Gandhinagar: To enhance the quality of education, make the education system more student-friendly, and ensure the comprehensive assessment of a child’s skills along with learning, Gujarat government has decided to implement the 360° Comprehensive Assessment Framework under the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and the National Curriculum Framework – School Education.

This framework will soon be implemented in all classes from 1 to 8 across the state. For this purpose, the state government had constituted a committee of education experts under the chairmanship of educationist Dr. Jayendrasinh Jadav. The committee submitted its report to the Chief Minister, based on which the 360-degree assessment will be implemented from the current academic year. This evaluation method will assess students’ knowledge, skills, values, behaviour, cooperation, and attitude, making education more inclusive and holistic.

This new approach differs from the traditional marks-based assessment system. Now, students will be evaluated not only for academic achievements but also for their overall development in cognitive, affective, and psychomotor domains. A Holistic Progress Card (HPC) will be prepared through contributions from four stakeholders — teachers, peers, parents, and the student themselves — serving as a mirror of progress rather than just a report card. Teachers will receive special training for this purpose.

The primary goal of the new assessment system is to make evaluation a tool for learning — not just exam preparation — but to encourage the development of life skills. This approach will foster responsibility, self-awareness, and a mindset for continuous improvement among students.

Special focus has been given to reducing teachers’ data entry workload and lightening the burden of frequent written tests on students. The format of unit tests will be changed to be more simple, practical, and student-friendly.

The Concept of 360° Comprehensive Assessment

Under the NEP 2020, 360-degree evaluation in primary schools goes beyond measuring academic achievement — it focuses on the holistic development of a student, covering cognitive, affective, and psychomotor aspects.

Multi-stakeholder evaluation:

• Teacher’s evaluation: The teacher will assess the student’s academic performance, participation in classroom activities, learning style, and behaviour.

• Peer evaluation: Students will evaluate each other’s performance, cooperative behaviour, and teamwork skills, encouraging mutual understanding and a sense of responsibility.

• Parent’s evaluation: Parents will provide feedback on the child’s learning environment at home, interests, hobbies, and behaviour, helping the school better understand the student’s overall personality.

• Self-evaluation: Students will assess their own performance, strengths, and areas for improvement — a vital step for self-awareness and self-development.

Holistic Progress Card (HPC)

The HPC will record detailed information on the student’s cognitive, emotional, and psychomotor development. With inputs from teachers, peers, parents, and the student, it will give a clear picture of strengths and improvement areas. This process will encourage critical thinking, creativity, and collaboration instead of rote memorisation.

Gujarat’s initiative is based on the principle of “As the education, so the assessment”. It aims to build self-confidence, responsibility, and a spirit of continuous progress in children — laying a strong foundation for their future.

Implementation in Gujarat

To roll out this framework, the education department has consulted teacher associations, experts, and social organisations to address existing challenges. Based on the Holistic Progress Card developed by NCERT and PARAKH (Performance Assessment, Review, and Analysis of Knowledge for Holistic Development), the committee has customised a version suited to Gujarat’s needs. This will be adopted in state schools to promote active communication between teachers, parents, and students.

It is noteworthy that at the national level, CBSE schools and Kendriya Vidyalayas have already adopted this framework. The national version was prepared by PARAKH under the Ministry of Education, Government of India, and was recently published by NCERT. Taking this as a reference, Gujarat has developed its own Holistic Progress Card for statewide implementation.