National Education Policy (NEP) 2020

Recently, the Union Government approved the New Education Policy of 2020. 

• It replaced a 34 years old National Policy on Education which was framed in 1986.
• The Cabinet has also approved the renaming of the Ministry of Human Resource Development to the Ministry of Education.

Aim of Policy:

• The aim of the policy is to create an education system that contributes directly to transforming the country, providing high-quality education to all, and making India a global knowledge superpower.
• It aims for an inclusive & equitable Education System by 2030 and to achieve 100 per cent youth and adult literacy in India.
• It aims to increase the public investment in the Education sector to reach 6% of GDP at the earliest.

Background:

•  A panel headed by former ISRO chief K. Kasturirangan submitted a draft in December 2018, which was made public and opened for feedback after the Lok Sabha election in May 2019.
• After thorough discussions and changes, the new policy was framed to revamp the education scenario in India. 

Key Highlights of new National Education Policy 2020:

School Education:

• Universal Access- The NEP 2020 has provisions to ensure universal access to school education at all levels- preschool to secondary.
• The Policy includes include infrastructure support, innovative education centres to bring back dropouts into the mainstream, tracking of students and their learning levels, facilitating multiple pathways to learning involving both formal and non-formal education modes and association of counsellors or well-trained social workers with schools.
• It provides for open learning for classes 3, 5 and 8 through NIOS and State Open Schools, secondary education programs equivalent to Grades 10 and 12, vocational courses, adult literacy and life-enrichment programs.
• Early Childhood Care & Education- The 10+2 structure of school curriculum is to be replaced by a 5+3+3+4 curricular structure corresponding to ages 3-8, 8-11, 11-14, and 14-18 years respectively. 
• This will bring the uncovered age group of 3-6 years under the school curriculum, which has been recognised globally.
• The new system will have 12 years of schooling with three years of Anganwadi/pre-schooling.
• Attaining Foundational Literacy and Numeracy- The policy laid emphasis on Foundational Literacy and Numeracy, no rigid separation between academic streams, extracurricular, vocational streams in schools. Vocational Education to start from Class 6 with Internships.
• A National Mission on Foundational Literacy and Numeracy will be set up by the MHRD. A National Book Promotion Policy will also be formulated.
• Reforms in School Curricula and Pedagogy- The school curricula and pedagogy will aim for the holistic development of learners by equipping them with the key 21st-century skills, reduction in curricular content to enhance essential learning and critical thinking and a greater focus on experiential learning.
• Students will have increased flexibility and choice of subjects. And, Vocational education will start in schools from the 6th grade and will include internships.
• A new and comprehensive National Curriculum Framework for Teacher Education (NCFTE) 2021, will be devised by the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) in consultation with National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT).
• Multilingualism and the Power of Language- The NEP 2020 advocates for mother-tongue/local language/regional language as the medium of instruction at least till Grade 5.
• Sanskrit to be offered at all levels of school and higher education as an option for students, including in the three-language formula.
• No language will be imposed on any student. Several foreign languages will also be offered at the secondary level.
• Assessment Reforms- All students will take school examinations in Grades 3, 5, and 8. Board exams for Grades 10 and 12 will be continued, but redesigned to avoid rote learning and focus on grades.
• A new National Assessment Centre, PARAKH (Performance Assessment, Review, and Analysis of Knowledge for Holistic Development), will be set up as a standard-setting body.
• Equitable and Inclusive Education- The Policy provides for setting up of Gender Inclusion Fund and also Special Education Zones for disadvantaged regions and groups.
• Children with disabilities will be enabled to fully participate in the regular schooling process from the foundational stage to higher education, with support of educators with cross-disability training, resource centres, accommodations, assistive devices, appropriate technology-based tools and other support mechanisms tailored to suit their needs.

Higher Education:

• Holistic Multidisciplinary Education- The policy at Higher education level introduces broad-based, multi-disciplinary, holistic undergraduate education with flexible curricula, creative combinations of subjects, integration of vocational education and multiple entries and exit points with appropriate certification.
• UG education can be of 3 or 4 years with multiple exit options and appropriate certification within this period. For example, certificate after 1 year, advanced diploma after 2 years, Bachelor’s degree after 3 years and Bachelor’s with research after 4 years.
• An Academic Bank of Credit is to be established for digitally storing academic credits earned from different institutes so that these can be transferred and counted towards final degree earned.
• Multidisciplinary Education and Research Universities (MERUs), at par with IITs, IIMs, to be set up as models of best multidisciplinary education of global standards in the country.
• The National Research Foundation will be created as an apex body for fostering a strong research culture and building research capacity across higher education.
• Increase GER to 50% by 2035- NEP 2020 aims to increase the Gross Enrolment Ratio in higher education including vocational education from 26.3 per cent (2018) to 50 per cent by 2035. At least 3.5 crore new seats will be added to higher education institutions.
• Regulation- Higher Education Commission of India (HECI) will be set up as a single overarching umbrella body for entire higher education, excluding medical and legal education.
• HECI will function through faceless intervention through technology and will have powers to penalise higher education institutions for not conforming to norms and standards.
• Rationalised Institutional Architecture- Affiliation of colleges is to be phased out in 15 years and a stage-wise mechanism is to be established for granting graded autonomy to colleges.
• Over a period of time, it is envisaged that every college would develop into either an autonomous degree-granting college or a constituent college of a university.
• Financial support for students-The National Scholarship Portal will be expanded to support, foster, and track the progress of students receiving scholarships.
• Private HEIs will be encouraged to offer larger numbers of free ships and scholarships to their students.
• Open and Distance Learning- Measures such as online courses and digital repositories, funding for research, improved student services, credit-based recognition of MOOCs, etc, will be taken to ensure it is at par with the highest quality in-class programmes.
• Online and Digital Education- A dedicated unit for the building of digital infrastructure, digital content and capacity building will be created in the MHRD to look after the e-education needs of both school and higher education.
• Promotion of Indian Languages-  NEP recommends setting an Indian Institute of Translation and Interpretation (IITI), National Institute (or Institutes) for Pali, Persian and Prakrit, strengthening of Sanskrit and all language departments in HEIs, and use mother tongue/local language as a medium of instruction in more HEI programmes.
• Professional Education- All professional education will be an integral part of the higher education system.
• Stand-alone technical universities, health science universities, legal and agricultural universities etc will aim to become multi-disciplinary institutions.

Evolution of Education Policy: 

• University Education Commission (1948-49)
• Secondary Education Commission (1952-53)
• Education Commission (1964-66) under Dr D. S. Kothari
• National Policy on Education, 1968
• 42nd Constitutional Amendment, 1976- Education in Concurrent List
• National Policy on Education (NPE), 1986

Constitutional Provisions:

• Article 45 and Article 39 (f) of Directive Principles of State Policy (DPSP), has a provision for state-funded as well as equitable and accessible education. Education is in the concurrent list. 
• The 86th Amendment in 2002 made education an enforceable right under Article 21-A.
• Right To Education (RTE) Act, 2009 aims to provide primary education to all children aged 6 to 14 years and enforces education as a Fundamental Right. It mandates 25% reservation for disadvantaged sections of the society where disadvantaged groups.