New Delhi: In a major development, the Narendra Modi Government on Wednesday approved the New National Education Policy 2020, allowing foreign universities to set up their campuses in India.
Further, the Ministry of Human Resource and Development (MHRD) has also been rechristened as the Ministry of Education. “The Cabinet under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has given approval to a new education policy for the 21st century. It is important as for 34 years there were no changes in the education policy,” HRD and Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar said.
The new education policy, which is only the third in the country’s history after 1968 and 1986, advocates an increase in the number of off-shore campuses of Indian institutions. It also states the world’s top 100 foreign universities will be “facilitated” to operate in India through a new law.
An HRD Ministry document, listing salient features of the policy, said, “such (foreign) universities will be given special dispensation regarding regulatory, governance, and content norms on par with other autonomous institutions of India.”
Apart from opening up the Indian higher education to foreign players, the new policy marks a significant shift in the format of undergraduate education with the reintroduction of the four-year multidisciplinary bachelor’s programme with exit options.
While the three-year traditional BA, BSc, as well as BVoc degrees will continue, under the four-year programme students can exit after one year with a certificate, after two years with a diploma, and a Bachelor’s degree after three years.
“The four-year programme may also lead to a degree ‘with Research’ if the student completes a rigorous research project in their major area(s) of study…” the ministry said.
The new policy has also paved the way for a single overarching regulator for the (UGC) and the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE). The single regulator called the Higher Education Commission of India (HECI) will have four “independent verticals” to carry out the functions of regulation, funding, accreditation and setting standards for learning outcomes.
“The professional councils, such as the Indian Council for Agricultural Research (ICAR), Veterinary Council of India (VCI), National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE), Council of Architecture (CoA), National Council for Vocational Education and Training (NCVET) etc., will act as Professional Standard Setting Bodies (PSSBs),” the ministry pointed out.
The policy proposes phasing out of all institutions offering single streams (such as technical education) over time and the system of affiliating colleges over 15 years.
All universities and colleges must aim to become multidisciplinary in future. “Even engineering institutions, such as IITs, will move towards more holistic and multidisciplinary education with more arts and humanities. Students of arts and humanities will aim to learn more science and all will make an effort to incorporate more vocational subjects and soft skills,” it states.
Interestingly, the new education policy talks about moving away “from high-stakes examinations towards more continuous and comprehensive evaluation”, even as controversy rages over the Union Government directing all higher education institutions to hold exams for final year students compulsorily amidst the pandemic.
That apart, a National Research Foundation (NRF), tasked with creating a conducive ecosystem for research through funding and mentoring will be set up.
Major reforms in the National Education Policy 2020:
1) Board exams will be low-stakes and test actual-knowledge instead of rote learning; Mother tongue to be a medium of instruction till 5th grade; report cards will be a comprehensive report on skills and capabilities instead of just marks and statements.
2) National mission to focus on basic literacy and basic numeracy; major changes in the pedagogical structure of curriculum with no rigid separation between streams; all separations between vocational and academic and curricular and extra-curricular will also be removed.
3) Major reforms in higher education include a target of 50 per cent gross enrolment ratio by 2035 and provision for multiple entry/exits.
4) As on date, we have different norms for deemed universities, central universities, for different individual standalone institutions. New Education Policy says that for reasons of quality, norms will be the same for all and not as per ownership.
5) There are over 45,000 affiliated colleges in our country. Under graded autonomy, academic, administrative and financial autonomy will be given to colleges, on the basis of the status of their accreditation.
6) Other features include a single regulator for all higher education, working under a self-disclosure based transparent system for approvals in place of numerous ‘inspections’.
7) E-courses will be developed in regional languages; virtual laboratories will be developed and a National Educational Technology Forum (NETF) is being created.
8) Academic sessions, from now on, will begin from September- October, a change that has to be done because of the ongoing lockdown.
9) More use of technology at both school and higher secondary level.
10) Pre-primary education for all by 2025.
11) From pre-primary to class 12, the entire school education has been divided into 5+3+3+4 design. The first five years are from pre-primary to class 2. The next three years are from class 3 to 5. Next three years are from class 6 to 8. The last four years are from class 9 to 12.
13) Three language formula will be continued. No Hindi imposition.
14) New multidisciplinary subjects will come, blurring the difference between science and arts streams.
15) Emphasis on the learning of the classical languages of India between class 6 and 8.
16) Making physical education more important in the curriculum
17) Each state will have a state school regulatory authority.
(Aditya)