
Background
- PARAKH is an autonomous national assessment centre set up under the National Education Policy 2020. It replaced the earlier National Achievement Survey and aims to provide competency‑based assessments.
- The December 2024 survey covered more than 41 lakh students in over 1 lakh schools across all states and Union territories. It tested foundational literacy and numeracy (class 3), intermediate language and mathematics skills (class 6) and higher‑order thinking in language, mathematics and science (class 9).
Key findings
- Class 3: Only about 60 % of students could read and understand short stories, and barely half could arrange numbers up to 99 or identify basic shapes. This indicates deficits in foundational literacy and numeracy.
- Class 6: Less than 40 % could solve basic arithmetic problems or understand fractions, and about half could explain civic institutions like panchayats and banks.
- Class 9: Though 54 % could identify ideas from newspaper editorials, only around 30 % could apply concepts of percentages and fractions in problem solving. One‑third could explain scientific concepts like electric circuits.
- State variation: Punjab, Kerala, Himachal Pradesh and the UT of Chandigarh topped most grades, while districts in Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir and Jharkhand recorded the lowest scores.
Significance
- The survey highlights persistent learning gaps despite years of school enrolment expansion. Early‑grade deficits in reading and maths can snowball into later learning difficulties.
- It provides granular data to help states tailor remedial programs and teacher training, rather than relying on one‑size‑fits‑all solutions.
- The report underscores the need for competency‑based teaching and assessment, as advocated by NEP 2020, instead of rote‑based learning.
Way forward
- Focus on foundational literacy and numeracy in early grades through initiatives like NIPUN Bharat.
- Use adaptive assessments and digital tools to identify individual learning levels and provide targeted support.
- Improve teacher training in pedagogy and continuous assessment; recruit trained teachers in remote districts.
- Encourage parental and community participation in monitoring learning outcomes.