Extramarks Blogs: Weaving stories for schools, students, and parents

School Management Committee (SMC) Guidelines 2026: What Every School Needs to Know

Prachi_Singh — Mon, 17 Aug 2026 09:59:36 +0000

Schools work best when the people closest to them have a say in how they run. On 6 May 2026, the Ministry of Education launched the School Management Committee (SMC) Guidelines 2026. These new rules give parents, teachers, and the local community a bigger role in running schools.

This is the first single national framework for SMCs. It replaces all earlier instructions issued under older schemes. This blog explains what changed, who is on an SMC, what powers it now has, and which schools the rules apply to.

What Is a School Management Committee (SMC)?

A School Management Committee (SMC) is a group of parents, teachers, school leaders, and local community members who help run and monitor a school. It plans school improvements, checks how funds are used, monitors attendance, and works for the safety and inclusion of every child. SMCs were first made compulsory under the Right to Education (RTE) Act, 2009.

What Are the SMC Guidelines 2026?

The Guidelines were launched by Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan in New Delhi. They were prepared by the Department of School Education and Literacy under the Ministry of Education.

The main points are simple:

They are one national framework for all States and Union Territories.
They replace all earlier SMC guidelines issued under older schemes.
They are in line with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, the RTE Act 2009, and Samagra Shiksha.
They have been released in all official languages so that people at the village level can read them.

To understand the policy behind these changes, read our guide on the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.

The Biggest Change: One SMC for the Whole School

Earlier, SMCs were mainly linked to elementary schools, that is Class 1 to Class 8. Secondary sections often had separate committees or none at all.

Under the 2026 Guidelines, one single SMC now covers the entire school, from Balvatika (the pre-school year before Class 1) right up to Class 12. This means one committee, one plan, and one set of records for the full school.

What Changed: Before and After

Area	Earlier Position	Under SMC Guidelines 2026
Coverage	Mainly Class 1 to 8	Balvatika to Class 12
Structure	Separate or no committee for higher classes	One unified SMC for the whole school
Rules	Many separate guidelines	One national framework
Sub-committees	Varied by state	School Building Committee and Academic Committee
Civil works	Limits differed by state	Up to ₹30 lakh directly by the SMC
Audit	Limited	Social audit at least once a year

Who Is on a School Management Committee?

The Guidelines make parents the centre of the committee. The main rules are:

At least 75% of members must be parents or guardians of children studying in the school.
At least 50% of members must be women.
There must be representation from weaker sections, disadvantaged groups, and parents of children with special needs.
Members serve a term of two years.
The SMC must be formed within one month of the academic session starting.
The first meeting must be held within one week of formation.

This structure makes sure school decisions are not taken only by officials and teachers. Mothers and families from weaker sections get a direct voice.

What the SMC Has to Do

The Guidelines set out clear duties. The work is divided between two sub-committees.

1. School Building Committee

This group looks after construction, repair, and maintenance work. It handles planning, cost estimates, supervision, and accounts for all building work.

2. Academic Committee

This group looks after teaching and learning. It monitors student and teacher attendance, supports guidance and counselling, and collects data for UDISE+ (the government’s national school data system).

3. School Development Plan and Social Audit

Every SMC must help prepare a School Development Plan. It should also carry out a social audit at least once each academic year, so parents and the community can see how funds and facilities are being used.

4. Safety, Child Protection, and Inclusion

The SMC must help prepare a School Safety and Security Plan and conduct safety walks of the school every quarter. Schools are expected to run safety drills and create awareness about the POCSO Act (Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act), which protects children from abuse.

The SMC must also help identify children with special needs using the PRASHAST app, and make sure they take part in all classroom and co-curricular activities. It must also help find out-of-school and dropout children and bring them back through enrolment drives.

Financial Powers: The ₹30 Lakh Rule

The Guidelines give SMCs real financial responsibility.

Civil works costing up to ₹30 lakh can be carried out directly by the SMC, without outside tendering.
Work above ₹30 lakh must go through a public tender, following CPWD or state PWD rules.
SMC funds must be kept in a separate joint bank account in the names of the chairperson and the member secretary.
A separate cash book, bank passbook, and purchase records must be kept.
Bank reconciliation must be done every month.
Stock and asset registers must be checked physically once a year.
Annual financial statements must be filed. If they are not filed, the next grant will not be released.

This is a big shift. Parents and community members can now directly monitor whether building work is finished and whether the quality is good.

Do the Guidelines Apply to Private Unaided Schools?

Soon after the launch, many schools asked whether these rules applied to them.

Through a communication dated 20 May 2026 to all States and Union Territories, the Ministry clarified that schools covered under Section 2(n)(iv) of the RTE Act, 2009 are not covered by these Guidelines, provided they have not received any aid or grant from the government or a local authority. In simple terms, private unaided schools that take no government money are outside the scope of these rules.

However, the Ministry has encouraged such schools to form SMCs on their own. Doing so can improve transparency, accountability, and trust with parents. You can read the official clarification on the Press Information Bureau website.

This is a balanced approach. India’s school system is diverse. Government, aided, and private unaided schools work in very different conditions. Giving flexibility while encouraging participation respects that difference.

Why Community Participation Matters

The idea behind all this is simple: good schools cannot be built by school leaders alone.

Schools today do far more than teach the syllabus. They handle student well-being, competency-based learning, digital tools, teacher development, and now artificial intelligence in the classroom. A strong SMC gives everyone a shared platform to understand what the school needs and work towards it together.

How Technology Can Support SMCs

Technology can make SMC work much easier. Digital attendance records, simple dashboards, shared school data, and regular parent communication all reduce guesswork. When parents can see real information, meetings become useful instead of formal.

Extramarks helps schools build this kind of transparency. Its school solutions support attendance and performance tracking, competency-based assessment, digital communication with parents, and clear reporting that school leaders can share with their committee. This makes it easier to prepare the School Development Plan and to show progress during a social audit.

Book a free demo for your school to see how Extramarks can support better school governance and parent communication.

Book a free demo

Looking Ahead

The School Management Committee Guidelines 2026 are more than a governance rulebook. They are a chance to rebuild the relationship between schools, families, and communities.

By giving flexibility to unaided schools while encouraging voluntary participation, the Ministry has taken a balanced position. The next step is turning that intent into real participation. If schools, teachers, parents, and communities approach SMCs with clarity and trust, these committees can grow from administrative bodies into genuine partners in building safer schools and better outcomes for every child.

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21st Century Skills in Education: How They Are Transforming the Classroom

Prachi_Singh — Mon, 17 Aug 2026 07:52:33 +0000

Education is changing. Classrooms are moving beyond memorisation and textbook learning. Students are now being asked to understand concepts, solve problems, and use what they learn. This shift has made 21st century skills in education an important part of modern schooling.

For schools, the goal is not to add one more subject to the timetable. It is to change how students learn every day. Students need to think clearly, speak well, work with others, use technology safely, and adapt to change. These skills help them become confident, independent learners.

What Are 21st Century Skills in Education?

21st century skills are the abilities that help students learn, work, and solve problems in a changing world. They include critical thinking, creativity, communication, collaboration, digital literacy, and adaptability. These skills connect classroom lessons to real life and help students apply what they know instead of only remembering it.

A 21st century skills curriculum builds these abilities into normal subject teaching. A maths lesson can build problem-solving. A science project can build teamwork. A social science debate can build communication. The subject stays the same. The way of learning changes.

Why 21st Century Skills Matter Now

The world of work is changing faster than ever. The World Economic Forum (WEF), a global research body, reported in its Future of Jobs Report 2025 that 39% of the skills workers use today will change or become outdated by 2030. The same report found that analytical thinking is the top skill employers want, with 7 out of 10 companies calling it essential.

This matters for schools. A student in Class 6 today will enter the job market around 2038. No school can predict which jobs will exist then. But schools can build skills that stay useful in any job: thinking, communicating, adapting, and learning new things quickly.

The Three Categories of 21st Century Skills

These skills are usually grouped into three types. This grouping comes from the P21 Framework for 21st Century Learning, which is widely used by schools around the world.

1. Learning Skills (The 4 Cs)

These help students think and learn well.

Critical Thinking: Studying information and finding logical answers.
Creativity: Coming up with new ideas and trying different methods.
Communication: Saying ideas clearly and listening to others.
Collaboration: Working with others towards one goal.

2. Literacy Skills

These help students find and use information correctly.

Information Literacy: Finding, checking, and using information.
Media Literacy: Understanding and judging different types of media.
Digital Literacy: Using technology and digital tools safely and well.

3. Life Skills

These help students handle challenges and take good decisions.

Adaptability and flexibility
Leadership and social skills
Decision-making and problem-solving
Time management and self-discipline

What NEP 2020 Says About 21st Century Skills

The National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 gives strong importance to skills that go beyond rote learning. It asks schools to make learning more practical, flexible, and connected to real life. You can read the full policy on the Ministry of Education website.

The policy focuses on:

Competency-based learning that checks understanding, not memory.
Experiential learning through projects, activities, and hands-on work.
Multidisciplinary learning that links different subjects together.
Technology-enabled learning to build digital skills and improve access.
Life skills such as communication, teamwork, leadership, and adaptability.

To understand how these ideas fit together, read our detailed guide on the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.

Traditional Classroom vs 21st Century Classroom

The table below shows the main differences between the two.

Area	Traditional Classroom	21st Century Classroom
Teacher’s role	Gives information	Guides and asks questions
Student’s role	Listens and writes	Asks, tries, and builds
Main method	Lecture and notes	Projects, discussion, activities
Technology	Rarely used	Part of daily lessons
Assessment	Written exams only	Exams plus projects and presentations
Main goal	What did the student learn?	How can the student use it?

What This Looks Like in a Real Classroom

Here is a simple example from a Class 7 science chapter on water.

In a traditional lesson, the teacher explains why water is scarce. Students copy the notes and answer questions from the textbook.

In a 21st century lesson, the same chapter becomes a small project:

Students track water use at home for one week. (Information literacy)
They work in groups of four to add up the numbers and make a chart. (Collaboration, digital literacy)
They compare their data and ask why some homes use more water. (Critical thinking)
Each group suggests three ways their school can save water. (Creativity, problem-solving)
They present the plan to the class in five minutes. (Communication)

The chapter is the same. The syllabus is covered. But the students have now used six different skills in one week.

Teaching Methods That Build These Skills

Teachers do not need a new syllabus. They need a few new methods.

Project-Based Learning: Students work on real problems and use ideas from more than one subject.
Collaborative Learning: Students learn from each other in small groups.
Blended Learning: Classroom teaching is mixed with digital lessons and practice.
Inquiry-Based Learning: Students ask questions, test ideas, and find answers themselves.
Technology-Enabled Teaching: Digital tools make lessons interactive and support slow and fast learners together.

Three Real Challenges Schools Face

Most schools agree with these ideas. The difficulty is in doing them. Here are the three problems school leaders raise most often, and simple ways to handle them.

1. How do you grade a skill like teamwork?

A written exam cannot measure collaboration. The answer is a simple rubric: a small checklist with three or four levels for each skill, filled in by the teacher during the activity. NEP 2020 also supports this through the Holistic Progress Card, which records skills alongside marks.

2. Teacher training takes time

Teachers cannot change their method after one workshop. It works better to start small. Pick one subject and one class. Ask those teachers to run one project in a term. Let them share what worked in the staff meeting. Then grow it slowly.

3. The 40-minute period problem

A project cannot finish in one period. Some schools solve this by joining two periods once a week for project work. Others give one “activity day” each month. Even a small change in the timetable makes a big difference.

How Schools Can Start

Building these skills needs a whole-school plan. Schools can:

Train teachers in modern teaching methods, in small batches.
Add one project-based unit per subject, per term.
Use technology in daily lessons, not only in the computer lab.
Give students regular chances to work in groups and solve real problems.
Use assessments that check understanding and use, not only memory.

Done this way, 21st century skills become part of normal teaching instead of a separate programme.

How Extramarks Supports 21st Century Learning

Extramarks helps schools bring technology and modern teaching methods into everyday classrooms. Through Smart Class Plus, interactive digital content, AI-powered (Artificial Intelligence) teaching tools, personalised learning, and competency-based assessments, teachers get support to make lessons more engaging and student-centred.

The AI-powered tools help teachers plan lessons, create classroom activities, and support students who learn at different speeds. Assessment tools help students practise concepts, see their progress, and improve at their own pace. Together, this helps schools build classrooms where students learn concepts and also learn how to use them.

Book a free demo for your school to see how Extramarks can support 21st century learning in your classrooms.

Book a free demo

Conclusion

21st century skills in education are now an essential part of preparing students for the future. Critical thinking, creativity, communication, collaboration, digital literacy, and adaptability help learners move beyond memorisation and become confident problem-solvers.

For schools, the change is not about adding a new subject. It is about changing how students learn every day. With the right teaching methods, technology, and support for teachers, classrooms can become places where students do more than learn answers. They learn how to think, question, create, and solve.

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Dummy School Problem: How Schools Can Win Students Back

Prachi_Singh — Thu, 30 Jul 2026 09:25:21 +0000

Every principal knows this moment.

Class XI starts in April. The classroom is full. By August, some seats are empty.

The names are still on the register. Those students will come back for practicals and board exams. But their real learning has shifted somewhere else — to a coaching institute preparing them for JEE or NEET.

This has happened so often that it now has a name. We call it the dummy school model. If you want the basic comparison first, we have covered integrated programmes versus dummy schools separately.

For years, schools treated this as a sad but harmless trend. That time is over.

CBSE is now inspecting, disaffiliating and warning. A High Court has called the practice a fraud. And students themselves may lose the right to sit for their board exam.

So this article is not a debate about attendance. It is about what a school should do next.

Part 1: Why dummy schools became normal

Let us start honestly. Parents are not the villains here.

No parent chooses a dummy school because they dislike school. They choose it because they believe it gives their child the best chance at a JEE or NEET rank.

Look at the pressure and the choice makes sense. Six hours of school. Four hours of coaching. Travel in between. Homework from both sides. Something has to go.

For a long time we accepted a simple idea: school gives you board marks, coaching gives you a rank. Two different jobs, two different places.

But there is a second reason nobody likes to say out loud.

For some schools, dummy admissions became easy money.

A non-attending student pays full fees. But that student uses no lab material, no bus seat, no library book, no sports ground. There is almost no teaching cost. In some places, a Delhi address also helps families claim state quota seats in medical and engineering colleges.

So the school earns, the coaching centre teaches, and everyone stays quiet.

That arrangement is now breaking. And it is breaking fast.

Part 2: What has actually changed

This is the part most schools have not fully understood. Here are the facts.

We reported the first big change when it happened — CBSE’s crackdown and the new rule from 2025-26. Here is where things stand now.

The court has spoken. In January 2025, the Delhi High Court called the dummy school practice a fraud. The bench said schools cannot allow students to attend only coaching and then sit for exams on the basis of false information. It directed CBSE and the Delhi government to act.

Schools have already lost their affiliation. After surprise inspections, show-cause notices and video evidence, CBSE withdrew the affiliation of 21 schools. Six more were downgraded from senior secondary to secondary. Most were in Delhi, the rest in Rajasthan. In total, action has been taken against more than 300 schools across the country.

Inspections are not a one-time drive. In September 2024, CBSE inspected 27 schools in Delhi and Rajasthan on the same day. Twenty-seven teams went out together, each with one CBSE officer and one principal from an affiliated school, so that no school could be warned in advance.

In August 2025, it happened again — 15 schools across seven states and union territories, including Delhi, Chandigarh, Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal. Dummy students were found in many of them.

The student is at risk too. CBSE has said that candidates found missing from school during a surprise inspection may not be allowed to appear for the board examination. The board has also made it clear that the responsibility does not sit with the school alone — it sits with the student and the parents as well.

The rule behind all this is not new. CBSE has always required a minimum of 75% attendance to sit for the board exam. What is new is that the rule is being checked.

Students who fail the attendance test may have to go through NIOS, the open schooling board, instead.

Part 3: The one number CBSE looks at first

This is the most useful thing in this article, so please read it twice.

During the 2025 inspections, CBSE noticed a pattern in the records. Enrolment in Classes 11 and 12 was much higher than in Classes 9 and 10.

Think about what that means.

A normal school grows slowly. Some students join in Class XI, yes. But if your Class XI strength is far bigger than your own Class X strength, the extra students came from somewhere — and they may not be sitting in your classroom.

That single ratio is a red flag. It can be seen from a desk in Delhi, before any inspector visits your campus.

Check it today. Take your Class X strength from last year. Compare it with your Class XI strength this year. If the jump is large and you cannot explain it with real admissions, you already have a problem to fix.

Part 4: The cost that never appears on the register

Even if your school never faces an inspection, the dummy model costs you something. It just does not show up in any file.

The classroom becomes quieter. Discussion needs students who argue back. When the strongest students stop coming, that stops too.
Healthy competition disappears. Marks stop being a contest. The remaining students lose the push that comes from sitting next to someone sharper.
Younger students lose their role models. A Class VIII child who never sees a confident Class XII senior loses something a teacher cannot supply. This is also where sports and leadership habits are learnt.
Teachers lose their best learners. Most teachers stay in this profession for the curious student who asks the difficult question. Take that student away and you slowly lose the teacher too.
And the student loses the most. No coaching class can teach a child how to speak in front of 300 people, lead a team, lose a match, run a school event, or work with someone who thinks differently.

None of this appears on a report card. All of it decides how that child performs in a job interview ten years later.

Part 5: Why this clashes with NEP 2020

There is a bigger reason this model cannot survive.

Indian education is moving in the opposite direction.

Through NEP 2020 and the National Curriculum Framework 2023, CBSE is shifting away from memorising and towards understanding and applying. The new assessment system is built to test critical thinking and problem solving, not recall.

Now think about it practically.

You can post a syllabus to an absent student. You cannot post a group project. You cannot post a lab experiment, a debate, a presentation or a class discussion.

Competency-based education only works when the student is physically in the room. Even the assessment design assumes the teacher can watch the child work. The whole design of NEP assumes presence.

So the dummy model is not just a rule violation now. It is a direct clash with the direction the entire system is walking in.

Part 6: The honest argument on the other side

Any school leader reading this deserves a fair discussion. So let us admit what is true.

The workload argument is real. A serious JEE aspirant genuinely cannot do full school plus full coaching. The day is not long enough. Pushed too far, it ends in student burnout. Telling that family to simply attend school more is not a solution.

Many integrated programmes have failed. This is the part most articles skip. Schools have tried adding JEE and NEET preparation and got poor results, because:

The coaching period was put at the end of the day, when children are tired
The same school teachers were asked to teach competitive-level content without training
Only two or three periods a week were given to a syllabus that needs far more
The programme was sold to parents before it was ready

When that happens, parents lose trust and go straight back to the coaching centre. Worse, they now believe integration does not work anywhere.

So the answer is not “integration is good.” The answer is integration only works under certain conditions.

Part 7: What real integration needs

If your school wants to keep its best students, here is what actually has to happen. We have written more on integrated coaching and on how schools can support competitive exam preparation. Be honest with yourself on each point.

1. Protected time, in the morning. Competitive preparation cannot be the last period. It needs proper slots during the fresh part of the day, fixed in the timetable, not adjusted every week.

2. Faculty with real subject depth. Board-level teaching and JEE-level teaching are different skills. Either train your teachers properly or bring in people who already do this work. Do not pretend.

3. Regular tests in the actual exam pattern. Students trust preparation that shows them a rank. Weekly or fortnightly tests, proper analysis, and a clear picture of where the child stands.

4. Board preparation must not be sacrificed. Parents want both. If board marks fall, the programme is finished, no matter how good the rank data looks.

5. Technology to handle the personal part. Every child is weak in something different. Adaptive practice and learning technology can do the individual work that one teacher with 60 students cannot.

6. Keep school life alive. This is the whole point. Sports, house events, stage, leadership roles. If your integrated programme removes all of that, you have simply built a coaching centre with a school signboard.

7. Talk to parents before they decide. Most dummy admissions are decided in a single conversation in March or April. If you have not shown parents your plan and your results by then, you have already lost. Clear parent communication is not a soft skill here. It is admission strategy. Strong school counselling helps too, especially when families are still deciding which stream to take after Class 10.

Many schools do this by bringing competitive exam preparation inside the school day, often by partnering with an education provider for faculty, structured tests, technology and curriculum support, while keeping the school in charge of the child’s overall growth. Some have gone further and tried to bring the Kota model into their own classrooms.

Part 8: A short checklist for your next meeting

Ask these five questions in your next leadership meeting.

The ratio. How does our Class XI strength compare with our own Class X strength last year? Can we explain the gap?
The register. If a CBSE team walked in tomorrow, unannounced, how many Class XI and XII students would be missing?
The reason. For every regular absentee, do we know whether it is coaching, health or something else?
The offer. What can we honestly promise a JEE or NEET aspirant that a coaching institute cannot?
The conversation. Who in our school speaks to these parents, and when? March is too late.

Make this part of your regular school audit, not a one-time exercise. And treat it as a student retention problem, because that is what it is.

If these questions are uncomfortable, that is useful. It is far better to answer them internally now than to answer them to an inspection team later.

The real question

The dummy school debate is usually framed around attendance. It is really about relevance.

If our brightest students feel they must leave school to reach their goals, the problem is not that they left. The problem is what school was offering them.

The schools that lead the next ten years will not try to defeat coaching institutes at their own game. They will do what only a school can do — teach, mentor, build character, create a community — and add serious exam preparation on top of it, under one roof. The move to two board exams a year gives them more room to do this than they had before.

Because the question is no longer whether a student should choose between school and coaching.

It is whether schools can change enough that the student never has to.

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NEP 2020 Completes Six Years: Measuring Its Impact on Indian Education

Prachi_Singh — Thu, 30 Jul 2026 09:11:09 +0000

On 29 July 2020, India approved the National Education Policy, or NEP. Before this, our education policy had not changed for 34 years. On the same day, the Ministry of Human Resource Development was renamed the Ministry of Education.

Six years have passed. Standing here in July 2026, the question is simple: what has actually changed?

The honest answer is that a lot has changed — but not everywhere, and in many places, not where it matters most.

This week, many newspapers will say NEP is a big success. Others will say it has failed. This article is not for that debate. It is for the people on the ground: principals, coordinators and teachers.

For you, the question is much simpler. Has NEP reached your classroom? Or has it stopped at your notice board?

What Is Working at the Top

Let us be fair — a lot of real work has been done in six years. But look closely at these wins and you will see a clear pattern. NEP has moved very fast wherever the central government could do the work itself.

Frameworks, apps and guidelines can be made in one office in Delhi and sent to the whole country. Here is what that top-down success looks like.

Structural shifts. About 32 states and union territories have moved to the 5+3+3+4 system. Education is a shared subject, so states like Tamil Nadu and West Bengal can keep the old 10+2 system.
New textbooks. The National Curriculum Framework for School Education, or NCF-SE, came out in August 2023. Guided by it, the new NCERT books are finally here. Class 9 moves fully to new books this year, in 2026-27, including a new English book called Kaveri. Classes 10 and 11 will follow next year.
Board exam reforms. CBSE has confirmed two board exams a year for Class 10, starting 2026-27. The February exam is compulsory, the May exam is optional, and the better score is kept. CISCE is planning to do the same.
National assessments. PARAKH, the national body for assessment, is now fully working. Its survey covered about 21 lakh students and 2.7 lakh teachers. It has also released a digital Holistic Progress Card, so schools do not have to fill it by hand.
Teacher training. More than 25 lakh teachers have completed NISHTHA training for foundational learning. A new four-year teacher education course, called ITEP, is running in 57 universities.

There was always a clear plan, written down in detail in SARTHAQ. But a policy does not teach students. Teachers do.

Where It Stumbles in the Classroom

The policy slows down sharply when the work depends on India’s 14.7 lakh individual schools. No central office can stop a child from dropping out. And no central office can change how a teacher takes a lesson on a normal Tuesday morning.

This gap between planning at the top and doing at the bottom has created three big problems.

Gap 1: Paperwork Instead of Teaching

The Holistic Progress Card, or HPC, is the best example of a good idea turning into a paperwork burden. A proper HPC tracks marks, behaviour, feelings and what classmates say about the child.

The reality: Filling one HPC by hand takes about 20 minutes. For a school of 1,000 students, that is more than 300 hours of work.

When a reform eats up a teacher’s free period, it becomes a chore. The cards get filled in a hurry one week before the deadline, with the same lines copied for every child. And the whole purpose of holistic tracking is lost.

Gap 2: New Exams, Old Teaching

Two board exams a year is not just a calendar change. The syllabus must finish earlier. Revision time becomes shorter. Extra classes are needed for students who come back in May.

The reality: Most schools have changed their academic calendar. Very few have changed how they teach. NEP wants questions that test understanding, not memory. But many teachers have not been trained to write such questions themselves, so they still depend on downloaded papers.

Gap 3: Reading and Maths in the Early Classes

NEP made a bold claim. If every child does not learn basic reading and maths — called Foundational Literacy and Numeracy, or FLN — by 2025, the rest of the policy will not matter.

The reality: We missed the 2025 deadline. The NIPUN Bharat target has now moved to 2026-27. Government primary schools have improved. But private schools, where nearly one-third of India’s children study, have not felt the same push. If you run a private school, FLN is your job — and it must start in the early classes, not in Class 3.

And Some of It Is Not Your Fault

These three gaps are yours to close. The next ones are not. It is important to say this clearly, because no principal can fix them alone.

Behind all of it is money. NEP says India should spend 6% of GDP on education. This target was first set in 1966 and has never been reached even once. Today the spending is about 3.2%.

That is a big reason why nearly 1 in 3 schools still have no internet. It is why India is short of roughly 10 lakh teachers. And it is part of why dropout rates are still in double digits at the secondary level — though children also leave school for money reasons and family reasons that no textbook can fix.

Are We Judging Too Soon?

Looking at these gaps, it is tempting to call the policy a failure. But that would not be correct.

State committees warned back in 2020 that the deadlines were too fast. NEP’s own documents say full rollout will take until 2040. In other big countries, such reforms took ten years or more to show results.

So the most accurate thing to say after six years is not “NEP has failed.” It is: “We are still in transition.”

But being in transition does not mean waiting. It only means the question moves from Delhi to your building.

The 10-Minute School Audit

You do not need a big national report to know where your school stands. You just need to ask the right questions. Take this 7-point audit to your next staff meeting and see how far your school has really come.

Area	The Question to Ask	The Reality Check
1. Assessments	Can you show three question papers from last term that your own teachers wrote to test understanding rather than memory?	Downloads do not count. Real reform needs teacher skill.
2. Board Exams	Do you have a written plan for the February and May Class 10 exams, including what happens to students in between?	This is an academic change, not just a calendar update.
3. Holistic Progress	How many minutes does one HPC take to fill in your school?	If nobody knows the answer, it is being treated as a file to submit, not a tool to track students.
4. Foundational Learning	Do you have real reading and maths data for each child in Classes 1 to 3, or only exam marks?	Private schools must own FLN too. It is not only a government school job.
5. Teacher Training	Your teachers finished NISHTHA. How many actually changed something in their classroom afterwards?	A certificate is not the same as a changed classroom.
6. Curriculum	Class 9 gets completely new NCERT books this year, in 2026-27. Has your Class 9 team read them yet?	Planning for a new syllabus must happen before the term starts.
7. Timetable	Are 10 bagless days, toy-based teaching and mother-tongue teaching actually on your timetable?	If they exist only in your school brochure, you are missing the point.

The Road Ahead

If many of your answers were uncomfortable, do not feel bad. Your school has not failed. This is simply what happens when a very big policy is handed to schools without extra time, extra teachers or extra money.

NEP 2020 gave India something it did not have for three decades: a clear, single direction. The first six years gave us new structures, new apps and a new way of talking about school. But the easy part is over.

The real gap now is no longer between the Centre and the states. It is between schools that changed their teaching, and schools that only changed their files.

The question for year seven is not whether NEP works. It is whether your school can show its work.

The post NEP 2020 Completes Six Years: Measuring Its Impact on Indian Education appeared first on Extramarks Blogs: Weaving stories for schools, students, and parents.

NEET UG Counselling 2026: Dates, Process, Fees, and Rules

Prachi_Singh — Fri, 17 Jul 2026 10:32:50 +0000

Congratulations on clearing the NEET UG 2026 exam! With the final Re-NEET results officially declared by the NTA on July 16, 2026, the most critical phase of your medical journey begins now. The exam and the rank predictors are behind you, and the focus now shifts to the counselling process.

Navigating the choices, quotas, and strict eligibility protocols can easily feel like a maze. Whether you are aiming for a government MBBS seat or targeting a top-tier private medical college, this comprehensive guide will simplify the NEET UG 2026 Counselling process. Let us dive into the dates, registration steps, fee structures, and the rules you must know to secure your white coat.

What is NEET 2026 Counselling?

The NEET UG Counselling is the centralized and state-level admission process through which eligible candidates are allotted seats in Medical (MBBS), Dental (BDS), and AYUSH colleges. Seat allocation is determined by your NEET score, All India Rank (AIR), reservation category, overall seat availability, and the specific sequence of college preferences you submit.

The process is divided into multiple rounds to ensure that all available seats across the country are filled transparently and on merit.

When Will NEET 2026 Counselling Begin?

Since the NTA released the NEET UG 2026 Re-Examination results on July 16, the Medical Counselling Committee (MCC) is currently preparing to release the official counselling schedule.

Expected Start Date: MCC is highly anticipated to open the registration window for Round 1 counselling around the fourth week of July 2026 (tentatively July 21).

Duration: The entire cycle, which includes four primary rounds, is expected to span from August through October 2026.

Students should actively monitor the official MCC portal (mcc.nic.in) for the finalized dates and the official seat matrix publication.

All India Quota vs. State Quota

Medical admissions in India are divided into two distinct, parallel systems. If you meet the eligibility criteria, you can participate in both.

All India Quota (AIQ) and MCC Counselling

Managed by the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) under the Ministry of Health, the MCC conducts centralized online counselling for the 15% All India Quota (AIQ). This covers:

15% seats in all Government Medical and Dental Colleges across India.
100% seats in Deemed and Central Universities (e.g., BHU, AMU).
100% seats in premier institutions like AIIMS and JIPMER.
Specific quotas in ESIC and AFMC (Screening process applies).

Note: No regional domicile is required to participate in MCC AIQ counselling.

State Quota (SQ)

The remaining 85% of government seats, alongside 100% of seats in private medical colleges, are administered by the respective State Counselling Authorities. To claim a seat under the State Quota, you must hold a valid domicile certificate for that specific state and apply through their localized web portal (e.g., upneet.gov.in for Uttar Pradesh).

NEET Counselling 2026 Eligibility Criteria

Before registering, ensure you meet these baseline requirements:

Qualifying Percentile: You must have achieved the minimum NEET UG 2026 cut-off (50th percentile for UR/EWS, 40th percentile for OBC/SC/ST, and 45th percentile for UR-PwBD).
Academics: You must have passed Class 12 with Physics, Chemistry, Biology/Biotechnology, and English as core subjects.

Eligibility Criteria for Central Universities

Certain Central Universities maintain specific internal quotas:

Delhi University (MAMC, LHMC, UCMS): The 85% institutional pool is strictly reserved for students who completed Classes 11 and 12 from schools in Delhi.
Aligarh Muslim University (AMU): Offers a 50% internal quota exclusively for students who have studied at AMU for the past three consecutive years.
Banaras Hindu University (BHU): 100% of seats are open and filled via MCC counselling without any regional domicile requirements.

Reservation of AIQ Seats in NEET 2026

For the central AIQ seats, the Government of India mandates the following reservation policy:

27%

OBC (Non-Creamy Layer)

15%

10%

EWS

7.5%

PwBD: horizontal reservation across all categories.

Your MBBS Seat Starts with the Right Counselling Strategy

Your strategy during the choice-filling phase is just as critical as your exam preparation. A major part of this involves understanding the financial commitments upfront.

What Are the NEET Counselling Registration Fees and Security Deposits?

When registering on the MCC portal, you are required to pay two separate amounts: a non-refundable registration fee and a refundable security deposit.

Institute Target	Category	Registration Fee (Non-Refundable)	Security Deposit (Refundable)
15% AIQ & Central Universities	UR / EWS	₹1,000	₹10,000
15% AIQ & Central Universities	SC / ST / OBC / PwD	₹500	₹5,000
Deemed Universities	All Categories	₹5,000	₹2,00,000

Crucial Advice: Inform your parents about these fee structures early, especially if you plan to select Deemed Universities, which require a ₹2 Lakh upfront refundable deposit via online banking.

NEET 2026 Counselling Process

Step-by-Step Process for MCC NEET Online Registration 2026

The entire MCC seat allotment process is digital. Here is how the sequence flows:

New User Sign-Up

Navigate to the official mcc.nic.in portal and select “New Candidate Registration”. You will be prompted to enter your NEET UG roll number, application number, name, and date of birth. Create a secure password.

Fill in Details

Log into your newly created account and complete your profile. Enter your permanent address, parents’ names, and other personal data. Ensure these match your official documents exactly—you cannot alter these details later.

Pay Fees

Remit the requisite non-refundable fee and the refundable security deposit via Net Banking, Credit Card, or Debit Card. Download and safely store the payment receipt.

Choice Filling

Navigate to the “Available Choices” tab. Use the “+” button to add your preferred medical and dental colleges. Strategy: Always arrange your choices in the strict order of your genuine preference (put your absolute dream colleges at the top), regardless of previous years’ cut-offs.

Choice Locking

Review your finalized list and manually lock your choices before the stated deadline. If you forget to lock them, the system will automatically freeze your last saved sequence when the window closes. Always take a printout of your locked choices.

NEET UG 2026 Counselling Rounds

The MCC executes the centralized counselling in four distinct stages:

Round 1: Fresh registrations, choice filling, and seat allotment.

Round 2: Fresh registrations for new participants, upgradation opportunities for Round 1 admitted candidates, and new allotments.

Round 3 (Mop-Up Round): Conducted to fill remaining vacancies. Fresh registrations are usually permitted here.

Stray Vacancy Round: The final round to clear out any leftover seats. Usually, no fresh registrations are allowed, and candidates must accept the seat if allotted.

What Is the Seat Forfeiture Rule in NEET 2026 Counselling?

The rules regarding seat retention and penalties become much stricter as the rounds progress:

Free Exit (Round 1 Only): If you are allotted a seat in Round 1 but choose not to join, you can utilize the “Free Exit” option. You do not lose your security deposit and can participate in Round 2 fresh.

Exit with Forfeiture (Round 2 onwards): The Free Exit option vanishes in Round 2. If you are allotted a seat and fail to report to the college, your entire security deposit will be permanently forfeited.

Strict Penalties (Stray Vacancy): If you are allotted a seat in the Stray Vacancy round and fail to report, you will lose your fees and face severe penalties, including disqualification from taking the NEET exam the following year.

What Documents Are Required for NEET UG Counselling Verification?

Once you accept an allotted seat, you must report physically to the designated medical college to finalize your admission. Keep your original documents and at least two sets of photocopies ready in a binder:

NEET UG 2026 Admit Card (Issued by NTA)
NEET UG 2026 Scorecard / Rank Letter (Issued by NTA)
Provisional Seat Allotment Letter (Downloaded from the MCC portal)
Class 10 Certificate and Marksheet (Serves as Date of Birth proof)
Class 12 Certificate and Marksheet
8 Passport-size Photographs (Must match the one uploaded on your NTA application form)
Valid Identity Proof (Aadhaar Card, PAN Card, Passport, or Driving License)
Category Certificate (SC/ST/OBC/EWS) – Must be issued by a competent authority in the prescribed format.
Disability Certificate (PwBD) – Must be issued by an NMC-designated medical board.

How to Prepare for NEET 2026 Counselling Right Now

While waiting for the MCC to drop the official timeline, use this interim period strategically:

Analyze Your Rank, Not Your Marks: Compare your All India Rank against the 2025 closing ranks for your target colleges. Cut-off scores change drastically every year, but ranks remain highly stable.
Organize Your Paperwork: Ensure your category certificates and domicile documents are up to date and valid for the current financial year. Check that your name spellings are consistent across all IDs.
Draft a Master Preference List: Write down your ideal order of colleges on paper or a spreadsheet so you aren’t making rushed, emotional decisions when the choice-filling portal finally opens.

Frequently Asked Questions

When does NEET-UG Counselling 2026 start?

Following the declaration of the Re-NEET results on July 16, 2026, the MCC counselling registration is expected to begin around the fourth week of July (tentatively July 21).

Who is eligible for NEET Counselling in 2026?

Any candidate who has qualified the NEET UG 2026 exam by scoring above the minimum cut-off percentile (50th for UR, 40th for reserved categories) and meets the age and educational criteria is eligible to participate.

What is the number of college options a candidate can provide?

There is no limit on the number of choices a candidate can fill. You are encouraged to select as many colleges as you wish from the available list, provided you meet the specific eligibility for those institutions.

What is the process of seat allotment in NEET Counselling for 2026?

Seat allotment is a purely automated, software-driven process. The MCC server matches your All India Rank (AIR), your category, and the exact sequence of your locked choices against the available seat matrix to allocate the highest possible preference on your list.

Whether I can change my category from General to EWS at the time of NEET Counselling?

No. The category you selected during the initial NTA NEET UG application phase cannot be changed during the MCC counselling process. The counselling portal uses the pre-verified, locked data provided by the NTA.

The post NEET UG Counselling 2026: Dates, Process, Fees, and Rules appeared first on Extramarks Blogs: Weaving stories for schools, students, and parents.

AI Literacy in Schools: Preparing Every Student for an AI-Powered World

Prachi_Singh — Tue, 14 Jul 2026 10:58:40 +0000

A Class 9 teacher recently described a moment that stuck with her. A student, stuck on a tricky physics numerical, hadn’t asked a classmate or opened the textbook. She’d typed the question into an AI chatbot instead, gotten an answer in seconds, and moved on without really understanding why it worked.

That single moment captures the real challenge of this decade. Students aren’t waiting for permission to use AI. They’re already searching with it, learning with it, and increasingly thinking with it. The question schools now have to answer isn’t whether to engage with AI in education, it’s how to make sure students use it wisely instead of letting the technology use them.

This is exactly the gap AI literacy is designed to close.

What is AI Literacy in Education?

AI literacy in schools is the ability for students to understand how artificial intelligence works, recognize its ethical limits, and use it responsibly as a thinking partner rather than a shortcut.

It is not just about writing code or building a neural network. It sits alongside reading, writing, and digital literacy as a foundational skill for navigating everyday life, rather than a specialized technical pursuit reserved solely for future engineers.

Recognizing this shift, CBSE has been steadily weaving AI and Computational Thinking (CT) into the curriculum from Classes 3 to 12, treating it as a life skill rather than an elective add-on.

Why AI Literacy is a Core Skill Under NEP 2020

AI literacy is one of the most misunderstood terms in education right now. Ask most parents what it means, and the answer usually involves the word “coding.” In reality, coding is a small part of a much bigger picture.

Just as digital literacy became non-negotiable over the last decade, AI literacy is now emerging as an equally essential capability under frameworks like NEP 2020. It has less to do with writing algorithms and more to do with understanding the ones already shaping a student’s daily life, from search results to app recommendations.

Here is what AI literacy actually builds in a student:

Critical Thinking: The ability to question an AI-generated answer instead of accepting it at face value.
Computational Reasoning: Breaking a complex problem into smaller, logical steps—a skill that transfers far beyond technology.
Data Awareness: Understanding what personal data is being collected, and why that matters.
Ethical Judgement: Recognizing bias, misinformation, and the responsible limits of AI-generated content.
Creative Problem-Solving: Using AI as a collaborative brainstorming tool.

None of these depend on a student choosing a technical career. They matter for the student who wants to be a lawyer, a designer, a doctor, or a journalist just as much as the one who wants to be an engineer.

CBSE AI Curriculum: A Grade-by-Grade Breakdown

CBSE’s approach is deliberately staged, ensuring that AI concepts grow in depth as students mature, without turning younger classrooms into coding bootcamps. Starting in 2026–27, CBSE has formally notified “Computational Thinking (CT) and Understanding Artificial Intelligence (AI)” as a core training theme for earlier grades.

Here is how the progression is structured:

Grade Level	Key Curriculum Focus	Practical Application
Classes 3 to 5	Computational Thinking & Logic	Introduced through puzzles, pattern recognition, and unplugged activities, usually folded into subjects like Mathematics.
Classes 6 to 8	Foundational AI Concepts	Covers how AI systems make decisions, real-world use cases, data privacy basics, and discussions on ethical AI use through hands-on activities.
Classes 9 to 12	Skill Subject / Elective AI	AI becomes available as a formal CBSE Skill Elective (e.g., Subject Code 417 for Class 9/10), engaging students with the AI project cycle, data modeling, and Python basics.

Teachers Are More Important Than Ever, Not Less

There is a common fear that AI in the classroom means fewer teachers doing less meaningful work. The evidence points the exact opposite way.

AI is best used to absorb the repetitive, time-consuming parts of teaching—lesson planning drafts, question generation, and routine evaluation / adaptive testing. This gives teachers more time back for what technology still cannot replicate: mentoring, motivating, and reading a room.

As schools lean further into technology-enabled classrooms, the teacher’s role shifts from information-provider to guide, and that shift needs just as much support and training as the technology itself.

Also Read: How Teachers Use AI in Their Daily Work

From Curiosity to Capability: Making AI Literacy Practical

Awareness alone doesn’t build capability. Students genuinely absorb AI literacy when they are given a real problem to work through, not a slide explaining what a neural network is.

Project-based learning, design-thinking exercises, and structured discussions on AI ethics turn a fairly abstract topic into something tangible. This kind of experiential, competency-based learning is precisely the pedagogical shift NEP 2020 has been pushing schools toward—assessing what a student can do with knowledge, not just what they can recall about it.

To make this possible at scale, schools are increasingly relying on AI-powered LMS platforms to facilitate these dynamic learning experiences.

How Extra Intelligence is Streamlining the Classroom

Policy direction is one thing; classroom implementation is another, and that gap is where most schools genuinely struggle. Teachers are already stretched thin, and redesigning lessons around AI concepts on top of an existing syllabus isn’t realistic without support.

This is where Extra Intelligence, Extramarks’ AI suite, is designed to help. For teachers, it simplifies lesson planning, question generation, and answer evaluation, freeing up time for actual student interaction.

For students, features like Instant Doubt Solver, Ask It, and Help Me Solve It are built to encourage independent thinking rather than shortcut-seeking. They nudge a student toward understanding a concept, not just copying an answer key. The goal isn’t to replace effort with automation; it’s to use AI wisely in schools so that good habits become part of how a student already studies.

Like any classroom technology, AI tools work best when their limits are understood as clearly as their benefits. It’s worth a look for the fuller picture: AI Teaching Assistant Risks Every School Should Consider.

Actionable Steps for Parents and Schools Today

While the curriculum evolves at the policy level, there is a lot that can happen at home and in the classroom right now:

Ask “how,” not just “what”: Instead of “What did the AI tell you?”, ask “How did you check if that answer was right?” It builds the habit of verification.
Talk about data privacy early: Even a simple conversation about what information an app or chatbot collects goes a long way in building awareness.
Treat AI as a brainstorming partner, not an answer machine: Encourage students to use AI tools to explore ideas, not to copy finished responses.
Normalize imperfect first attempts: Competency-based, student-centric learning depends on students trying, failing, and adjusting. AI literacy is no different.

The Bigger Picture

AI literacy, computational thinking, and competency-based assessment might look like separate initiatives on paper. In practice, they all point toward the same outcome: students who can think clearly in a world where information—and misinformation—is one prompt away.

The real measure of AI literacy isn’t whether a student can name a machine learning model. It’s whether they can pause before trusting one. That’s the skill schools, parents, and platforms need to build together, not for the next exam, but for everything that comes after it.

Ready to bring AI literacy and NEP-aligned tools to your classrooms without adding to your teachers’ workload? See how Extramarks makes it happen.

Book a Free Demo for Your School

FAQs

1. Is AI compulsory in the CBSE curriculum?

For the 2026–27 academic session, CBSE has formalized “Computational Thinking and Artificial Intelligence” as a foundational training theme for Classes 3 to 8. For higher grades (Classes 9 to 12), AI is currently offered as an optional Skill Elective (Subject Code 417 for 9/10, and Subject Code 843 for 11/12).

2. What is the difference between AI literacy and coding?

Coding is the technical act of writing specific instructions for a computer. AI literacy is a broader life skill—it involves understanding how AI systems process data, recognizing their ethical implications, and knowing how to utilize these tools effectively and responsibly in daily life.

3. How does NEP 2020 address AI in schools?

NEP 2020 emphasizes experiential, competency-based learning and the integration of modern digital skills. It aims to develop computational thinking and ethical digital habits early on, moving education away from rote memorization toward critical problem-solving in a technology-driven world.

4. How can parents help build AI literacy at home?

Parents can foster AI literacy by discussing data privacy, encouraging children to verify the information they get from digital assistants, and teaching them to use AI for brainstorming and structured learning rather than just fetching quick answers for homework.

The post AI Literacy in Schools: Preparing Every Student for an AI-Powered World appeared first on Extramarks Blogs: Weaving stories for schools, students, and parents.

CBSE Education Reforms 2026: A Complete Guide for Schools

Prachi_Singh — Tue, 14 Jul 2026 09:48:52 +0000

A school principal recently shared an interesting observation. During a parent interaction, most of the discussion wasn’t about board results or syllabus completion. Instead, parents wanted to know how the school was preparing students for Artificial Intelligence, how it supported student well-being, and whether children were learning skills that would actually help them later in life.

Ten years ago, that conversation might have sounded unusual. Today, it is the new normal.

Parents still care deeply about academics. However, they also recognise that the world their children will enter is vastly different from the one they grew up in. Driven by the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and the updated National Curriculum Framework (NCF), the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) is fundamentally redesigning how students learn and how they are assessed.

Here is a closer look at how these reforms are shaping future-ready schools and what it means for students, teachers, and parents.

Beyond Marks: The Rise of Competency-Based Learning & SAFAL

For years, academic performance sat at the centre of every school conversation. Good marks opened doors, and examinations were often seen as the ultimate measure of success. While grades still matter, the understanding of what a grade represents has shifted.

A student may score well in a traditional exam by memorising a textbook. But can they work through an unfamiliar problem? Can they collaborate with others? Can they adapt when things don’t go according to plan?

To answer these questions, CBSE has introduced SAFAL (Structured Assessment for Analyzing Learning). Designed for Grades 3, 5, and 8, SAFAL evaluates foundational skills and competency-based learning rather than rote memorisation.

What this means in the classroom:

Focus on Application: Assessments now feature case-study-based questions, real-life problem solving, and logical reasoning.
Diagnostic, Not Punitive: SAFAL does not rank or fail students; it identifies learning gaps early so teachers can provide targeted support.

Demystifying AI in the Classroom (Classes 3 to 12)

Not long ago, Artificial Intelligence felt like something that belonged in research labs. Today, students encounter it regularly—using AI-powered search tools, receiving personalised recommendations, and interacting with generative platforms.

Acknowledging this reality, CBSE has formally integrated AI and Computational Thinking (CT) into the curriculum. The goal isn’t to create a generation of software engineers, but to foster digital fluency and problem-solving skills.

How AI is rolling out across grades:

Classes 3 to 5: Computational Thinking is woven into subjects like Mathematics through puzzles, pattern recognition, and games—without the pressure of textbooks or board exams.
Classes 6 to 8: Students are introduced to foundational AI concepts, real-world use cases, data privacy, and ethical AI usage through hands-on activities.
Classes 9 to 12: AI becomes available as an elective or skill subject, diving into deeper concepts like machine learning and data modeling.

Student Well-being in a High-Speed World

Every teacher has seen it happen: a bright, capable student suddenly becomes disengaged. Their performance drops, and confidence takes a hit. The issue is rarely just academic. It often stems from stress, anxiety, peer pressure, or simply feeling overwhelmed.

Through initiatives like the School Counselling Framework, CBSE is pushing schools to prioritise the emotional and social aspects of learning. The philosophy is straightforward: students learn better when they feel safe and supported.

Also Read: Why Emotional Intelligence is Important for Students?

The Real-World Challenge: Bringing Policy to the Classroom

Understanding the direction education is moving in is easy. The real challenge for Indian schools is implementation.

How do schools bring AI into classrooms across diverse economic backgrounds? How do teachers, who are already stretched thin, find the time to redesign their lessons around competency-based assessments? Bridging the gap between the vision of NEP 2020 and the daily realities of school infrastructure requires robust support systems.

How Technology Bridges the Gap

Educational reforms eventually reach the classroom, and teachers are the ones who bring them to life. To successfully navigate these changes, schools need tools that empower rather than burden their educators.

This is where digital partners like Extramarks step in. By offering AI-powered teaching tools, competency-focused question banks, and learning analytics dashboards, Extramarks helps schools seamlessly align with CBSE’s new guidelines. The objective is not to replace the educator, but to automate administrative heavy lifting, giving teachers more time and better data to support individual student growth.

Also Read: How Teachers Use AI in Their Daily Work

Actionable Steps for Parents Today

While schools adapt to these reforms, parents play a crucial role at home. Here is how you can support your child through this transition:

Encourage Concept Clarity over Rote Learning: Instead of asking, “What did you memorise today?” ask, “How would you solve this problem?” Let them explain concepts in their own words.
Foster Healthy Tech Habits: Talk to your children about data privacy and the responsible use of AI tools like ChatGPT for brainstorming rather than copying answers.
Normalise Failure: Competency-based learning requires experimentation. Let your child know that making mistakes is a vital part of the learning process.

The Bigger Picture

Viewed separately, AI literacy, student well-being, SAFAL assessments, and teacher empowerment may seem like distinct initiatives. Viewed together, they tell a larger story of India’s educational evolution.

At its core, CBSE’s evolving vision under NEP 2020 asks a simple question: Are we preparing students only for the next exam, or are we preparing them for what comes after it? How schools, parents, and educational platforms answer that question today will determine the readiness of tomorrow’s learners.

The post CBSE Education Reforms 2026: A Complete Guide for Schools appeared first on Extramarks Blogs: Weaving stories for schools, students, and parents.

CBSE Three-Language Policy 2026: Class 10 Unaffected, Relief for Classes 7–9

Prachi_Singh — Tue, 30 Jun 2026 09:20:22 +0000

The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has issued revised implementation guidelines for the Three-Language Policy under the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, providing significant relief to students currently studying in Classes 7, 8, and 9.

The Board has clarified that students who have already opted for two foreign languages will not be required to change their subjects midway through the academic session. Instead, they can continue with their existing language combination by adding one Bharatiya Bhasha (Indian language).

CBSE has also confirmed that the current batch of Class 10 students will continue under the existing two-language system and will not be affected by the revised policy.

What Has Changed?

To ensure that students are not disadvantaged during the transition, CBSE has announced a one-time relaxation for the current batches of Classes 7, 8, and 9.

The key changes include:

Students already studying two foreign languages can continue with them by adding one Bharatiya Bhasha.
No student will be required to switch languages in the middle of the academic session.
The current Class 10 batch (2026–27) will continue with the existing two-language system.

Students receiving this one-time relaxation will not have to appear for a CBSE Board examination in the third language when they reach Class 10. The third language will instead be assessed internally by their respective schools.

CBSE stated that these guidelines have been introduced to align with NEP 2020 while ensuring that no student faces academic disruption.

Related Read: NEP 2020’s Three Language Formula Explained

Understanding the Three-Language Policy

The National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 recommends that students study three languages during their school education, with at least two of them being Bharatiya Bhashas.

Examples of Bharatiya Bhashas include:

Hindi
Sanskrit
Tamil
Telugu
Kannada
Malayalam
Marathi
Bengali
Punjabi
Gujarati
Assamese
Odia

Languages such as English, French, German, Spanish, Arabic, and Japanese are treated as non-Bharatiya languages under the policy.

Language Combinations Explained

CBSE has also explained how the revised language combinations will work.

Situation 1: You already study two Bharatiya Bhashas

Example:

Hindi
Tamil

You may choose either:

Another Bharatiya Bhasha, or
A non-Bharatiya language such as English or French as the third language.

Situation 2: You study one Bharatiya Bhasha and one non-Bharatiya language

Example:

Tamil
English

You will need to choose one additional Bharatiya Bhasha as your third language.

Situation 3: You study two non-Bharatiya languages

Example:

English
French

As a special one-time relaxation for the current Class 9 batch during the 2026–27 academic session, you may continue studying both languages by adding one Bharatiya Bhasha as your third language.

Third Language Assessment

For students covered under the one-time relaxation, the third language (R3) will be assessed through an internal school-based assessment.

There will be no CBSE Board examination for the third language when these students progress to Class 10.

CBSE and NCERT will also provide grade-appropriate learning resources to support schools and students.

What About Future Batches?

Students currently studying in Class 6 and future batches will follow the revised Three-Language Policy from the beginning.

When these students reach Class 10, they will appear for the Board examination in the third language as per the policy.

Who Is Exempt?

CBSE has provided exemptions in specific cases, including:

Children with Special Needs (CwSN), as per the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (RPwD) Act, 2016.
Students studying in CBSE-affiliated schools located outside India.
Foreign students returning to India.
Students whose parents relocate to another state may continue with their existing language combination, subject to school support.

What This Means for Students and Parents

The revised guidelines provide greater flexibility and ensure that students do not have to make sudden academic changes.

Parents can be assured that:

Existing language choices will be respected for current batches.
Students will not be forced to switch subjects mid-session.
The focus remains on learning rather than additional Board examination pressure.
Schools will receive support through learning resources and flexible teaching arrangements.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Is the Three-Language Policy applicable to current Class 10 students?

No. CBSE has clarified that students currently studying in Class 10 during the 2026–27 academic session will continue with the existing two-language system.

Can students continue studying foreign languages?

Yes. Students who have already opted for two foreign languages under the one-time relaxation can continue studying them by adding one Bharatiya Bhasha.

Will there be a Board exam for the third language?

No. For the current Classes 7, 8, and 9 covered under the relaxation, the third language will be assessed internally by schools and will not be part of the CBSE Board examination in Class 10.

Why has CBSE introduced this relaxation?

The Board introduced the relaxation to ensure a smooth implementation of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 without disrupting the academic progress of students already studying under the previous language framework.

Students and parents are advised to stay in touch with their respective schools for any institution-specific guidance regarding language selection and implementation.

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12 Main Features of National Education Policy (NEP 2020)

Prachi_Singh — Mon, 29 Jun 2026 10:50:22 +0000

The National Education Policy 2020 has been discussed widely in schools, staff meetings, and training sessions. You may have heard about changes in curriculum, assessments, and the overall structure of schooling, but it can still feel unclear what all of this really means for you in the classroom. In this blog, we will look at the main features of NEP 2020 and understand what they focus on, especially from a teacher’s point of view.

Explore A Complete Guide on National Education Policy 2020 (NEP 2020)

What Are the Main Features of NEP 2020?

Here’s a closer look at the main features of NEP 2020:

New School Structure 5+3+3+4 Model

One of the biggest structural changes is replacing the old 10+2 system with a 5+3+3+4 model. Instead of organising schooling only by age, this structure is designed around how children actually develop.

Foundational Stage 5 Years

This includes 3 years of preschool or Anganwadi and Grades 1 and 2. At this stage, learning is play-based and activity-driven. The focus is not on heavy academics. It is about language development, early numeracy, motor skills, and social behaviour. The idea is to build comfort with learning before introducing formal pressure.

Preparatory Stage 3 Years

Grades 3 to 5 fall under this stage. Here, learning becomes more structured. Textbooks are introduced properly, but teaching is still interactive. Students start developing stronger reading habits, basic subject awareness, and classroom discipline.

Middle Stage 3 Years

Grades 6 to 8 focus more clearly on subject-based learning. Students begin to explore science, mathematics, social sciences, and arts in depth. Teachers are encouraged to promote discussion, reasoning, and concept clarity rather than direct memorisation.

Secondary Stage 4 Years

Grades 9 to 12 allow flexibility. Students can explore subjects across disciplines. The aim is to give them freedom to build combinations that suit their interests and future goals.

If you want a deeper breakdown of how this model works in practice, you can read our article on What Is 5+3+3+4 Structure in NEP 2020?
Early Childhood Care and Education ECCE

NEP recognises something many educators already know. The years between 3 and 6 are crucial for brain development. If these years are neglected, children struggle later.

The policy pushes for universal access to quality preschool education. It also focuses on strengthening the Anganwadi system by improving training, infrastructure, and curriculum. The aim is not just to teach alphabets early. It is to build emotional security, curiosity, communication skills, and cognitive readiness.

If you want to explore how ECCE is being structured under NEP, you can explore our article on Early Childhood Care and Education(ECCE).
Foundational Literacy and Numeracy FLN

One of the strongest messages of NEP 2020 is this. Every child must achieve basic reading and numeracy skills by Grade 3.

This is treated as a national mission. Schools are expected to track whether children can read with understanding and perform basic mathematical operations. If they cannot, interventions must happen early.

The reason is simple. Without foundational skills, everything else becomes difficult. A child who struggles to read cannot fully understand science, history, or mathematics in later grades.

Read in Detail: Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN)
Mother Tongue or Regional Language as Medium of Instruction

NEP encourages teaching in the child’s home language at least till Grade 5, and preferably till Grade 8 wherever possible.

The logic is practical. Children grasp concepts faster when taught in a language they understand deeply. This improves comprehension and reduces fear of learning.

At the same time, multilingual education continues. Students are encouraged to learn other languages as well, so exposure is not limited.

If you want clarity on how schools can integrate local languages effectively, read our detailed article on NEP 2020 Guidelines on Integrating Local Languages in Education.
Curriculum and Pedagogy Reforms

Another major shift is reducing syllabus load and focusing on core concepts. Instead of covering too many chapters quickly, the idea is to teach fewer topics but with stronger understanding.

Teachers are encouraged to use projects, real-life examples, discussions, and application-based learning. The aim is to move students from memorising definitions to actually thinking about what they are learning.

This change directly impacts classroom planning and teaching strategies.

You can explore how this shift from rote learning to deeper understanding is being implemented in our article on How NEP is Revolutionising Education.
Flexibility in Subject Choices

Earlier, once students chose a stream in Grade 11, they were locked into it. NEP removes this rigid separation between Arts, Science, and Commerce.

Students can now mix subjects across disciplines. For example, a student can combine Physics with Political Science or Mathematics with Fine Arts. This flexibility recognises that interests and career paths are no longer limited to traditional streams.
Vocational Education Integration

From Grade 6 onwards, vocational education is introduced. Students are exposed to skill-based learning and internships.

This means they do not only study theory. They get hands-on exposure to fields such as coding, agriculture, entrepreneurship, crafts, or technical skills. The goal is to make learning practical and career-oriented.

If you want to understand how vocational education is structured under NEP, you can read more in detail in our article on Vocational Education under NEP 2020.
Assessment Reforms

NEP proposes moving from high-pressure, memory-based exams to competency-based assessment.

Board exams are expected to test understanding of core concepts rather than simple recall. There is also a proposal for PARAKH, a national assessment centre to bring consistency in evaluation standards.

The Holistic Progress Card is introduced to give a broader picture of student development. Instead of only marks, it includes skills, behaviour, and overall growth.

If you want to understand how exams and assessment patterns are expected to change, you can read our article on NEP 2020 Assessment Reforms.
Teacher Education and Professional Development

NEP clearly states that teachers are central to education reform. A 4-year integrated B.Ed. program is expected to become the minimum qualification.

Continuous Professional Development is also emphasised. Teachers are expected to update their teaching methods regularly. Recruitment and promotions are proposed to become more transparent and merit-based.

If you want to explore how professional development is structured under NEP, read our article on Professional Development for Teachers.
Technology in Education

Technology is seen as a support system, not a replacement for teachers. NEP promotes digital tools, blended learning models, and online resources to improve access and innovation.

The National Educational Technology Forum is proposed to guide how technology should be used in education. Digital repositories of content are encouraged so that quality resources can reach more classrooms.

If you want a clearer picture of how education technology fits into NEP, you can read our detailed article on Education technology in India.
Inclusive Education

The policy emphasises equitable access to education. Special focus is given to disadvantaged groups, remote regions, and students with different learning needs.

Targeted funding and region-specific interventions are planned to reduce gaps in access and quality. The intention is simple. No child should be left behind because of background or location.

To understand inclusive education under NEP in more depth, you can read in detail about Inclusive Education.
Higher Education Reforms

Higher education institutions are expected to become multidisciplinary. Students will have multiple entry and exit options in undergraduate programs.

This means a student can exit after one year with a certificate, two years with a diploma, or continue for a full degree. Academic credit banks allow smoother credit transfers between institutions.

The MPhil program is being phased out, and a 4-year undergraduate degree with research pathways is being introduced for those interested in advanced studies.

Closing Thoughts

NEP 2020 may look like a long list of reforms, but at its core, it is about making learning more meaningful for your students. It asks you to focus on strong basics, real understanding, flexibility, and overall development instead of just syllabus completion. The changes may feel gradual, but step by step, they can reshape how your classroom works. With clarity and the right support, you can turn these guidelines into practical action that truly benefits your students.

Bring NEP 2020 to life in your classrooms.
Partner with Extramarks Smart Class Plus and get expert guidance to make your
school is fully aligned with NEP goals.
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The post 12 Main Features of National Education Policy (NEP 2020) appeared first on Extramarks Blogs: Weaving stories for schools, students, and parents.

ReNEET Rank Predictor 2026: Predict Your AIR Instantly with the Extramarks

Prachi_Singh — Fri, 26 Jun 2026 12:06:34 +0000

While your score gives you an idea of your performance, your All India Rank (AIR) ultimately decides your chances of getting into your preferred medical college. To make this easier, Extramarks has launched the NEET Rank Predictor 2026 — a free online tool that estimates your expected NEET rank within seconds using your score and historical marks-vs-rank trends.

Whether you are targeting AIIMS, top Government Medical Colleges or State Quota seats, the Extramarks Rank Predictor helps you understand your admission possibilities and prepare for counselling with more confidence.

Before you predict: cross-check your responses and confirm your score using the NEET 2026 Re-Exam Live Paper Analysis & Answer Key. An accurate score in means a more reliable rank out.

Predict Your Rank Now

What is the Extramarks NEET Rank Predictor?

The Extramarks NEET Rank Predictor is a free online tool that estimates your expected All India Rank (AIR) based on your NEET score out of 720. The estimate is generated by analysing:

Marks-vs-rank trends

From previous years’ NEET data.

Score distribution

How marks spread across candidates.

Difficulty normalisation

Adjusts for the paper’s difficulty level.

Historical cutoffs

Past cutoff patterns by category.

While the final rank is released officially by the NTA, the predictor gives a reliable estimate so you can begin planning for counselling without waiting. Rank predictors generally estimate ranks using historical marks-vs-rank data and normalisation trends rather than official rank allocation.

How to use the Extramarks NEET Rank Predictor

It is simple and takes less than a minute.

Enter your NEET score

Type in your NEET score, out of 720.

Fill in basic details

Add your name, mobile number, date of birth and (optionally) your application number.

Click “Predict My Rank”

Instantly see your expected AIR and a rank range based on your score.

Who should use this tool?

✓Students who have received their NEET 2026 results

✓Aspirants planning MBBS admissions

✓Students preparing their counselling preferences

✓Parents evaluating admission possibilities

Benefits of knowing your expected rank early

Knowing your expected AIR early helps you:

✓Estimate your admission chances
✓Compare Government and Private colleges
✓Prepare for AIQ and State counselling
✓Understand possible cutoff scenarios
✓Make informed decisions before counselling begins

Instead of waiting until counselling starts, you can begin researching colleges right away.

Information required for prediction

Required detail	Purpose
NEET Score	Primary input for the prediction
Name	Identification
Mobile Number	Registration
Date of Birth	Verification
Application Number (optional)	Additional reference

Treat the predicted rank as an estimate for planning — not the final official AIR. Only the National Testing Agency (NTA) releases the official All India Rank.

Why choose Extramarks?

Extramarks has helped millions of students prepare for competitive exams through:

Expert learning resources
Practice tests
Previous Year Papers
AI-powered learning
Exam analysis & counselling support

The NEET Rank Predictor is one more step toward helping students make informed admission decisions after their result.

Check Your Expected Rank Here

Frequently asked questions

Is the Extramarks NEET Rank Predictor free?