For India, July 29, 2020, can be considered as an important date as the long-awaited New Education Policy (NEP) was adopted by the Union Cabinet on this day during a meeting presided over by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The new education system aspires to implement radical improvements in the classroom and higher education systems. Another significant step in enhancing India's status as a world power is replacing the education system, which is currently 34 years old.
Major Details About the New Education Policy in India
The introduction and implementation of the NEP are primarily intended to raise educational standards uniformly for students and advance India's status as a superpower in the field of education. Some of the key details of the NEP are:
- Single Guidelines for All Levels of School Education:
NEP is focused on ensuring that all people have access to education, from preschool to higher education. This will involve:
- Monitoring kids' progress in their learning.
- Reintegrating dropouts into society through cutting-edge educational institutions.
- Adding qualified social workers and counsellors to schools
- Encourage a variety of educational pathways, including both official and informal learning environments.
- Open learning and open public schools will be made available to students in grades 3, 5, and 8 through NIOS.
- The inclusion of vocational programmes in the curriculum;
- Ancillary education programmes in grades 10 and 12 that are equivalent.
Achieving the aforementioned goals will be made possible by adult literacy and life-enrichment programmes.
- New Prospectus for Early Childhood Care and Education:
The 10+2 curriculum framework will be replaced by a 5+3+3+4 structure under NEP. The new approach suggests combining three years of pre-school/Anganwadi with 12 years of formal education. The critical period for a child's mental development is generally acknowledged to be between the ages of three and six. The main ideas are:
- NCERT will develop the National Framework for Early Childhood Care and Education (NCPFECCE) for kids up to age 8.
- Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) will be a priority in systems of education that have been strengthened, such as Anganwadis and Kindergartens.
- Teachers of kindergartens and Anganwadi workers will receive training in ECCE pedagogy and programmes.
- The ECCE will be managed jointly by the Ministries of Human Resource Development, Health and Family Welfare (HFW), Women and Child Development (WCD), and Tribal Affairs.
- Pivot On Base Literacy:
The National Mission on Foundational Literacy and Numeracy will be established by MHRD, under the NEP. States will develop and put into place a programme by 2025 to ensure that all pupils in primary schools up to class 3 have a solid foundation in literacy and mathematics. The creation of a National Book Promotion Policy is another step that has been proposed in this regard.
- Changes in School Curriculum and Pedagogy:
The school's curriculum and pedagogy will be revised with the students' general growth in mind. The new curriculum will entail teaching the kids essential skills for the twenty-first century.
• Improve critical and practical thinking, as well as practical and experiential learning.
• A reduction in the material of the prior curriculum.
• More freedom in subject selection.
• There is no distinction between arithmetic, science, and commerce.
• Academic, vocational, and extracurricular activities shall all be treated equally.
• Beginning with sixth grade, internships will be an element of vocational education.
- Promoting Regional/Local Language:
By using them as the primary language of instruction up until the fifth or eighth grade, NEP suggests promoting regional languages. At all levels of the school, Sanskrit will be a third language course that may be chosen. Other languages will be offered as optional subjects in addition to Sanskrit. Other foreign languages will also be taught in secondary education. Indian Sign Language (ISL) will be standardized throughout the nation, and national and state schools will develop instructional materials for pupils with hearing impairments.
- Assessment Reforms:
The NEP suggests replacing the summative assessment with frequent and formative evaluations. The new evaluation scheme places more emphasis on competency. This will improve the student's growth and academic abilities. The major goal is to improve the student's analytical, critical, and conceptual thinking. Exams for the third, fifth, and eighth years will be taken by all students and graded by the appropriate authority. The board exams for the 10th and 12th grades will still be given, but the curriculum will be changed to focus on the whole child's development. As a body for creating standards, a new National Assessment Center called PARAKH (Performance, Assessment, Review and Analysis of Knowledge for Holistic Development) will be developed.
- Equitable and Inclusive Education:
The goal of the education strategy will be to advance equality for all. The SEDG (Socially and Economically Disadvantaged) group will receive special attention. SEDG covers social, cultural, geographic, and gender-based limitations. This policy's standard will focus on the following:
• Special education zones will be established in disadvantaged areas.
• Students with disabilities will be able to attend regular classes with the assistance of teachers who are trained to work with them.
• Students with disabilities who enroll in regular education will get training, accommodations, suitable technology, etc.
• States and districts are urged to establish "Bal Bhavans," or day boarding schools, to encourage extracurricular engagement in play and career-related activities.
- Variations in The Process of Teacher’s Recruitment:
Now, hiring procedures for teachers will be more open, and promotions will depend on performance. By 2022, NCTE will have developed the Common National Professional Standards (NPST) after consulting with NCERT, educators, professional associations, and SCERT at all grade levels and geographic locations.
- Standard Setting and Accreditation Program:
The new education strategy, 2020, offers unique and unambiguous mechanisms for regulating, operating, and formulating university policy. An Independent Public School Standards Authority will be established by States and UTs (SSSA). SCERT will establish a new organization called the School Quality Assessment and Accreditation Framework (SQAAF) for public supervision and accountability. This will encourage open and honest self-disclosure.
The M. Phil course has been discontinued as one of the many changes brought about by the implementation of NEP 2020. Although the new education policy has numerous shortcomings, it also has significant benefits. Many people think that by putting these changes into place, the Indian academic system will advance.
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