To make India a global knowledge superpower

"Holding forth at the 9th edition of the recently organized ThinkEdu Conclave, Union Minister For Education, Dr Ramesh Pokhriyal waxed eloquent on the finer points of the New Education Policy (NEP) 2020, which, he said is as “national as it is international and as impactful as it is interactive and inclusive.” Here’s more on the New Education Policy and the road ahead"

Over 33 crore students, which is more than the population of several countries, were given education online in the course of a year when most countries chose to take a step back. “Instead, India turned its homes into classes and brought in as many students into the online circuit as possible. For those who couldn’t be reached through the online medium, we used TV and radio programmes for instructions,” said Union Minister for Education Ramesh Pokhriyal in his inaugural address for the 9th edition of the recently concluded ThinkEdu Conclave, one of the country’s biggest education conclaves, which was held virtually every year.

Thanking senior journalist and TNIE Editorial Director, Prabhu Chawla and SASTRA Deemed-to-be-University for putting in effort and thought into a conclave that brings in assorted stakeholders in the field of education on a singular platform, including students, teachers, scientists, businessmen and story-tellers, Dr Pokhriyal said that a sound education is the cornerstone of not just an individual or a family, but also that of a society and country. “An effort such as this is made by those who wish to elevate the quality of Indian education and bring about a positive and hopeful conversation on its prospects,” he said.

He then went on to explain the salient features of the recently announced New Education Policy 2020, its vision for India and the changes it would bring about for all stakeholders.

India’s ancient educational glory and the destruction caused by colonialisation: NEP to restore the ancient glory

Historical records bear testimony to the greatness and breadth of Indian education, especially its universities or Vishwavidyalays like Nalanda and Takshashila that attracted the finest and most dedicated minds from the world over, thereby providing a haven for all that is fine, admirable and positive about the human condition—culture, education, art, moral values and scientific temperament. Students and teachers from abroad would then return to their own countries full of admiration and gratitude for the same, Dr Pokhriyal said. However, the centuries of colonialisation and foreign invasions that followed pretty much destroyed the thriving traditions and systems of indigenous education. But now that is India is independent, a lot can be done to right the wrong. “Under the able captaincy of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, it is my privilege to bring in the New Education Policy. The purpose of this policy is to Indianise education, link it in a continuous and strong thread and make India self-reliant. This is part of a never-before sea change,” he said.

The NEP will stress on mathematics and computational thinking, besides knowledge on ancient India and its contributions to modern India. The policy advocates the introduction of “contemporary subjects such as artificial intelligence, design thinking, holistic health and organic living”.

Catch them early; groom them right

The NEP recognises how critical the early years are and will ensure that the anganwadi period is utilised to the utmost, all the better to harness the child’s energy and creativity to the full. “Childcare experts, scientists as well as the UNESCO have pointed out over and over again how important the ages between three and six are given that the maximum brain development happens during this phase. And we absolutely don’t wish to lose out on the opportunity to bring out the best in them.”

Structural change in education

To that end, the structure of present day education will change from 10 plus to 5+3+3+4 with a further break up of 5 into 2 to 2—all the better to channelise the potential of the very young students, said Dr Pokhriyal. In a shift from the 1986 education policy, which pushed for a uniform 10+2 structure of school education, the new policy is looking at a rehaul of both curriculum and pedagogy in a “5+3+3+4” format, with three years of pre-school, followed by Classes 1 and 2 in the foundational stage of 3-8 years.

Thus, each stage will be given the due respect and attention it deserves, keeping in the mind, the needs of the students. The National Council for Educational Research and Training will develop a National Curricular and Pedagogical Framework for Early Childhood Care and Education (NCPFECCE) for children up to the age of eight.

No report cards only progress cards

The present system will be revamped completely to emphasise outcome-based learning that prioritises reason and rationale over mere rote learning. “This means that we will have to come up with an entirely different method of assessing and evaluating the child’s progress,” he said. “Self-assessment will be an important aspect of the NEP as no one understands an individual’s strengths and weaknesses better than themselves. This will entail asking the student as to how many marks would he like to give himself or herself. Along with this, the student’s teachers will mark him and so will his parent/guardian. This will give the parents an opportunity to assess their ward’s progress in a meaningful way,” he shared.

Apart from this, the students’ partner students will also be given a chance to give him/her marks. The purpose of the exercise is to bring forth a culture of knowledge sharing and dissemination, conversation and interaction—as the student now knows that not sharing knowledge or being articulate enough will result in the partner students not knowing the full extent of their potential. In the larger scheme of things, the child will grow up realising the importance of networking and human relationships, said Dr Pokhriyal. “Thus, the focus will shift from drawing up report cards to bringing out progress cards. In short, this means a 360-degree holistic system of assessment and evaluation.”

Internships and vocational education from Class VI

With a view to revving up employability, confidence and self-reliance amongst the youth, vocational education that optimises a student’s innate ability and transforms it into a skill, will be emphasised upon along with a proper internship. Numerical and linguistic instruction will be a part of this exercise, said Dr Pokhriyal.

No rigid separations between Science, Arts and Commerce

Amongst the most salient features of the NEP will be its progressiveness and far-sightedness in doing away with rigid walls between the streams of Science, Arts and Commerce. “Thus, very soon, it will be entirely possible for a student to take up Engineering with literature or mathematics with music,” Dr Pokhriyal said. “Simply put, students can take up whatever subject they feel is important to their personal and professional growth.”

This, he said, would go a long way in putting the youngster in the driver’s seat as far as their career choices went. In the event that a student finds that the choice of subject has gone awry; that he/she would like to drop it, the new system will not nullify the year spent in its pursuit. They will be given a certificate for it. Similarly, there’s a diploma for the two years spent on the subject and a degree for the three years completed. “Life has a way of throwing up unforeseen circumstances and often, students drop out in first or second year of college, never to return. The NEP will give them the flexibility and choice of taking up from the point where they left off.

“An Academic Bank of Credit will be set up for digitally storing academic credits earned from different institutes so that these can be transferred and counted towards final degree earned. The students will be given the key to it so that they can avail of it as and when required,” he said.

Content plus talent will give birth to new patents

Acknowledging the fact that India seems to lag behind when it comes to high-end academic and scientific research, Dr Pokhriyal said that it was nevertheless heartening to note that of the 40,000 internationally recognised universities, as many as 12 Indian institutions had made it to the list of the top 100 academic institutions of the world. “We hope to increase the numbers in the days to come,” he said, adding that the NEP would not only prioritise the search for new talent but also give it the backing of good content so that it does not go waste.

“Thus, we believe that content plus talent will give birth to new patents,” he said. To that end, Rs.50,000 crores have been earmarked over the next five years for the creation of a National Research Foundation (NRF) — an umbrella body that is expected to fund research across a range of disciplines, from science and technology to humanities.

“Please note the connection between all the government’s stated objectives. Atmanirbhar (self-reliant) India, Digital India, Skill India and Startup India.”

The beauty of the NEP, he said, is its scope, which is both national and international. “The NEP is as impactful and interactive as it is inclusive and innovative—a beautiful and progressive vision for tomorrow, which has been lauded the world over.”

Primary education in the mother tongue

“It has been proven over and over again that initial instruction in the child’s mother tongue is the most effective. No imposed language can ever play the role of an effective instructor when it comes to learning. In fact, it is a matter of personal satisfaction to me that this move to give students the best possible chance to shine through the use of their mother tongue, has been universally lauded. As many as 22 Indian languages have been enshrined in our Constitution— be it Bangla, Marathi, Gujarati, Tamil, Telegu, Tullu, Urdu, Bhojpuri or Assamese— that are an infinite repositories of knowledge, culture, human values, scientific temperament and tradition that have set India apart,” he said. “The Indian values of Vasudev Kutumbakam (the world is my family) and the prayer that says tamsoma jyotir gamaya (lead us from darkness unto light) are enshrined in these languages. The NEP hopes to tap into the immense potential of Indian know-how,” he said.

The policy proposes Sanskrit to be offered at all levels of school and higher education as an option for students. Other classical languages and literature of India also to be available as options. However, at no point will any language be imposed on any student, he said. Several foreign languages will also be offered at the secondary level.

Board exams to be made low stakes

Significantly, amongst other things, The NEP focuses on revamping the existing school curriculum, through a deliberate reformation of the all-important board exams, a redirection of the syllabus to retain core essentials and a thrust on experiential learning and critical thinking, Pokhriyal said. Thus, there will be a shift from summative assessment to a more competency-based regular assessment which tests analysis and conceptual clarity

“While the Board exams for Grades 10 and 12 will be continued, the existing system of Board and entrance examinations shall be reformed to eliminate the need for undertaking coaching classes. To reverse these harmful effects of the current assessment system, Board exams will be redesigned to encourage holistic development; students will be able to choose any of the subjects in which they take Board exams, depending on their respective interests,” he said.

Interestingly, all students will be allowed to take board exams on up to two occasions during any given school year-one main examination and one for improvement, if the student wishes it.

2020—The year of Covid-19 as well as the New Education Policy

At a time when the world is in the grip of a never- before Pandemic, India has announced its path-breaking vision through the New Education Policy. “We have as many as 1,000 universities, 15 lakh schools, 35,000-degree colleges, which are a staggering number. Our pool of one crore and 10 lakh teachers is more than the population of several countries as are our 33 crore students,” he said. “Against such a grim backdrop, when most of the world has written off a year, India ensured that its 33 crore students did not lose out. We leveraged the power of online studies and managed to bring in as many as we could into the fray, reaching out to the ret through TV and Radio programmes. Our teachers had a major role to play in this. Each one of them has pretty much been an educational warrior, doing what it takes to bring quality education to their students. I laud them for this.” The year 2020 will not only be known as the year of Covid-19 but also the New Education Policy. “I am confident that the New Education policy will deliver on India’s hopes and aspirations and help India become a veritable superpower of knowledge, a Vishwaguru for the world,” he rounded off.

SALIENT FEATURES OF THE NEP

• Schooling from the age of three years.
• 5+3+3+4 education structure. This is a marked departure from the 10 plus 2 system of the changes wrought about in 1986.
• No rigid separations between Science, Arts and Commerce.
• Internships and vocational education from Class 6.
• Board exam will be low stakes.
• The NEP says that wherever possible, the medium of instruction until at least Grade 5, but preferably till Grade 8 and beyond, will be the mother tongue/regional language.. This will be followed by both public and private schools.
• Sanskrit will be offered at all levels of school and higher education as an important, enriching option for students, including as an option in the three-language formula. Foreign languages, such as Korean, Japanese, Thai, French, German, Spanish, Portuguese, and Russian, will also be offered at the secondary level.
• Higher educational reforms include a choice between three or four year undergraduate courses, multiple entry and exit options in degree courses and discontinuation of MPhil programmes.
• The system college of affiliation will be gradually eased out over 15 years. In its place, a stage-wise mechanism for granting graded autonomy to colleges, through a transparent system of graded accreditation, will be established. The policy proposes that every college would develop into either an autonomous degree-granting college, or a constituent college of a university.
• The policy also calls for a single higher education regulator called Higher Education Commission of India (HECI). HECI will be set up as a single overarching umbrella body for entire higher education. It will have powers to penalise higher education institutions for not conforming to norms and standards. However, this won’t apply to medical and legal colleges.