New Education policy 2020- Features, strengths and weaknesses The New Education Policy 2020 is aimed at transforming the Indian education system to meet the needs of the 21st century. It is a vision statement, which is going to guide the creation of future laws, rules and regulations in education sector of India and convert India into a global knowledge superpower. The purpose of NEP 2020 is twofold firstly, it will help the government in creating futuristic and modern laws on how to educate Indian youth. Secondly, it will help the people in understanding the direction in which education is going to move in the future. The NEP has envisioned many good steps but has also left some lacunas in its approach towards holistic education.
Under NEP 2020, the highly competitive and rote-learning led 10+2 system of school education in India is to be replaced with 5+3+3+4 system so that importance of Board examinations and segmentation of students into commerce, humanities and science students can be eliminated.
Early education plays an important role in healthy intellectual development of a child. This fact was ignored in Indian education system, till now. The NEP 2020 reignites the importance of early childhood education by creating a childhood curriculum and pedagogical structure.
Language opens the doors to a culture’s entire evolution in knowledge. The NEP 2020 underlines the importance of language in holistic education. It talks about educating children in local language, along with learning of foreign languages from elementary level itself.
The NEP 2020 underlines the faulty method of assessment in Indian education system. It aims at holistic development of students through regular and formative assessment.
Education is incomplete without creating an army of committed, qualified and passionate teachers. NEP aims at creating National professional standard for teachers so that teaching as a profession can be promoted further.
NEP aims at increasing Gross Enrolment Ratio in Higher education from 26% to 50% by 2035. NEP aims at making the under graduate education system credit based so that students can opt for multidisciplinary studies, they are provided with multiple points of exit and they can convert a degree into diploma or certificate with ease.
The NEP aims at creating a new regulatory body for entire higher education system in India (excluding medical and legal education). This will ensure consistency in laws, coordination among different disciplines and ease for the student in understanding the convoluted system of education in India.
The NEP recognises importance of technology in education. Keeping this in mind, it has decided to setup a National Educational Technology Forum (NETF) to encourage use of technology in education so that students of rural areas can also take advantage of high quality education, which is often unavailable in rural areas.
Finally, NEP understands the importance of increasing expenditure on education as a percentage of GDP. It aims to increase public investment in Education sector to reach 6% of GDP.
Although National Education Policy is forward looking and ambitious in nature, it is not devoid of weaknesses of its own. Some major weaknesses in the policy are- The policy fails to talk about importance of sports in education. With increasing competition and pressure of studies on students, it’s important that relevance of sports as a lifestyle and a profession is communicated to students. A child who is unable to inculcate the habit of sports due to societal, peer and parental pressure to excel in studies is deprived of a very important experience in life. The policy talks about creating major reforms and transformations in the education system of India but fails to provide any roadmap on how to implement them. Indian laws and policies are famous for being comprehensive on paper but shallow on ground.
Despite the weaknesses, NEP 2020 is a major forward step in the way education is imparted in India. If the Government can justify the ambition of NEP by implementing it in letter and spirit, India will embark on a new journey similar to the reforms China introduced in 1978 in its education system.
Destiny of a nation is shaped in its classrooms
On the eve of Independence, more than 70 percent of Indians were illiterate. Fast forward to 2019, more than 77 percent of Indians are now literate. Achieving this feat in 70 years is not a small task for a populous, diverse and large country like India. The achievements and failures in Indian education have framed the development story of India.
Efficiency of Labour- Education provides a foundation for development, the groundwork on which much of our economic and social well being is built. It is the key to increasing economic efficiency and social consistency. By increasing the value and efficiency of their labor, it helps to raise the poor from poverty.
Per capita Income- Unequal education tends to have a negative impact on per capita income in most countries. Education may affect per capita income growth via its impact on the denominator, i.e. population growth. For example, a study of fourteen African countries for the mid-eighties showed a negative correlation between female schooling and fertility in almost all countries, with primary education having a negative impact in about half the countries and no significant effects in the other half, while secondary education invariably reduced fertility
Income Equality- There is also a positive feedback from improved education to greater income equality, which, in turn, is likely to favor higher rates of growth. As education becomes more broadly based, low-income people are better able to seek out economic opportunities.
Technological Advancement- Education is also an important contributor to technological capability and technical change in industry. Statistical analysis of the clothing and engineering industries in Sri Lanka, to cite just one example, showed that the skill and education levels of workers and entrepreneurs were positively related to the rate of technical change of the firm.
Health and Productivity- More educated men and women tend to invest more in their own health and the health of their children. Indeed, education may be the single most important personal determinant of a person’s health and life expectancy.
The World Economic Forum 2016 suggested three channels through which education affects a country’s productivity. First, it increases the collective ability of the workforce to carry out existing tasks more quickly. Second, secondary and tertiary education especially facilitate the transfer of knowledge about new information, products, and technologies created by others. Finally, by increasing creativity it boosts a country’s own capacity to create new knowledge, products, and technologies.