Cover Story - National Education Policy(NEP) 2020

The implementation of previous policies on education had focused largely on issues of access and equity. The unfinished agenda of the National Policy on Education 1986, modified in 1992 (NPE 1986/92), is appropriately dealt with in NEP 2020. A major development since the last Policy of 1986/92 has been the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act 2009 which laid down legal underpinnings for achieving universal elementary education. 

For our first cover story, we will be delving into the key agendas from NEP 2020.

For the convenience of our readers, we have included a brief summary as well.

This issue of our NewsDesk is quite info-heavy, so grab some snacks and enjoy reading!

Index-

1. A new education structure
2. Formation of a new curriculum
3. New Integrated learning 
4. Flexibility in secondary education
5. A complete correction of the assessment and grading system
6. Changes in the Board and Entrance Examinations
7. Reforms at the College/University stage
8. A brief summary of NEP 2020

A new education structure

The curricular and structure of school education will be reconfigured to make it responsive and relevant to the developmental needs and interests of learners at different stages of their development, corresponding to the age ranges of 3-8, 8-11, 11-14, and 14-18 years, respectively. School education will therefore be guided by a 5+3+3+4 design, consisting of : 

1. Foundational Stage (3 years of pre-school + 2 years primary school in Grades 1-2; ages 3-8)
2. Preparatory Stage (Grades 3-5;  ages 8-11)
3. Middle Stage (Grades 6-8; ages 11-14)
4. Secondary Stage (Grades 9-12 in two phases; 9 & 10 + 11 & 12; ages 14-18) 

The Foundational Stage will consist of five years of flexible, multilevel, play/activity-based learning.

The Preparatory Stage will comprise three years of education building on the play, discovery, and activity-based curricular style of the Foundational Stage, and will also begin to incorporate some light textbooks as well as aspects of more formal but interactive classroom learning, to lay a solid groundwork across subjects, including reading, writing, speaking, physical education, art, languages, science, and mathematics.

 

The Middle Stage will comprise three years of education, building on the curricular style of the Preparatory Stage, but with the introduction of subject teachers for learning and discussion of the more abstract concepts in each subject that students will be ready for at this stage across the sciences, mathematics, arts, social sciences, and humanities.

The Secondary Stage will comprise four years of multidisciplinary study, building on the subject-oriented style of the Middle Stage, but with greater depth, greater critical thinking, greater attention to life aspirations, and greater flexibility and student choice of subjects. 

In particular, students would continue to have the option of exiting after Grade 10 and re-entering in the next phase to pursue any courses available in Grades 11-12, including at a more specialized school, if so desired. 

One of the primary goals of the schooling system must be to ensure that children are enrolled in and are actually attending school, as data for later grades indicates some serious issues in retaining children in the schooling system. As per the 75th round household survey by NSSO in 2017-18, the number of out of school children in the age group of 6 to 17 years is 3.22 crore.

Formation of a new curriculum

The formulation of a new and comprehensive National Curricular Framework for School Education (NCFSE) will be undertaken by the NCERT - based on the principles of this National Education Policy 2020 and frontline curriculum needs. 

The NCFSE document shall be revisited and updated once every 5-10 years, taking into account the frontline curriculum. 

Each of the four stages of school education, following what may be possible in different regions, may consider moving towards a semester or any other system that allows the inclusion of shorter courses that are taught on alternate days, to allow exposure to more subjects and enable greater flexibility. 

New Integrated learning 

It is recognized that mathematics and mathematical thinking will be very important for India’s future and India’s leadership role in the numerous upcoming fields and professions that will involve artificial intelligence, machine learning, and data science, etc. Thus, mathematics and computational thinking will be given increased emphasis throughout the school years, starting with the foundational stage. Activities involving coding will be introduced in the Middle Stage. 

Additionally, every student will take a fun course, during Grades 6-8, that gives a survey and hands-on experience of a sampling of important vocational crafts, such as carpentry, electric work, metalwork, gardening, pottery making, etc., as decided by States and local communities and as mapped by local skilling needs.

Sports integrated learning will be undertaken in classroom transactions to help students adopt fitness as a lifelong attitude and to achieve the related life skills along with the levels of fitness as envisaged in the Fit India Movement. The need to integrate sports into education is well recognized as it promotes physical and psychological well-being.

Basic training in health, including preventive health, mental health, good nutrition, personal and public hygiene, disaster response and first-aid will also be included in the curriculum, as well as scientific explanations of the detrimental and damaging effects of alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs. 

Flexibility in secondary education

Students will be given increased flexibility and choice of subjects to study, particularly in secondary school - including subjects in physical education, the arts and crafts, and vocational skills – so that they can design their own paths of study and life plans.

There will be no hard separation among ‘curricular’, ‘extracurricular ’, or ‘co-curricular’ activities among ‘arts’, ‘humanities’, and ‘sciences’, or between ‘vocational’ or ‘academic’ streams. 

A complete correction of the assessment and grading system

The aim of assessment in the culture of our schooling system will shift from one that is summative and primarily tests rote memorization skills to one that is more regular and formative, promotes learning and development for our students, and tests higher-order skills, such as analysis, critical thinking, and conceptual clarity. 

The progress card of all students for school-based assessment, which is communicated by schools to parents, will be completely redesigned by States under guidance from the proposed National Assessment Centre, NCERT, and SCERTs. The progress card will be a 360-degree, multidimensional report that reflects in great detail the progress as well as the uniqueness of each learner. It will include self-assessment and peer assessment, and progress of the student in project-based and inquiry-based learning, quizzes, role plays, group work, portfolios, etc., along with the teacher's assessment.

Changes in the Board and Entrance Examinations

The current nature of secondary school exams, including Board exams and entrance exams - and the resulting coaching culture of today - are doing much harm, especially at the secondary school level, replacing valuable time for true learning with excessive exam coaching and preparation.

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. Board exams will be redesigned to encourage development. Students will be able to choose any of the subjects in which they take Board exams, depending on their individualized interests. 

Board exams will also be made ‘easier’, in the sense that they will test primarily core capacities/competencies rather than months of coaching and memorization; any student who has been going to and making a basic effort in a school class will be able to pass and do well in the corresponding subject's Board Exam without much additional effort. 

To further eliminate the ‘high stakes’  aspect of Board Exams, 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 desired.

Reforms at the College/University stage

Some of the major problems currently faced by the higher education system in India include: 

• a rigid separation of disciplines, with early specialisation and streaming of students into narrow areas of study 
• limited access particularly in socio-economically disadvantaged areas, with few HEIs(Higher Education Institutions) that teach in local languages
• limited teacher and institutional autonomy
• inadequate mechanisms for merit-based career management and progression of faculty and institutional leaders
• lesser emphasis on research at most universities and colleges, and lack of competitive peer-reviewed research funding across disciplines
• suboptimal governance and leadership of HEIs  
• large affiliating universities resulting in low standards of undergraduate education

NEP envisions a complete overhaul of the higher education system to overcome these challenges and thereby deliver quality higher education, with equity and inclusion.  The policy’s vision includes the following key changes to the current system:  

• moving towards a higher educational system consisting of large, multidisciplinary universities and colleges, with at least one in or near every district, and with more HEIs across India that offer a medium of instruction in local languages 
• moving towards faculty and institutional autonomy 
• revamping curriculum, assessment, and student support for better student experiences  
• reaffirming the integrity of faculty and institutional leadership positions through merit appointments and career progression based on teaching, research, and service
• establishment of a National Research Foundation to fund outstanding peer-reviewed research and to actively seed research in universities and colleges
• governance of HEIs by high qualified independent boards having academic and administrative autonomy  
• “light but tight” regulation by a single regulator for higher education
• increased access, equity, and inclusion through a range of measures, including greater opportunities for outstanding public education; scholarships by private/philanthropic universities for disadvantaged and underprivileged students; online education, and Open Distance Learning (ODL); and all infrastructure and learning materials accessible and available to learners with disabilities.

A brief summary of NEP 2020

• recognizing, identifying, and fostering the unique capabilities of each student, by sensitizing teachers as well as parents to promote each student’s development in both academic and non-academic spheres

• according the highest priority to achieving Foundational Literacy and Numeracy by all students by Grade 3 

• flexibility, so that learners can choose their learning trajectories and programmes, and thereby choose their own paths in life according to their talents and interests 

• no hard separations between arts and sciences, between curricular and extra-curricular activities, etc. to eliminate harmful hierarchies among different areas of learning  

• emphasis on conceptual understanding rather than rote learning and learning-for-exams

• creativity and critical thinking to encourage logical decision-making and innovation

• promoting multilingualism and the power of language in teaching and learning

• life skills such as communication, cooperation, teamwork, and resilience

• focus on regular formative assessment for learning rather than the summative assessment that encourages today’s  ‘coaching culture ’

• respect for diversity and respect for the local context in all curriculum, always keeping in mind that education is a concurrent subject

• full equity and inclusion as the cornerstone of all educational decisions to ensure that all students can thrive in the education system

• synergy in curriculum across all levels of education from early childhood care and education to school education to higher education

• continuous  review of progress based on sustained research and regular assessment by educational experts

• substantial investment in a strong, vibrant public education system  

• a ‘light but tight’  regulatory framework to ensure integrity, transparency, and resource efficiency of the educational system through audit and public disclosure while encouraging innovation and out-of-the-box ideas through autonomy, good governance, and empowerment

• teachers and faculty as the heart of the learning process – their recruitment, continuous professional development, positive working environments and service conditions.

As always, thank you for reading!