Mizoram literacy model is worth national replication
Mizoram was officially declared India’s first fully literate state on May 20, 2025, achieving a 98.2 per cent literacy rate. This milestone was reached under the ULLAS (Understanding Lifelong Learning for All in Society) initiative, surpassing the 95 per cent threshold for full functional literacy. The achievement was driven by intense community participation, the cultural value of Tlawmngaihna (selflessness), and sustained efforts by the state’s Education department.
It is thus not surprising to read that the Mizoram government will introduce experience-based curriculum in schools to replace rote learning, in a major transition in the state’s pedagogical approach. The government is also planning to introduce standardised annual exams for classes 5 and 8 in which students from various schools will be required to answer uniform questions.
The move is a departure from the traditional rote memorisation or learning by heart method and is designed to reform and modernise the state’s education system in line with the National Curriculum Framework, 2023 and the National Education Policy (NEP), 2020. The State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT) Director Caroline Zoramthangi said new textbooks will be rolled out from the 2026-27 academic session for classes 1, 2, 3 and 6. They are currently being printed by the state’s Printing and Stationery Department.
She said that the new model will prioritise illustration, drama and field trips, among others, over rote memorisation to educate students on critical thinking as well as direct experiential learning rather than abstract theory. Instead of merely measuring a child’s knowledge level, the focus will shift to physical, emotional, moral and spiritual development. Learning will be child-centric and enjoyable for students, who will engage in project works,” she told a news agency. Mathematics and science will be taught in a way that relates directly to one’s daily lives.
The shift also aims to make the classroom environment more interactive and less burdensome for young learners, she added. Apart from this curriculum shift, Caroline said the government will also implement competency-based uniform question papers for students of classes 5 and 8 across 770 state-run and aided schools for standardised assessment.
Results from these exams will be centralised and analysed by the SCERT to monitor educational standards across the state. “The education minister aims to achieve quality education through assessment reform and has taken proactive steps in this direction. Questions will now be competency-based, developed entirely in accordance with the NCF 2023,” she said.
The shift is expected to improve the state’s performances in national-level competitive examinations. Modern technological advancements and the way the education sector had to fast-forward into its regular system of working was evident during the Covid pandemic, when parents invested in laptops and latest mobile phones to enable their children receive online education and app-based study inputs.
With AI challenging the traditional methods of pedagogy, it calls for a comprehensive, nation-wide adaptation of experiential learning techniques to keep the Alpha gen interested in studies during their formative years. Over 25 years into the new millennium, this aspect of progress and growth in a child’s life remains an area of concern with uneven progress across schools in India.
