In the light of Coronavirus pandemic, MHRD Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal has released an alternative academic calendar for the upper primary students from classes 6 to 8. This academic calendar will help the teachers and parents to plan the education.
The minister took the social media and said which he has stated that the Alternative Academic Calendar consists of detailed guidelines to achieve the best possible learning outcome while the students are at home due to the lockdown.
The Upper Primary alternative calendar is available on the official website – ncert.nic.in.
Earlier the HRD Minister has released a 4-week calendar for the upper primary students while the alternative calendar for the Primary students was released by the minister on April 16, 2020.
In the official announcement, the HRD Minister stated that after the launch of the 4 week Academic Calendar for the upper primary students the calendar for the next 8 weeks.
The alternative academic calendar also aims to empower the students, teachers, school principals, and parents with positive ways to deal with the COVID-19 situation through the help of online teaching-learning resources and also achieve the best possible learning outcomes for the students.
To provide ‘education for all’ Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar announced the opening of 11 new colleges in the state. Khattar said the initial plan was to open 10 new colleges, but now eleven would be opened.
Stating that imparting education is a “great gift”, he said 97 new colleges have been opened in the last five years in the state “while in the last 48 years, only 75 colleges were opened”. He said the new National Education Policy aims for “universalisation of education from pre-school to secondary level with 100 per cent Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) in school education by 2030”.
It also aims at raising the GER in higher education to 50 per cent by 2025, he added. Khattar expressed confidence that through the collaborative efforts of the state government with non-government organizations and the people, Haryana will achieve this goal.
The minister said that the National Education Policy will be effective in achieving the Prime Minister’s vision of ‘Atma Nirbhar Bharat’. “This policy will bring about a drastic transformation in the field of education and will be job-oriented too,” he added.
New colleges will be opened at Morni Hills in Panchkula, Isharwal in Bhiwani, Goriwala in Sirsa, Firozpur Jhirka in Nuh, Chhatar in Jind, Ladna Chaku and Rajaund in Kaithal. New colleges will also be opened at Pratap Nagar in Yamunanagar, Agroha in Hisar and Bhainswal Kalan and Baroda in Sonipat district.
With the introduction of New Education Policy (NEP), the education system in the country will witness fine changes and development in the coming years. Industry experts and academicians have welcomed the ‘New Education Policy’ and have extended their support and views with the change in policies and addition of some new ones.
Starting from Vice-Chancellors of Universities to principals of various schools and other industry experts, each have shared their views and concerns over the New Education Policy. Here are some of them to check out:
Dr Abhay Kumar, Vice Chancellor, IEC University said It is indeed historic for the country to get a new education policy after 34 years. It says that no language will be imposed on any student and several foreign languages will also be offered at the secondary level. This policy is an extension of the right to education to cover all children between three and 18 years of age. Schooling system will provide students with increased flexibility and choice of subjects with vocational education and internships, to showcase their skills and talents. It is expected that this policy will bring two crore out-of-school children back into the mainstream. Higher education will be governed by a single regulator called the Higher Education Commission of India (HECI), which will focus on e-learning to make teachers and students “digital friendly”. Students will have multiple entry and exit options at the graduate level with many quality research and skill development opportunities.
Overall, it is a very progressive education policy and would definitely help in capitalising on the demographic dividend of our country.
M.R. Navkoti Ram, Chairman, Unclesam Learning Pvt Ltd said Without getting sucked into the political narrative that is accompanied with any policy or structural reform, the New Education Policy 2020 is a forward looking vision for new age India. An indicator to a more active role technology would play at the core of the new system.
With an aim to device school and higher education curriculum and pedagogy towards a competency-based individualised learning system, EdTech’s delivery models can help identify student skill sets, track their learning curves and support them through their learning trajectories.
If implemented at the ground level effectively, the exposure to contemporary issues such as machine learning, artificial intelligence and coding starting from an early age would help reduce the gap between the current state of learning outcomes to what is actually required in practice. With greater autonomy to institutions, emphasis on high quality cross-disciplinary teaching and support from technology, India can truly reach its goal of becoming a global human capital powerhouse.
Amit Singla, Founder & CEO, Next Generation Computers said New Education Policy is extremely promising. What excites me most is the skilling of each child during schooling. This will increase the stature of skill-based education and increase the employability of the youth. I welcome the New Education Policy reforms! This will provide the much needed fresh roadmap for education as per the requirements of New India.
Brijesh Karia, COO, Singhania Educational Services Ltd said A breath of fresh air for the Indian Education System. Finally, after 34 years we have a New Education Policy which is very progressive in nature.
Some great initiatives – Vocational courses, Coding, Choice of subjects between courses of Science and Arts – For e.g. One can be a Major in Science with a Minor in Music or Philosophy; all these initiatives are fantastic. With the reduction in exams to only 3 standards in schools, finally we are moving from Rote learning to Conceptual understanding.
However they say, the devil lies in the details. The interpretation and the implementation of the NEP is the real challenge as a lot of loopholes will come out as and when the policy is implemented.
Let’s hope it’s implemented in the right spirit and changes the way the future generations will learn.
Alka Kapur, Principal, Modern Public School, Shalimar Bagh, New Delhi said Prima facie, the new education policy seems progressive: the early childhood focus is a great step and there is a variety of subjects for a child to choose from. The new 5+3+3+4 pattern is quite nice as well and is in the interest of the students.
The policy also talks about mandatory 50 hours of training for the teachers, which, no doubt, is needed, but the financial burden of it would fall upon the schools. Same could be said about the vision to digitize education. Though we have been offering education digitally during the pandemic, creating an entire infrastructure solely for that would be a costly undertaking.
On making the regional language mandatory till class 5, I would say English is a universal language and in the guidelines, it is written that it can be used wherever possible, but it’s not specified whether ‘wherever possible’ points to subject or place. English language is a window to the world, and every parent wants their child to know the language. I think if it is taught at the foundation state, it would be very nice. Teaching regional language along with the English language would be a good idea too.
Lauding the New Education Policy (NEP) 2020, the Prime Minister Narendra Modi said among the most exciting things of the NEP 2020 is the emphasis on interdisciplinary study. He said that this concept has been gaining popularity.
PM Modi while addressing the students during the Smart India Hackathon said: “One size does not fit all. One subject does not define who you are. NEP reflects this spirit.” He said that the country is shifting from the burden of the school bag, which does not last beyond school.
Talking about the NEP, PM Modi said it will ensure the focus is on what the student wants to learn, rather than what the student is expected to do by society. He said, “Interdisciplinary studies gives you control. In the process, it also makes you flexible. National Education Policy is big on access to education.”
Talking about increasing enrolment in school and university level he said that starting from primary education to higher education, the aim is to increase Gross Enrolment Ratio to 50 per cent by 2035.
PM Narendra Modi said that this education policy emphasizes on creating job creators rather than job seekers. Modi said: “This policy has been formulated keeping in mind the thinking, needs, and hopes and aspirations of youth of the 21st century. Therefore, it is not just a policy document but also a reflection of the aspirations of more than 130 crore Indians.”
The University Grants Commission (UGC) has asked universities and colleges to create awareness about the new National Education Policy. Earlier, the Union Cabinet cleared the NEP last week. The policy is likely to be presented before the Parliament in its next session for its approval.
The UGC in its letter sent to universities and colleges has asked them to conduct webinars and other online activities to discuss various aspects of the NEP 2020 and its implications with various stakeholders.
“There is a need to create awareness about the NEP 2020 amongst teachers, students, officials, and other stakeholders in the higher education system. In this regard, you are kindly requested to conduct webinars and related online activities to discuss various policy highlights and implications of NEP 2020 with various stakeholders,” the UGC letter reads.
It has suggested the use of various social media platforms like Twitter, Whatsapp, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, youtube, in the dissemination of the NEP 2020 to reach out to all the stakeholders.
The NEP 2020 has suggested some key changes to reform the higher education sector with all institutions moving towards multidisciplinary education, the establishment of a National Research Foundation (NRF), and creation of a single regulator for all higher education institutions except for law and medicine, for ‘light but tight’ regulatory system. It also envisions increasing the gross enrolment ratio in higher education from the present 26.3% to 50% by 2035.
India needs a radical reform of its school education. Mainstreaming of vocational education and skill development within the school system is the way forward. A boy in a village who is not doing well in the standard curriculum should be able to graduate with dignity from his school with mathematics , language and basic computer skills for this digital age as compulsory subjects; and optional subjects such as horticulture, animal husbandry, plumbing, welding or nursing.
Moreover, in these subjects, the knowledge and skill levels should be globally competitive. Then young people at 18 would have skills which are in demand and would find it easier to get jobs. They would also have higher self-esteem and confidence, which are so essential for success. But this is not going to be easy.
The existing educational establishment does not have the capacity to drive this transition. It would also need massive public investment. A new set of vocational teachers for specific trades and skills would need to be trained and appointed. State-of-the-art facilities, including equipment, for such vocational education would need to be put in place.
Elets Technomedia and Telangana State Intermediate Education Department organized ‘Junior School Studies Conclave’ on Redefining the Intermediate Education through Innovations, Integrations of Technology and upskilling. The webinar was attended by some eminent speakers from the sector.
Syed Omer Jaleel, Secretary and Commissioner, Department of Intermediate Education, Government of Telangana said “We introduced a new agency to take care of the pre and post exam schedules. All the process was conducted online this year. We hired an IT team, which resolved our issues which conducted last year. With the new team we resolved our issues. We even introduced ICR to improve our checking standards.”
He also said “We identified one lecture from every college and provided them training. These lectures found students who had some issues and interacted with them to overcome their fear. We even identified physiologists and their number and names given in the newspapers so that they can be contacted by students.”
Over new programmes, he said “We are starting new programs for students’ trainings. We are focused on mental and well being of students. Vocational training for students started in 40 different sectors in 22 courses. We have industry partners and these students will be given one year apprenticeship. We even will add 10 new courses of vocational courses.”
He also said “the state govt has signed MoU with certain firms to revive vocational courses. The govt is trying to develop vocational labs and will be starting new centre of excellence in the state soon.”
Over COVID pandemic, he said “We had prepared our plan of action to deal COVID crisis. We have started the e-lectures and provided the syllabus online. We planned to telecast all the subjects through TSAT. A part of syllabus will be done through online and to cover time we will run classes in shifts.”
Over re-opening of colleges, he said we have suggested to start the colleges after August 15, 2020. We have joined hands with Skill ministry to provide training and placements to our students.
He also said “We suggested the first year classes can be taken in the afternoon shifts and second year in morning shifts. We have said to combine some classes for first and second year students. We have also asked the govt to reduce some holidays to cover up the academic time we lost. We have also submitted that some part of the syllabus must be covered as online assignment to students. Children can assess those materials through any online mode. We are hoping to cover the entire syllabus before end of March 2021.”
Over well being of students, he said “Special focus was given on social and mental well-being of students. We identified student counselors. We provide them two-day training on how to deal with students. It was a successful programme. Just before the exams, we identified clinical psychologists and notified their names and contact details in newspapers. They received over 5000 calls after the exams. The psychologists discussed their issues and tried to calm them. We are even developing a programme for counselors. “
Shrikant Sinha, Chief Executive Officer at Telangana Academy for Skill and Knowledge, Govt of Telangana said “The education will change a lot due to the pandemic. We are exploring new options for education. We must focus on job creators. We need to provide training students to become an entrepreneur. We must re-think to change the way of education in the country. We need to have value based education.”
“People, Planet and Profit are the new things in education. We need to provide digital training to our children. The industry is changing a lot and we must prepare our students for it, especially in tier II and III cities” he added.
Over the pandemic, he said “Before the COVID things were different. We need to work with organizations to create new programmes. We started ‘Root to wings’ with polytechnics with mechanical students. Last year, we launched Vaccine development programme. We are all heading towards a contactless and digital society. The new normal will be automation.”
He also said “We need to look where there are jobs and concentrate on job creation trainings. We need to work on the communication of students.”
Most of the industry is impacted and it’s for a small period. The pandemic has created acceleration of technology and automation. We need to reskill, upskill in coming days, he added.
Lastly, he added “we need to provide communication skills to students. Content is the king. Students must not give up and must prepare for success. Preparing is the key.”
Parmod Kumar, State Education Officer, Govt of Haryana said “We started the e-learning from April 15. We are providing content through TSAT also. We are reaching our students in every part of the state. We provided quality content for students. The e-learning is a one-way platform. We are hoping to start our schools soon.”
For upgrading students, he said “We need to identify 21st century skills and teach our students. We have introduced some new courses with the help of MSMEs. We are running 23 vocational courses for our intermediate students. From automobile to medical to agriculture, we are providing many new courses.”
He also said “The govt is starting new food and fruit parks in the state. We are equipping our students so that if they want to start their business they can start. Many more industries are coming up in the state. Agriculture is not the only option for students. “
Over new courses, We have four vocational universities. These universities are offering us teacher training programmes and a new syllabus and their needs. The connection between schools and industry is must, he said.
“We need to find courses which can provide jobs to students. We need to explore new ways to provide jobs to students”, he added.
“We have started communication courses for students. We need to turn the crisis to opportunity. We are using technology to teach communication to students. We need to prepare our students for interviews also. In the coming three years 80 pc of professions will be vanished,” he said.
The COVID-19 has impacted the education of students across the world. The COVID-19 crisis has appears to have been a boon for a 51-year-old Hyderabad man who failed in his class 10 examinations for the past 33 years but passed this year.
Mohammad Nooruddin had been trying to clear his Class 10th examinations for the past 33 years. But he failed to pass the SSC examination as he was weak in English.
However, this year he managed to pass the Class 10 board examinations as the Telangana government in wake of COVID-19 declared to promote all students of class 10 to the next class without conducting any examinations.
“I was weak in English as there was no one to help me or give tuitions to me. But I studied with the support of my brother and sister. I consistently failed in exams for 33 years, but I applied for exams every year as for a job of a security guard, I was asked to give class 10 results,” he said.
“Luckily, I got a job of security guard without showing class 10 results. I continued my job as a security guard from 1989 and now I get a salary of Rs 7,000. I have four children. I passed this year as the government has given exemption due to COVID-19,” he added.
Mohammad Nooruddin said that he will continue his further studies.
Although the policy runs into nearly 400 plus pages but noteworthy and salient features are already being updated and discussed in all Educational Groups and various media channels. In my opinion, it is a very forward-thinking document, keeping in mind the need of imbibing new skills that the student will require in the future. What is important is the acceptance of the changes and implement in it’s true sense.
A great initiative to bring Pre Schools under its fold, with NCERT creating a complete structured programme for Pre School teaching and learning, this hopefully will give uniformity to the Pre-primary curriculum. Secondly, the big divide between the Science and Art stream is going to be nullified, this will give students a chance to explore options and change their subject combination based on their choice. Providing 10 days of Internship/Vocational training from Grade VI onwards will help the students and make it easier for them to identify their leaning towards their future profession. Another plus factor that I see is Board Exams will have a low stake, while various assessment modules will be implemented which will give a complete picture of the child’s overall development not only in academics but also in values, attributes, attitudes, skills and physical. This way we will be burying thankfully, the Rote Learning Syndrome. With Inclusive Education given a chapter mention hopefully schools would start taking this seriously. Teachers’ professional development has also been given paramount importance.
Also, a notable fact is that there will be a National Regulatory Body that will be controlling the Public and Private Schools. Accreditation of schools will be important which is really good because established schools need to relook into their policies and for new schools, it will be a great guideline to establish themselves. Colleges will become autonomous bodies and can come up with their own curriculum, learning and teaching pedagogies. Entry and Exit points for the four years undergraduate programme will again give scope and freedom for students to move out and in based on wider options of subjects to be covered. The common entrance competitive examination will ensure that students are not hard-pressed to submit various entrances forms and generally go through anxiety pangs giving numerous entrance examinations.
I am only a little skeptical about the conduction of examination at the 3 rd, 5th and 8th level through Parakh The National Assessment Center. Would also like to point out that nowhere there is a mention of easy flow of admission in undergraduate and postgraduate levels from one State to another and from one University to another.
A better understanding of the detailed Policy will seep into us slowly as we keep revisiting it. Hopefully, it will be activated and showcase changes in the present Indian Education System.
First and foremost, I applaud the release of the National Education Policy – 34 years but alas we have a progressive road map and now the onus of implementation falls on all stakeholders including us educators to “walk the talk”!
Without getting into a comprehensive dissection of the policies, I would highlight certain key takeaways that clearly pave the way for a better tomorrow.
There has been a lot of chatter on Early Learning for some time now, and it is indeed pleasing to see this figure into the NEP 2020 guidelines. It is crucial that the foundation years of a student are well tapped into a truly holistic manner. India is sitting on limitless potential and this move will certainly accelerate the realisation of the same in the long run.
Introduction of a portfolio based assessment with a 360-degree approach is a major takeaway, not only because this involves teachers and students but the parents as well. The latter have often been sidelined and with this; the true support system of the children finally comes into play.
We often hear the terms holistic and progressive education, however, these require flexibility and willingness to experiment. This can now be done under the policy with respect to assessments, pedagogy, courses etc.
We have all seen students getting “put in a category” for their selection of subjects in schools which leads to a “blinder” approach to avenues in the real world. This stigma needed to be addressed and am confident with the pathways now available for students, we will finally leave this the archaic mindset in the past.
Any policy or idea is only as good as its implementation and only time will tell how well all the stakeholders address these aspects of implementation, however, all-around this is a major step in the right direction and will certainly elevate the country’s talent further on to the world stage!
Providing relief to lakhs of students in the Corona pandemic, Minister of Human Resource Development, DR Ramesh Pokhariyal Nishank took to his twitter handle to inform that the students who were eligible under the Mid Day Meal scheme would now be getting Food Security Allowance. The FSA in place of coked food till their schools re-open.
As per the minister, the regular meals would be offered once the schools re-open. He informed that the concerned authorities would continue with the FSA which would comprise of food grain, pulses and oil that would be equivalent to the cost of cooking a meal for them till the schools are set to reopen. The step would ensure better health and nutrition among school-going children.
The schools in the country have been non-opeartive physically since March 24, 2020, after the national lockdown was announced. Since then the students who were enrolled for the scheme were not able to get the complete benefit due to social distancing norms that needed to be followed.
The first Mid Day Meal Programme was introduced for economically weak children in Madras Municipal Corporation in 1925. In the 1980s three states, Gujarat, Kerala and Tamil Nadu and the UT of Pondicherry had introduced the scheme of a cooked Mid Day Meal using their own resources for primary students.
To ensure nutrition and health among school-going children even when schools are closed, I have advised the concerned authorities to continue with the Food Security Allowance comprising of food grains & pulses, oil, etc. (equivalent to cooking cost)
— Dr. Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank (@DrRPNishank) August 1, 2020
