Achievement Survey (NAS). This is due to the differing nature of questions in SAT vis-a-vis NAS; NAS is based on NCERT’s learning outcome framework, typically testing the understanding and application of concepts as opposed to SAT, which is skewed towards testing memory or recall-based questions. Moreover, in order to perform well in NAS, classroom teaching itself needs to be competency based and targeted at the attainment of learning outcomes by students.
Over the last couple of years, various initiatives have been implemented in Haryana to improve the overall academic performance of students, some of which include: remediation to help students bridge learning gaps; enabling training and mentoring support to teachers; as well as designing a review and monitoring framework to track progress of districts, blocks and schools. There has also been a concerted effort to shift the focus of classroom teaching from syllabus-completion to acquiring competencies.
Both, to test the impact of these interventions, and as a sanity check for SAT assessments, Haryana also conducts independent, state-wide, third-party assessments. Under an initiative called Saksham Ghoshna, a block is declared as Saksham and felicitated at the state level if 80% of its students are adjudged “grade-level competent” as per the standards set by the third-party. An element of gamification in Saksham Ghoshna results in healthy competition amongst blocks to be declared Saksham. Since the assessment itself--like NAS--tests pre-defined learning outcomes, classroom teaching automatically becomes focused on acquiring competencies, instead of rote-learning. In addition to being competency-based, the questions included in the Saksham exam are designed by experts to test the conceptual understanding and application of students. Moreover, detailed data is collected from the Saksham exam, thus enabling the generation of insightful block-level reports. Amongst other details, these reports help block officers in identifying the weakest subjects and corresponding competencies that require more practice in their block.
An initiative like Saksham Ghoshna has helped energise the government school education system in Haryana with government stakeholders assuming greater responsibility towards their work. In classrooms, it has incentivised competency-based teaching and learning. By providing detailed reports of student learning levels across the state, it enables targeted interventions. Finally, the “third party” element of this exercise provides external validation to the potential effectiveness of ongoing academic interventions such as remedial classes, training and mentoring support to teachers and a revamped review and monitoring framework.
In the short to medium term, high quality competency-based assessments such as Saksham Ghoshna are critical in assessing student learning levels. However, the state-conducted SAT assessments should ideally be able to serve most of the same objectives as Saksham Ghoshna. However, for this to happen, additional sets of reforms would need to be undertaken at the state level to further strengthen the SAT framework. Senior Government officials in the School Education Department appreciate the need for such reforms and are working towards this. These interventions could be particularly timely, as the state looks to improve its performance in the NAS exam, now likely to be held in 2021.