CBSE has launched a “calendar” that the board hopes will strengthen structured engagement between schools and parents.
Parenting calendar — as it called — has sections on inclusion that promote “awareness, sensitivity and equitable practices for diverse learners”.
Coping with changes supports parents and students in adapting to curriculum changes and evolving academic expectations, the board said after it was unveiled last month.
“In alignment with the vision of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, CBSE had undertaken this initiative...with a clear objective to strengthen the partnership between parents and schools and to promote holistic student well-being...The CBSE Parenting Calendar 2026-27 further strengthens and expands this vision by institutionalising structured engagement between schools and parents,” the board has said.
“The current edition introduces enhanced engagement strategies, teacher-led activities and focused psycho-social initiatives to support students’ emotional, social and academic growth, while addressing challenges faced by parents in today’s evolving environment...” it has added.
The calendar is designed to foster meaningful parent-child interactions, strengthen the home-school partnership, and serve as a practical guide for parents to participate in their child’s development journey, CBSE has said.
The calendar talks about moving beyond digital spaces to strengthen offline interactions.
“While digital communication has made parent-teacher interaction more accessible, there is an increasing need to strengthen the face-to-face engagement,” the board has said.
The parenting calendar will focus on offline, in-person meetings, workshops and school events to provide a more personalised, interactive and meaningful experience for parents.”
Several schools said engagement with schools makes both parties more empathetic towards each other.
Often, parents of senior children distance themselves from the school, and such platforms help the school to connect with parents.
“Two parent-teacher meetings in a year are often not enough. We see that communication sent to parents through the school’s multi-device app is being accessed only by students, not their parents. In-person meetings with parents help the parents stay abreast with the school’s policies,” said Satabdi Bhattacharjee, principal, The Newtown School.
When parents are aware, they are more accepting of and appreciative of the school’s policies, rather than being at loggerheads with the school, said another principal.
There are schools that invite parents for a chat over tea or coffee.
“Informal meetings with parents help us keep our ears to the ground. We get feedback from them. They should never feel that parents and schools are on opposite sides; instead, they should understand that they are on the same side and are working in coordination for the best interests of the child,” said Koeli Dey, principal of Sushila Birla Girls’ School.
Earlier many schools would build walls around them and interactions with parents were limited to parent-teacher meetings held on the day of the report card distribution.
Now many new age schools keep their doors open and parents can walk in for a meeting with the principal within the working hours.
“This helps to build parents’ confidence in the school,” a principal said.