By Dipak Kurmi
For generations, achieving high marks has remained the central ambition for most students in India. In classrooms and households across the country, examinations are treated as decisive milestones that appear to determine a child’s future trajectory. Report cards are often read not merely as academic records but as verdicts on talent, discipline, and even character. Within this atmosphere of expectation, it becomes easy to forget that examinations were originally designed as tools to assess learning, not as instruments to measure human worth. In recent years, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, through the initiative Pariksha Pe Charcha, has consistently urged the nation to rethink its relationship with examinations. His message has been clear and repeated: marks should never define a child’s value, and exams must not become sources of fear but opportunities for reflection, growth, and self-discovery.
Despite this evolving narrative, prevailing social attitudes continue to equate lower grades with failure and inadequacy. Academic performance is frequently reduced to a simplistic binary of success and failure, leaving little room for nuance or context. A single score is often mistaken for a comprehensive measure of a student’s diverse abilities, talents, and potential. This narrow interpretation distorts the true meaning of grades and exerts immense psychological pressure on young minds. The emotional toll is visible in disappointment, embarrassment, fear, and, in severe cases, hopelessness. Psychologists describe a phenomenon known as learned helplessness, wherein repeated academic setbacks cause students to believe that effort is futile. When this belief takes root, curiosity diminishes, motivation declines, and the joy of learning slowly fades. The classroom, which should be a space of exploration, risks becoming a theatre of anxiety.
It is precisely this mindset that Pariksha Pe Charcha seeks to address. Since its first edition on February 16, 2018, held at Talkatora Stadium in New Delhi, the initiative has evolved into a nationwide movement focused on reducing examination stress and restoring confidence among students. What began as a town hall-style interaction between the Prime Minister and a few thousand students has grown exponentially in reach and participation. Today, it engages millions through in-person gatherings, virtual platforms, and hybrid formats. By 2025, registrations had surpassed 3.5 crore, reflecting an extraordinary level of national participation. The initiative has even earned a Guinness World Record for its scale of engagement, symbolising a collective commitment to making education more humane and student-centric. The spirit underlying Pariksha Pe Charcha is not merely motivational rhetoric but a structural shift in how examinations are perceived.
To understand this shift, it is essential to revisit what grades actually represent. Grades are intended to measure a learner’s level of understanding and skill in a specific subject at a particular moment in time. They are indicators of performance, not permanent judgments of ability. Numerous factors influence academic outcomes, including classroom engagement, reading habits, revision strategies, health, emotional well-being, learning styles, teaching methodologies, and even the format of assessment. Anxiety alone can significantly affect performance, particularly in high-stakes examinations. When these complexities are acknowledged, it becomes evident that grades cannot serve as definitive measures of intelligence or potential. They are snapshots, not life sentences.
When poor performance occurs, the correct response is not condemnation but reflection. Grades, especially lower ones, can function as diagnostic tools that reveal areas requiring attention. They provide feedback about gaps in understanding, ineffective study habits, or time management challenges. In this sense, poor grades are not the end of the road but signposts directing learners toward improved strategies. Reflection on mistakes often produces deeper and more durable learning than effortless success. By analysing errors and identifying patterns, students strengthen comprehension and enhance long-term retention. They may recognise that distractions, last-minute cramming, or inconsistent revision contributed to unsatisfactory outcomes. Through experimentation and adaptation, they can discover study techniques aligned with their individual strengths and needs.
Teachers play a decisive role in shaping how students interpret both success and failure. When educators compare students unfavourably with their peers or use discouraging language, they may unintentionally undermine self-confidence. Conversely, when teachers explain mistakes constructively and provide guidance for improvement, they transform setbacks into opportunities for growth. A classroom culture that values collaboration over competition fosters resilience and mutual support. When every learner is seen as more than a numerical score, the educational environment becomes less intimidating and more inclusive. Such an approach aligns with contemporary educational psychology, which emphasises formative assessment and feedback-driven learning rather than purely summative evaluation.
The family environment exerts an equally powerful influence. In many households, academic performance is closely linked to expectations of social mobility and prestige. When children underperform, parental reactions may range from disappointment to anger, sometimes accompanied by comparisons with siblings or peers. These responses, though often rooted in concern, can intensify fear and diminish motivation. Supportive parental engagement, on the other hand, builds resilience. By asking constructive questions, encouraging problem-solving, and acknowledging effort alongside results, parents help children regain confidence. A child who feels supported is more likely to approach challenges with determination rather than avoidance.
Peer relationships also shape the emotional landscape of academic life. Friends who respond with empathy and offer assistance create a culture of solidarity rather than rivalry. Helping one another with difficult subjects not only strengthens understanding but also deepens social bonds. Such experiences prepare students for real-life challenges, where collaboration and adaptability are often more valuable than solitary achievement. Ultimately, mindset determines whether poor grades become obstacles or stepping stones. A growth mindset, as described by psychologist Carol Dweck, views challenges as opportunities to develop abilities through effort and learning. When students internalise this perspective, setbacks become temporary hurdles rather than defining failures.
The broader educational discourse in India increasingly recognises the need to move beyond rote learning and examination-centric models. The National Education Policy 2020, for instance, advocates holistic development, critical thinking, and flexibility in assessment. These reforms resonate with the ethos of Pariksha Pe Charcha, which humanises examinations and situates them within a larger journey of character formation. Education, in this vision, is not a race for marks but a process of cultivating curiosity, courage, and integrity. Marks may open doors, but resilience and adaptability sustain long-term success.
It is important to acknowledge that examinations will continue to play a role in academic and professional pathways. Competitive assessments determine access to higher education and employment opportunities. However, their significance must be contextualised. When grades are treated as definitive judgments, they can damage self-esteem and weaken intrinsic motivation. When understood as feedback, they empower students to improve. The difference lies not in the numbers themselves but in the narrative constructed around them. That narrative must shift from fear to reflection, from comparison to growth.
The true measure of education lies not in a marksheet but in the development of a balanced and confident individual. Pariksha Pe Charcha has emerged as a transformative national platform precisely because it addresses the psychological dimensions of examination culture. By reminding students that marks do not define them, it restores dignity to the learning process. When children are encouraged to view grades as temporary indicators rather than permanent verdicts, they learn to face life’s challenges with composure and resilience. In this reimagined framework, examinations cease to be intimidating obstacles and instead become milestones along a broader journey of self-discovery and growth.
(The writer can be reached at dipakkurmiglpltd@gmail.com)
