As India takes a bold step in school education with CBSE’s announcement to introduce Open Book Assessments (OBAs) for Class 9 from the 2026–27 academic session, I find myself cautiously optimistic—but also deeply reflective.
This decision, if implemented well, has the potential to realign our education system with the core principles of the NEP 2020—which emphasize critical thinking, conceptual clarity, and real-world application of knowledge. But as with all systemic changes, the success of OBAs will depend entirely on execution, training, and alignment across all levels—schools, teachers, students, and policymakers.
The Promise of Open Book Assessments
At its heart, the OBA model aims to:
- Reduce rote memorization that has long plagued our examination culture.
- Promote higher-order thinking skills like analysis, interpretation, and problem-solving.
- Encourage students to understand and apply knowledge instead of mugging up textbooks.
- Potentially ease exam-related stress and anxiety, especially for diverse learners.
In theory, this is precisely the direction 21st-century education should be heading.
But the Devil Lies in the Details
However, the pilot studies conducted by CBSE itself indicate mixed outcomes:
- Student scores varied widely (12%–47%)—highlighting that access to books doesn’t translate to understanding.
- Teachers reported lack of clarity on how to design questions that are analytical and interdisciplinary.
- Many students lacked the skills to navigate and synthesize content from multiple sources.
These outcomes don’t signal failure—they signal that we are not yet ready, and must build that readiness deliberately.
What Will It Demand From Stakeholders?
1. Teachers:
A massive reorientation in pedagogy—from teaching to ‘complete the syllabus’ to teaching for conceptual mastery.
Extensive question design training to ensure questions are not Googleable, but require thought, application, and synthesis.
Greater collaboration across subject departments to design interdisciplinary assessments.
2. Students:
A mindset shift—from “What do I need to memorize?” to “What do I need to understand?”
Training in navigating texts, making notes, critical reading, and time management during OBAs.
Ability to connect classroom learnings with real-life situations.
3. School Leaders:
Clear guidelines and frameworks for implementing OBAs without diluting rigor.
Teacher capacity-building programs, planning for continuous support.
Addressing the challenge of fair evaluation, especially in schools with wide socio-economic diversity.
4. Parents:
Accepting that marks may not follow traditional curves—initial results might dip, but the long-term outcome will be richer understanding.
Moving beyond “highest marks” to “deepest learning.”
A Roadmap for Implementation
To ensure this reform succeeds, I recommend the following multi-step approach:
Phase
Action Plan
Orientation
Nationwide awareness campaigns for schools, parents, and students.
Capacity Building
Rigorous training for teachers on assessment design and Bloom’s Taxonomy.
Piloting
Extend pilots for 1 more year, with structured feedback and outcome analysis.
Resources
CBSE should create a central question bank, rubrics, and exemplars.
Tech Integration
Use AI-enabled platforms to help teachers design and review OBA-style questions.
Monitoring & Review
Create a feedback loop every 6 months to review, tweak, and improve roll-out.
A Final Word
The move to open-book exams is not just a change in exam style—it’s a shift in educational philosophy. It calls for reimagining what we value in learning: retention or reasoning, replication or reflection, recall or real-life relevance.
CBSE has taken a bold step—but this will only bear fruit if it is not rushed, well supported, and contextually implemented. Done right, this reform could become a benchmark for assessment practices across the world. Done wrong, it could become just another failed experiment.
Let us choose to do it right.