The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has asked all affiliated schools to prepare a mission statement regarding the goals to be achieved by them before June 7, 2016.

The schools have been asked to share it on their official website.

The move is directed at keeping parents aware of the schools' plans. A mission statement reflects the school's goals and achievements.

"A well-drafted mission statement provides the school with the focus, direction and motivation to achieve excellence through their curriculum," said CBSE additional director Sugandha Sharma. "It also represents their values and influences the work culture for students, teachers and stakeholders. The mission statement should be published after discussions with students, teachers and parents."

Explaining the reason behind the move, Sugandha said parents had a right to know about the schools' mission when they are looking at admissions and schools should work towards it.

Loyola High School principal Satheesh said the mission statement was not a new thing.

"Every school has its own goals to achieve," he said. "It reflects their agenda and purpose. It can be changed with time and addition of new facilities. Our school mission is to offer holistic education to empower the youth to become future leaders."

St Michael's High School renewed their mission, recently. It aims to develop in a student an open-minded attitude to growth. "Preparing the student to be intellectually competent, to promote and develop intellectual skills, and understanding and fulfilling academic requirements are the school's agendas," said school principal Armstrong Edison.

Assistant secretary of the CBSE regional office (Bihar and Jharkhand) Arvind Kumar said parents gave more importance to facilities provided by the school rather than their mission.

"Schools should put more stress on the mission statement because it talks about their future goals," he added.

Anchal Tiwari, whose daughter studies in Notre Dame Academy, believes that the mission statement reflects core education values of the school. "Facilities provided by the school may change over time but the values will remain the same," she said. "It also helps us know what a school offers for our kids and how effective it is."

Mehul Kumar's son studies in Open Minds: A Birla School. She said the mission would create a challenging environment to encourage students to achieve their goals.

"Last year, while admitting my son to school, I went through the school websites," she said. "Most schools did not update their mission statement. It is very important for the school to share their aims with the parents."