A parent looks at a report card and asks, "What should my child practise at home?" A total or percentage may not give the teacher enough detail to answer that question.
For a school working on NEP 2020 assessment, this is a useful place to start. Decide what you want to know about each child's learning, how teachers will record it, and how you will explain it to parents.
This guide covers the policy background, competency based assessment, and Holistic Progress Cards. It also suggests a practical way to organise the work in your school.
What is NEP 2020?
NEP stands for National Education Policy. India's NEP 2020 sets a direction for education from early childhood through higher education. For schools, it emphasises understanding, practical learning, foundational reading and numeracy, and broader student development. See the official National Education Policy 2020 on NCERT's website.
What does the 5+3+3+4 structure mean?
The policy groups school learning into four stages:
| Stage | Classes or years | Age range in NEP |
|---|---|---|
| Foundational | Three preschool years, then Classes 1 and 2 | 3–8 years |
| Preparatory | Classes 3 to 5 | 8–11 years |
| Middle | Classes 6 to 8 | 11–14 years |
| Secondary | Classes 9 to 12 | 14–18 years |
These stages guide curriculum and teaching. For planning, check the curriculum and instructions issued for your school by its board and state education authorities.
What is competency based assessment?
NEP 2020 calls for regular assessment that checks understanding and application, with feedback that helps students learn. Sections 4.34 and 4.35 discuss assessment and progress reporting.
A competency is something a student can demonstrate. For example, knowing a multiplication table and using multiplication to solve a shopping problem are related skills, but one result does not always tell you about the other.
Consider a reading lesson. A teacher could look for three things:
- Can the child read a short passage?
- Can the child explain what happened?
- Can the child give a reason for a character's action?
Recording these separately gives the teacher a clearer next step. One child may need help reading the words. Another may read fluently but need practice explaining an answer.
These are classroom examples, not an official list of learning indicators. Teachers should select indicators from the curriculum and assessment guidance their school follows.
What is a Holistic Progress Card?
A Holistic Progress Card, or HPC, brings together a wider picture of a child's learning and development. NCERT's PARAKH identifies competency based assessment and Holistic Progress Cards as key areas of its work.
An HPC helps connect assessment with discussions about a child's strengths, progress, and support needs. It gives teachers and parents more to work with than a subject total alone.
The useful question when preparing a report is: can a parent understand what their child is learning and what to do next?
For example, "Needs improvement in English" gives a family very little direction. A comment such as "Can retell the story in order; needs practice explaining why an event happened" is easier to act on. A teacher could suggest reading a short story together and asking one "why" question afterwards.
Is an HPC the same as a regular report card?
Many regular report cards already include attendance, comments, and activities. The value of a holistic report comes from the learning information behind those sections. Adding boxes to a marksheet will only help if teachers have a clear way to observe and discuss progress.
Before choosing a layout, review the HPC guidance and format applicable to your school's stage and board. Agree which information teachers need to collect and how it will be used.
A practical NEP assessment checklist for schools
Schools can use the following steps to plan their assessment records and reporting. This is a suggested working checklist; the school's applicable academic guidance should determine the final process.
1. Agree on what teachers will assess
Start with one class or learning area while planning the workflow. List the skills teachers need to observe and discuss what each one means in a real lesson.
If two teachers read the same indicator differently, recording a grade will be difficult. Review a few examples of student work together before settling on the assessment language.
2. Make the grading scale clear
Every grade should have a meaning teachers can explain. Agree what evidence would support each grade and how to handle an indicator that has not yet been observed.
Try the scale on a few sample records. Check whether it helps a teacher describe progress without needing a long explanation for every entry.
For subject marksheets, our CBSE and ICSE grading guide includes percentage calculations, weightage examples, and a suggested A1/A2 scale for internal reports. Choose separate grading language for learning indicators where needed.
3. Plan a recording routine teachers can maintain
Decide when observations will be recorded, who is responsible, and when the coordinator will review them. Leave time to notice gaps before reports are due.
Keep the workload realistic. A long form that teachers rush through at the end of term is unlikely to give the school useful information.
4. Check the report with a parent in mind
Prepare a sample report using fictional student details. Read it as if you were seeing the grading scale and learning indicators for the first time.
Are the terms clear? Is there a specific strength to discuss? Does the report suggest where support is needed? Revise any wording that would leave a family guessing.
5. Use the records to plan support
After reviewing the reports, choose a small number of teaching actions. A group may need another lesson on the same concept, while a few students may benefit from individual practice.
Set a review date so teachers can check whether that support helped. The records become more useful when they shape the next lesson and parent meeting.
How InstiKit supports competency assessment and HPC marksheets
InstiKit's competency based exam module lets schools define learning domains and indicators, assign a grading scale, and record a grade for each student's indicators. The competency setup is assigned to the relevant exam schedule.
A domain is a broad learning area. An indicator describes a specific skill within it. Keeping these records together helps teachers prepare for progress discussions without relying only on subject totals.
InstiKit also supports a customised HPC marksheet generated on demand for the school's requirements. Share your preferred report format, learning domains, indicators, and grading scale with our team to discuss the marksheet you need. The sections and presentation are agreed for that requested format.
For your evaluation, bring a sample report and ask to walk through the process from entering grades to preparing the marksheet. Discuss any additional sections or assessment workflows you need during that review.
You can explore InstiKit's school management software for the wider school workflow, or request a demo to discuss competency assessment and your HPC format.
Common questions about NEP 2020 assessment
Does competency based assessment mean schools stop recording marks?
Teachers can use marks alongside more specific learning records. The important planning question is what each record tells you about the student. Follow your board's assessment pattern when deciding how marks, grades, and observations appear in reports.
Can every class use the same HPC format?
Check the guidance for the relevant stage before reusing a format. A layout that works for one class may need different indicators, language, or sections for another. Review sample reports with the teachers who will prepare them.
Can school ERP software handle the whole NEP implementation?
Software can help organise records and reports. School leaders and teachers still need to plan lessons, agree assessment methods, review student work, and decide how to support learning. Choose software by testing those everyday tasks with your own examples.
Where should schools find official NEP and HPC information?
Start with the NEP 2020 policy document and NCERT's PARAKH information. For instructions that apply to your school, check your board and state education authority's current circulars alongside those national resources.