The Hidden Cost of Holistic Progress Cards - And How Schools Can Get It Right 📚

When the National Education Policy 2020 was launched, it brought with it a renewed vision for Indian education - one rooted in curiosity, creativity, and care. Among its most forward-thinking reforms was the introduction of the Holistic Progress Card (HPC): a multidimensional report designed to capture the full spectrum of a child’s growth.

More than just marks, the HPC is intended to reflect a child’s development across academics, co-scholastic areas, values, socio-emotional well-being, and personal interests. It includes self-assessment, peer feedback, parental inputs, and detailed teacher observations. In principle, it is a powerful step forward.

But in practice, it is proving to be deeply demanding. ⚠️

🎯 The Reality Beneath the Vision

Preparing a Holistic Progress Card is not a simple act of data entry. It is a highly human process, but also an intensive one. For every student, teachers must track multiple domains, write personalised descriptors, manage student reflections, collect parent and peer feedback, and ensure alignment with NEP and board guidelines. Then there’s formatting, collation, review, printing, and final sign-off.

Now multiply this by 500 students. 🧮

A 2024 study conducted across schools in Manipur found that 57% of school heads reported teacher resistance to HPCs, driven largely by workload and process complexity. More than 70% of teachers said they found it difficult to consistently document every child’s multidomain progress.

In Delhi government schools, a study by the Accountability Initiative (2018) revealed that teachers spend just 19% of their working hours on actual teaching, with the rest absorbed by administrative duties. 📑Add HPC preparation to the mix, and we begin to understand why the system feels stretched.

🧠 What Principals Are Quietly Realising

Many school leaders initially assumed the HPC could be managed “within the team.” But that assumption often leads to increased friction - not just within staff rooms, but within leadership too.

Teachers begin feeling overworked. Coordinators get pulled into endless reviews. And when errors emerge close to inspections, the pressure inevitably reaches the principal.

✍️ “We’ve become data-entry operators - tracking every smile and sports win.”- Principal, CBSE School, Karnataka

The irony is clear: a tool meant to bring richness and reflection is often reduced to paperwork, deadlines, and stress.

🔧 The Solution Lies in Systems

Here’s what NEP 2020 also says - and it’s often overlooked:

💡 “AI-based software could be developed to support students in tracking their own growth.”(NEP 2020, Section 4.34)

The policy recognises that for reflection to be sustainable, it must be supported. And this is where automation plays a crucial role.

Smart systems don’t just simplify work - they preserve the purpose of the HPC. They allow teachers to do what only teachers can do: observe, reflect, and guide .Everything else - formatting, compiling, standardising, printing - can and should be handled by the system. 🖥️

🚀 What Changes When You Automate HPCs

With the right platform, schools experience an immediate difference:

✅ Centralised student profiles

✅ Rubric-based smart feedback

✅ Peer/parent reflections collected digitally

✅ Instant report generation

✅ NEP, CBSE, PARAKH compliance built-in

Schools we’ve supported have seen up to 85% reduction in manual workload per term.Errors drop. Team morale rises. 🌱And most importantly, teachers re-engage with the real spirit of holistic education, not just administrative requirements.

📊 Our Experience at Scratchpad Labs

We’ve worked with schools serving over 2,500 students. Our automated HPC platform is:

• Fully aligned with NEP, PARAKH, and CBSE guidelines

• White-labelled for each school’s unique needs

• Plug-and-play into existing ERPs or standalone

• Ready for digital and print formats 📜

Teachers teach. Students reflect. The system takes care of the rest.

And what schools get is not just compliance, but clarity, confidence, and calm.

🏫 Where We Go From Here

The Holistic Progress Card isn’t just a new reporting format. It represents a deeper commitment to understanding who the child is, beyond scores and subjects.

But for this commitment to succeed, we must support our educators with the systems they deserve.

A powerful idea, when backed by a powerful system, becomes sustainable. 🌟

If you are a school leader ready to make HPCs truly meaningful for your students, your teachers, and your future, the time to act is now.

We’re here to walk that journey with you.