Education provides an opportunity to reflect upon the social, economic, cultural, and moral issues in the society. It is one of the prominent sector that needs enhancement and enrichment. Today, Indian education space is flooded with sundry opportunties after revamp of National Educational Policy. Ministry of Education is also on a spree to develop mega education ecosystem for the betterment of lives. The landscape is evolving and so are the challenges and opportunities. To delve deeper into the current scenario of higher education, Sheeba Chauhan of Elets News Network interacted with Dr. K Karunakaran, CEO, Hindusthan Educational Institutions, Coimbatore. Edited excerpts:
UGC plans to merge university entrance exams into one single exam i.e CUET. What is your take on the “one nation, one entrance exam” criteria?
The move toward ‘one nation, one entrance exam’ was in line with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. The Common University Entrance Test (CUET) is being introduced by the Ministry of Education (MoE) for admission into all UG Programmes in all Central Universities and in the future for all the other Universities. As per MoE, the Common University Entrance Test (CUET) is an effort to bring all entrance exams under a single umbrella and equal opportunities to candidates across the country, exclusively for rural and other remote areas to corroborate better connections with the Universities.
A single examination will enable the candidates to cover a wide outreach and be part of the admissions process to various Universities. On one hand, it’s a move to eliminate the need to appear in multiple entrance exams, which reduces the burden on students to a great extent. Furthermore, the opportunity to obtain coaching for the entrance tests and the board in which the students complete their school education is constantly varying.
In the current scenario, for courses other than professional courses, there is no entrance test in many states and private universities. It’s a burden for XII students who are urged to appear in both board exams and entrance exams.
Recently, IITs announced to introduce medical courses. Can multi directional courses degrade the education standards of such premium institutes?
During the last few years, several IITs have started research centres and separate schools that merge medical science with technology. This aims to build an “interdisciplinary ecosystem” of research in medical technology (MedTech) and innovation.
The students will be exposed to real-world problems in the healthcare sector and will have immersive learning to identify problems to address. Medical students will have the opportunity to earn minors in science and engineering disciplines, which will effectively mitigate the gap between both disciplines. This will enable a multi-disciplinary approach to learning and in executing that learning to seek research-oriented solutions to healthcare needs.
In my opinion, academic standards will not degrade. Instead, there will be much hope for multi-disciplinary research and innovation.
It is witnessed that there is a huge gap in learning practices for fresh graduates to perform well in the industry. How could we bridge the gap between colleges and cubicles?
Yes, there is a gap in the skillset required from fresh graduates as per the industry expectations. With workplaces and jobs transforming rapidly, skillsets need to be ramped up quickly to meet demand. To solve this gap, its mandate to maintain effective collaboration between the industry and the colleges so that the students can be employable, and the industry also benefits.
Academic institutions and industries must coordinate in order to design their curriculum with inputs from the industry, which enables students to be exposed to the industry during their studies in the form of a compulsory internship or industrial training.
India is getting applause for its New Education Policy globally. Please elaborate on the Pros and cons of NEP 2020.
Pros: Liberal, Progressive, and Outward-looking
The NEP empowers students with the freedom to select how they want to proceed academically. With an emphasis on digital and research-based learning, it also pushes toward global norms. There are numerous modifications I could discuss, but I’ll limit myself to the ones that really strike out to me.
1. Academic Credits Systems: This is an excellent initiative that will allow students to learn at their own pace. They are not required to finish the entire course. They can take the minimum number of credits necessary to pass the course, earn credits, abandon the course, and then resume it whenever they want (within reason). They can also transfer their credits between universities.
2. Multi-disciplinary: The great change in the new policy is that you can mix and match subjects in higher education. The students will have the freedom to choose the subjects they wish, rather than selecting predetermined groupings. It is comparable to creating their own degree.
3. Globalisation of Education: Now, the top-rated foreign education institutes can open their colleges in India, while top-rated Indian Educational Institutes can go global. Of course, this will come at a price but it will also (hopefully) push Indian universities to compete with the best in the world. This will promote curriculum globalisation by exposing gifted Indian students to a variety of disciplines and courses.
4. 6% of GDP on education: I Hope this actually happens. The words have been spoken. Let’s see how and where the money is deployed. But surely it is a welcome sign. Education is the most valuable asset that a country can develop.
Having said that we need to see if the government implements the policy effectively. It is a bold and challenging policy and it needs competent people to execute it efficiently. I hope the government executes this and handles this with the same zeal as it handles elections.
Cons: need for dynamic system
In a constantly changing world, the institutions along with curriculum and the teaching process have to become dynamic in order to keep up with developments. This is not at all easy to manage as some of the changes may not be known in advance. The use of technology and AI and machine learning tools can potentially be used to make predictions about what to expect in the future. While the NEP mentions the need to be ready for change, not enough emphasis has been placed on how this will happen.
Matching job opportunities
While educators would like students to learn for the pure pleasure of learning, the reality is that a large number of students prioritise education with the goal of obtaining a well-paying profession. Job opportunities at each of the exit points must be arranged in advance to ensure that everything goes smoothly and that students can make informed decisions about when to leave the college system.
Tailored to individual needs
These days with individualised medicines based on genetics being the rage of the town, can we also consider allowing individualised learning opportunities? Although the NEP does provide some individualisation, much more must be done to ensure that this is the case for students. In order for students to learn at their own pace rather than having to keep up with the rest of the class, the courses must also be customisable. Despite the difficulty of the situation, it is crucial that we remain focused on and make progress toward our goal.
So, how should youngsters plan their future? The future is promising, notwithstanding some unanswered questions. Before entering college, students will be better prepared, have the chance to explore their hobbies and interests, and develop better study habits. They must also keep an eye out for new job chances that may arise as the environment changes and exercise caution around any changes. The NEP appears to be a terrific deal all around.
