India has a new School Education Secretary. Here's what must change first

New School Education Secretary, T K Anil Kumar has taken charge at a crucial time for India's classrooms. From unfinished NEP reforms and board exam changes to teacher shortages and learning gaps, several pressing issues are waiting on the new secretary's desk.

In Short

• States remain divided as three-language policy moves from debate to delivery
• Class 10 exam reforms need clarity on schedules, results and admissions
• Learning gaps persist in reading, writing and maths after pandemic disruptions

T K Anil Kumar has taken charge as the new School Education Secretary at one of the most challenging moments for school education in recent years. Five years after the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, implementation has entered its toughest phase. At the same time, controversies over CBSE's digital evaluation system, the rollout of the three-language policy, board examination reforms and persistent learning gaps have left the ministry with a long list of unfinished work.

The secretary now inherits an education system that serves nearly 24.7 crore students across 14.7 lakh schools, making it the world's largest school network. But size is no longer the biggest challenge. The real task is ensuring that reforms announced on paper translate into classrooms.

THE BIG TEST: TURNING NEP INTO REALITY

For the first four years after NEP 2020 was announced, the focus remained on drafting curriculum frameworks, rewriting textbooks and designing reforms.

Now comes the difficult part.

Several reforms, including competency-based learning, vocational education, Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE), PARAKH assessments and flexible learning pathways, are moving from policy documents into classrooms. But implementation remains uneven.

Some states have embraced the reforms, while others continue to resist or delay them. The Centre now faces the challenge of ensuring that reforms do not become dependent on geography.

The NITI Aayog's 2026 School Education Report notes that India has improved infrastructure considerably over the past decade, but future reforms must now focus on classroom quality rather than merely expanding access.

THE THREE-LANGUAGE POLICY IS STILL FAR FROM SETTLED

Perhaps no school reform has generated as much debate as the three-language policy.

Over the past year, CBSE's circulars, repeated clarifications for Classes 7–9 and strong opposition from Tamil Nadu have kept the issue politically alive.

The problem is no longer just ideological. It is practical.

Many schools simply do not have enough qualified language teachers to offer three Indian languages. Several states continue to report shortages of subject teachers, making implementation difficult even where governments support the policy.

Many schools are concerned about the future of foreign languages, which have long added value to students' learning and supported higher education opportunities. There are also questions over what lies ahead for teachers who have been teaching these languages.

For the new secretary, the challenge will be balancing constitutional sensitivities with classroom realities.

BOARD EXAMS NEED TO REGAIN STUDENTS' TRUST

Board examination reforms will demand immediate attention, particularly after the controversy surrounding CBSE's first full-scale rollout of On-Screen Marking (OSM) for Class 12 in 2026.

Nearly 98.7 lakh answer books were evaluated digitally, but the process drew criticism after reports of blurred scans, incomplete pages and even answer-sheet mix-ups.

CBSE later confirmed that around 68,000 answer books had to be rescanned, over 13,000 were shifted to manual evaluation due to poor scan quality, and about 20 cases of answer-sheet mismatches were identified.

The issue also affected the post-result process, with over four lakh students applying for scanned copies of their answer books, reflecting growing concerns over evaluation transparency.

Since Class 12 marks are crucial for university admissions, scholarships and study-abroad applications, ensuring a robust digital evaluation system with stronger quality checks, better examiner training and faster grievance redressal will be one of the new secretary's key responsibilities.

TRUST IN EXAMS HAS TAKEN A HIT

The ministry's immediate priority is also restoring confidence in examinations.

Paper leak controversies over the past two years have raised larger questions about examination security across India.

School examinations have largely remained insulated, but CBSE itself faced criticism this year after introducing the On-Screen Marking (OSM) system for Class 12 evaluation.

Thousands of answer sheets had to be rescanned after image-quality issues, while nearly 13,000 copies were manually re-evaluated following technical concerns. Student complaints over unexpectedly low marks triggered a wider review, eventually leading to an internal probe and changes in CBSE's top leadership.

For the new secretary, restoring confidence in assessments will be as important as reforming them.

LEARNING GAPS STILL NEED ATTENTION

Infrastructure has improved. Learning has not improved at the same pace.

ASER, NAS and PARAKH assessments continue to show that many students struggle with grade-level reading, comprehension and numeracy despite being enrolled in school.

The government's flagship NIPUN Bharat Mission has attempted to improve foundational literacy and numeracy, but experts believe learning recovery after the pandemic remains uneven.

The challenge now is moving beyond enrolment and ensuring students actually learn.

TEACHERS REMAIN THE BIGGEST RESOURCE GAP

Technology cannot replace teachers. Many states continue to report large vacancies, particularly in Mathematics, Science and language subjects.

The recent NITI Aayog report identifies teacher shortages, uneven deployment and school leadership gaps among the country's biggest structural challenges. Even today, thousands of schools continue to function with a single teacher, while rural schools struggle to attract specialised faculty.

Without solving the teacher problem, almost every NEP reform risks slowing down.

SCHOOL ENROLMENT NUMBERS SHOW WHERE INDIA IS LOSING STUDENTS

Perhaps the biggest warning comes from the NITI Aayog report.

Only 5.4% of Indian schools offer uninterrupted education from Class 1 to 12, forcing many children to change schools several times during their education.

The report also notes that enrolment drops sharply after upper primary. Gross Enrolment Ratio falls to 78.7% at secondary level and 58.4% at higher secondary, meaning millions leave the education system before Class XII.

Government school enrolment has also fallen dramatically, from 71% in 2005 to 49.24% in 2024-25, reflecting growing parental preference for private schools despite significant public investment in infrastructure.

India's new School Education Secretary inherits much more than a routine administrative role. He takes charge when education reforms have moved beyond announcements and entered classrooms. Whether it is implementing NEP, rebuilding trust in examinations, addressing teacher shortages or improving learning outcomes, the next few years will determine whether India's school reforms are remembered as ambitious promises, or meaningful change.

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