The Central Board of Secondary Education issued a scripted document urging school principals to create social media reels and support the board's initiatives [1].
The move comes as the board faces significant backlash regarding its policies, including the One Student One Mobile (OSM) initiative. By providing a standardized script, the board aims to control the public narrative and project a unified front across schools in India [1, 2].
In a document titled “Material for Principals,” the board provided specific phrasing for school leaders to use in their communications [1]. The script told principals to "make reels, back OSM, don't panic" [2]. The directive was designed to ensure that the board is presented in a positive light during a period of criticism [1, 2].
According to the dossier, the board requested that principals describe the organization as "highly proactive" [1]. This effort to manage the board's image suggests a strategic attempt to leverage short-form video content to counteract negative sentiment among educators and parents [1, 2].
The CBSE has not provided further details on the specific metrics it hopes to achieve with the reel campaign. However, the focus on the OSM initiative indicates that the board views social media as a primary tool for calming public anxiety and promoting its current agenda [1, 2].
“Make reels, back OSM, don't panic”
The use of scripted social media directives by a national education board reflects a shift toward corporate-style reputation management in public schooling. By attempting to synchronize the messaging of individual principals, the CBSE is treating school leaders as brand ambassadors to neutralize policy criticism rather than engaging in a traditional policy debate.
