New Education Policy Overview

As we all know that current affairs form a vital part of CGPSC Syllabus and a lot of other similar examinations in India, one must have a thorough knowledge of the ongoing events. One very important event that happened recently is the implementation of the National  Education Policy. 

Here we have some highlights that would be useful for your preparation:

NEP Proposal

The NEP proposes huge changes in the current system. It includes setting up of Indian higher education to foreign universities like MIT, restructuring of the UGC and the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), introducing a customizable four-year undergraduate programme with multiple exit options, and abandoning the M Phil programme.

Concerning school-based education, the NEP focuses on completely renewing the curriculum and structure. It calls for graded and simplified Board examinations, a concise and effective syllabus. The focus is to make school education effective and based on experiential and practical learning that inculcates critical thinking in students.

The assessments at all levels shall be of a more formative style that encourages higher-order thinking skills, critical thinking and conceptual clarity.

With so much in line, the CGPSC selection procedure and that of other recruitment examinations may also be changed soon. The recruitment examination structure would also have to be modified accordingly. Nothing has been said in this context till now but we see it coming soon.

Policy Structure:

The current education policy introduced in 1986, gave for a 10+2 structure of school education. The new NEP  introduces a “5+3+3+4” structure for the age groups 3-8 years (foundational stage), 8-11 (preparatory), 11-14 (middle), and 14-18 (secondary) respectively. Thus, preschool education has also been formalised under the schooling system. One benefit of this is that the mid-day meal programme can now be extended to pre-school children, thus promoting education as a whole in the country, especially in the lower-income strata of society. 

There is an introduction to the 4-year graduation programme. Under this programme, students have the flexibility to exit after one year with a certificate, after two years with a diploma, and after three years with a bachelor’s degree.

Four-year bachelor’s programmes require a certain amount of research work or practical project-based work. The student gets a more comprehensive knowledge and experience in the subject that he/she is majoring in. Hence, this 4-year programme will empower a student to enter the research domain directly and earn research degrees easily. Undergraduate education will be more holistic and multidisciplinary with the kind of flexibility offered.

Medium of Instruction

The NEP suggests that students up to Class 5th  should be taught in their mother tongue or regional language. This will ensure that the basic level of education is effectively imparted to the students. As per the policy,  “Teachers will be encouraged to use a bilingual approach, including bilingual teaching-learning materials, with those students whose home language may be different from the medium of instruction.” There will be online courses designed in multiple regional languages as well. This will greatly benefit students with multilingual parents. Also, students whose parents have a transferable job shall be able to take advantage of these policies. 

Streams

The new NEP proposes phased elimination of institutions offering single streams and suggests that universities and colleges must aim to become multidisciplinary effectively by 2040. A credit-based system shall be implemented with no limitation on the choice of subjects, There shall be no hard line between streams like science,commerce or arts. A student can choose subjects from different streams and earn the required credits.

Foreign collaboration in higher education

The new NEP states universities from among the top 100 in the world will be able to set up campuses in India. Participation of foreign universities in India is currently limited to student and faculty exchange programmes. With more foreign collaboration, education will be globalised and a lot more cultural and academic dimensions would get added to it.

Hope you liked this insightful read!