A major change, the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has recently ordered schools to organize parent teacher meeting, where they have to explain parents on Importance of APAAR ID. This 12-character, unique identifier is intended to integrate an undergraduate student’s academic record, scholarships, and honors, into a digital profile. In line with the National Education Policy 2020 and the Digital India programme, the APAAR ID aims at facilitating academic record holding and providing transparency in the educational system.
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Implementation Strategy
CBSE has made a provision that parents-teacher meetings (PTMs) be organized to clarify the meaning of APAAR ID to students and students parents. In these sessions, schools are also given instructions regarding distribution of consent forms, asking for parental approval to use Aadhaar information for APAAR ID generation. In case of obtaining consent, through schools, student details will be verified on the UDISE+ portal and then accordingly APAAR ID will be generated and associated with the DigiLocker account of the student. Parents will be notified by SMS when the process is finished.
APAAR ID vs. Aadhaar: Understanding the Distinction
Although both APAAR ID and Aadhaar are twelve-digit identifiers, APAAR ID is used for a different purpose. Aadhaar is a comprehensive identity card for Indian citizens, used for authentication, as well as accessing government services. On the other hand, the APAAR identifier is intended to monitor a student’s academic history, starting from pre-primary levels to tertiary education, along with academic achievements, and sports performance and other non-academic activity, such as hobbies and interest clubs. It’s important to note that the APAAR ID complements the Aadhaar ID but does not replace it.
Concerns and Challenges
The APAAR ID programme has also faced a number of challenges despite its potential advantage. Educators have reported issues such as mismatches between students birth certificates and Aadhaar details, hindering the registration process. However, data privacy also presents concerns for the APAAR system, as its system relies on being linked to Aadhaar which, both under Sec. Critics argue that this could lead to unauthorized data access and misuse, calling for stringent data protection measures to safeguard student privacy.
Looking Ahead
As CBSE rolls out the APAAR ID system, it is important to address these challenges proactively. Maintaining data accuracy, obtaining informed parental consent, and ensuring strong data security mechanisms, will be necessary when trying to strike the right balance between the advantages of digital efficiency and student privacy. The effectiveness of this project will be contingent upon open dialogue between schools, parents, and authorities and upon a willingness to respect the rights and privacy of students in the digital era.