Minakshi Mishra

Efficient implementation of NEP in states, crucial to achieving the targets. Road map to empowering the children of India. The National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 cleared by the cabinet led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the 29th of July is supposed to bring far-reaching changes in the educational map of the country. The document which promises to be a game-changer is the third policy on education after 1968 and 1986, expected to bring much needed transformational reform. The NEP looks forward to bringing the proposed changes in the existing education system, revamp the curriculum of educational institutions, lean more towards skill development, endeavouring to reap the benefits of its demographic dividend by 2030/. Aiming towards a more knowledge-based approach, the NEP seeks to transform how the students pursue studies, take examinations and get the final assessment. The NEP would be introducing multiple entries and exit options in the four-year undergraduate degrees, and do away with M.Phil. It also proposes to establish a higher education regulator with fee fixation for both private and public institutions. It seeks to introduce a progressive shift towards a more scientific approach to education. The proposed 5+3+3+4 structure walks with the physical and mental ability of the child – stages of cognitive development as well as social and physical awareness. Thus it envisions universalisation of early childhood education from ages 3 to 6 as early as 2030. NEP aims at implementing a new school curriculum with coding and vocational studies from Class 6 and using the child's mother tongue as the medium of instruction till Class 5. Let us look at the key aspects that have the potential to bring about the much-hyped transformation in school education: Focus on foundational learning. Universal access to pre-primary education. Key-stage assessments to measure learning outcomes. Integration of technology in education and an enabling environment for the private school sector. The key-stage assessments for students in Classes 3, 5, and 8 with a focus on learning outcomes would be encouraging analytical thinking, moves away from rote learning, and opens up a window for tutoring students who might need additional help. It is an eye-opener because parents would now be able to choose schools not on their infrastructure or language preferences but on how much the child progresses. A radical move would be reforming the all-important board examinations for Classes 10 and 12 and bringing them down to a lower pedestal. NEP seeks an assessment of the students' performance based on conceptual understanding and experiential learning. Former ISRO chief, K. Kasturirangan said that the flexible education system under NEP 2020 would open our minds to excellence. The former ISRO chief heading the Panel also stated one of the critical characteristics of NEP 2020 is flexibility. The Panel felt that the various aspects and stages in education must be interconnected, like school to college to university education. There must be coherence for holistic learning. A close examination of the policy shows the inclusion of multidisciplinary study would allow students to pick and choose any set of subjects from the available structure. However, the focus would be on critical thinking and flexibility, allowing the child flexibility on the choice of subject, including technical topics and arts. The NEP very correctly draws our focus to the need to stress on learning rather than exams, and yet it contradicts itself by reinstating exams back into the picture by recommending a national aptitude test. Even as the NEP states that mother tongue would be the preferred mode of instruction till class 5, it qualifies it by saying 'wherever possible' these languages will be used in public and private schools. But the real picture of the ground realities clearly shows that guardians think English is necessary for the economic survival of their children. People believe that English empowers people to get a good job and security. But the NEP 2020 pays only lip service lip-service to the promotion of bhashas and ends up reinforcing the status quo of the English-medium schools to continue as they are. A more practical approach would have been exposed to basic English from a very young age in bhasha schools — through rhymes, simple sentences — that could make learning the language later easier. The NEP could have given a thought to mobilise special funds for English-teaching at panchayat or Zila Parishad level schools. Such steps would have gone a long way in making school education equal for all. This visionary document which sets into motion the future of our youth for the next two decades requires closer scrutiny. Despite its ambitious changes and a forward approach, it fails to speak of marginalised, Socially and Economically Disadvantaged Groups in the text? It misses caste altogether except for a fleeting reference to Scheduled Castes. It says no word on a reservation in academic institutions. In a country which has a diverse socio-economic population, this silence on Reservation issue is disturbing and conspicuous. One cannot help but wonder how the NEP will come to effect in tribal areas as part of the Early Childhood Children Education programs? The NEP also visualises bringing private schools into its fold so that it can distinguish this from the commercialisation of education. But the question that looms over us is how will the document be implemented? Let us look at the multidisciplinary approach. At first glance, it seems very flexible. But, we notice that the multidisciplinary system fails to say a word on the inclusion of fields of studies such as Women's Studies or Gender Studies, Cultural Studies, Media Studies, Dalit Studies, Studies of Discrimination and Exclusion, Environmental Studies and Development Studies. How can these be ignored in such a visionary document? Questions such as the following remain: Selection of vocational subjects is a fun choice but left to the decision of states and local communities. The National Testing Agency will serve as a premier, expert, autonomous testing organisation to conduct entrance examinations in higher educational institutions. The innovative educational policy could attempt and explore to create space for context-specific and diverse modes of evaluation for different fields of learning. However, we cannot deny that successful implementation of the NEP has the potential to make India an economic powerhouse. But we cannot also ignore the truth that efficient implementation in states will be crucial to achieving the goals and targets and empower the children of India.