Shimla, 5 June 2026: After a year of work across Himachal Pradesh’s schools, UNESCO and the Government of Himachal Pradesh, have unveiled a roadmap aimed at translating education reforms into classroom practice. The plan, presented at the Third Steering Committee Meeting of the HP FUTURES project is accompanied by a suite of new resources for teachers, including competency-based learning guides, green education toolkits, a localized Hindi guidebook of UNESCO’s Sport Values in Every Classroom Toolkit, and other training materials designed to support the state’s evolving curriculum.
In its first year, the initiative reached all 12 districts, benefiting more than 10,000 students and 500 teachers across nearly 200 schools while engaging over 750 education stakeholders. The project’s early findings point to a school system that is broadly aligned with national reforms and increasingly focused on the challenge of turning policy ambitions into day-to-day teaching and learning.
The HP FUTURES project is not meant to be an activity or even an annual calendar — this is actually meant to be a cultural shift in the way we know and see education in our schools.
Shri Rakesh KanwarSecretary of Education, Government of Himachal Pradesh
Key Findings
Himachal Pradesh has emerged as one of India’s strongest-performing states in school learning outcomes, rising from 21st to 5th place in national rankings. The improvement comes as the state works to align its education system with a new generation of national policy priorities, supported by a teaching workforce that is widely regarded as experienced and open to new approaches.
A review of 34 national and state education policy documents found that Himachal Pradesh’s education framework is closely aligned with the objectives of India’s National Education Policy 2020 and the National Curriculum Framework 2023. Between October 2025 and February 2026, two scoping missions visited ten districts across the state, gathering first-hand accounts from teachers and students and providing a snapshot of current classroom conditions, teaching practices and learning experiences across diverse school settings.
A survey of 2,527 teachers across 199 schools found that 78 percent were familiar with the National Education Policy. The challenge now is less about awareness than implementation. The next phase will focus on helping teachers translate the policy’s ambitions into classroom practice through the National Curriculum Framework, which provides guidance on competency-based teaching and learning.
At the same time, teacher training has already been underway through the Value Education through Sport initiative. Under the pillar, 200 teachers from 56 PM SHRI schools participated in four workshops held in Shimla, Mandi and Kangra, guided by UNESCO’s Sport Values in Every Classroom Toolkit.
The first classroom activity, known as “Paper Toss,” was introduced in about 25 schools for students in Grades 3 to 5. Early feedback from participating schools points to improvements in peer interactions and social-emotional learning. A Hindi-language edition of the toolkit’s guide is expected to be distributed statewide in the coming months, potentially extending its reach to an abundant pool of teachers on the ground.
Climate education has also gained momentum. In November 2025, more than 8,500 students took part in a statewide climate awareness quiz during SWACHHOTSAV 2025. At the same time, 22 PM SHRI schools across 11 districts joined the Climate Detective pilot programme, which encourages students to investigate local environmental challenges while drawing on Traditional Ecological Knowledge, or TEK, as a tool for climate action.
The effort builds on a broader foundation of environmental engagement in the state, where more than 14,000 Eco Clubs operate under the Mission LiFE (Lifestyle for Environment) initiative, the national movement promoting sustainable lifestyles in India.
HP FUTURES represents a holistic vision for education — anchored in competency-based learning, value education through sport, and greening education. What makes this initiative truly significant is how it brings global evidence, national priorities and state-level leadership into one coherent agenda for transformation.
Joyce PoanChief of Education, UNESCO Regional Office for South Asia
Year Two: From Evidence to Action
The next phase of the initiative will focus on translating research and pilot initiatives into changes that can be sustained across the state’s school system.
At the center of that effort is a push to build a shared understanding of competency-based education across Himachal Pradesh’s districts, particularly around the six core capacities outlined in the National Curriculum Framework – critical thinking, problem-solving, communication and digital literacy. State officials and education partners will also pilot a new model of teacher professional development in 12 schools across 12 districts, combining workshops with classroom mentoring and peer-learning networks.
Attention will also turn to the systems that shape classroom instruction. Curriculum, textbooks and assessments that were reviewed – in the first phase – will be aligned more closely with competency-based learning goals, a shift intended to ensure that teaching practices, learning materials and student evaluation move in the same direction.
Environmental and values-based education will remain a parallel focus. Plans include strengthening Eco Clubs, expanding initiatives under the Value Education through Sport (VETS) pillar, and connecting climate learning more directly to local ecosystems and community knowledge.
The HP-FUTURES (Foundation for Upskilling, Teacher Excellence, Understanding, Readiness, Equity, and Sustainability) project is an education initiative jointly led by the Government of Himachal Pradesh and UNESCO, with the Pratham Education Foundation serving as the coordinating agency for the project’s implementation. Anchored in India’s National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and the National Curriculum Framework (NCF) 2023, the project seeks to translate policy intent into meaningful classroom practice across the state.
READ MORE: https://www.unesco.org/en/articles/hp-futures-moves-evidence-action-unesco-and-himachal-pradesh-launch-year-two-education-roadmap?hub=701
