How the New Education Policy Will Impact the Indian Education System
So far, three National Education Policies have been introduced in India to improve the education system. These three policies are National Policy on Education 1968, National Policy on Education 1986, and National Education Policy 2020.
NEP 2020 aims to increase the GER (Gross Enrolment Ratio) to 100% in preschool to secondary level by 2030, whereas GER in Higher Education, including vocational education, from 26.3% (2018) to 50% by 2035.
What is the New Education Policy 2020?
The National Education Policy 2020 was recently launched by the Ministry of Human Resource Development, Government of India. The revised policy replaces the 34-year-old National Education Policy 1986. Significant changes have been made to address shortcomings of the previous policy and meet the present and future needs of education, leading to massive reforms in both school and higher education.
In the new National Education Policy, no language will be forced on any students, and several national and international languages will be offered to students at the higher education level. In addition, the new policy has emphasised teaching regional, mother, and local languages till Class 5 and preferably till Class 8 and beyond.
What Are the Advantages of the New Education Policy?
The New Education Policy offers several advantages to public and private school students. The following are some of them:
- Nobody is forced to take any particular subject or language
- Develop a scientific mindset from a young age
- Enjoyable and inspirational curriculum for students
- Multidisciplinary education right from the beginning
What is the Formula of New Education Policy 2020?
The Union Cabinet of India has approved National Education Policy 2020, which replaces the old 10+2 education system with the new 5+3+3+4 system. Additionally, the new age group for the Right to Education is now 3 to 18. The policy also emphasises equity, access, universalisation, accountability, and quality of Early Childhood Care Education.
The revised policy will be followed in four primary stages: Foundational Stage (5 years), Preparatory Stage (3 years), Middle Stage (3 years), and Secondary Stage (4 years). Below is a detailed breakdown of each stage:
Foundation Stage (5 years – 3 to 8 years)
This stage is further divided into two different parts. In starting, kids will take daycare education in Anganwadi for three years. Then, after completing preschool education, kids will begin studying in classes 1 and 2.
Preparatory Stage (3 years – 8 to 11 years)
In this stage, kids from grades 3 to 5 will be taught. During this time, kids will study subjects like mathematics, art, science, etc., through experimentation.
NCERT, or the National Council of Educational Research and Training, will develop a National Curricular and Pedagogical Framework for Early Childhood Care and Education (NCPFECCE) for children up to the age of 8.
Middle School Stage (3 years – 11 to 14 years)
Kids from grades 6 to 8 will be taught in the middle stage. This stage will help students learn vocational courses starting from grade 6. In this phase, kids will learn various skills and also be taught coding. Besides this, project-based learning will also begin right from grade 6.
Secondary Stage (4 years – 14 to 18 years)
In this phase, students of grades 9 to 12 will learn in two-phase. In the first stage, classes of 9 and 10th class students will be there, and in the second stage, there will be kids in grades 11 and 12th.
Students can take any stream depending on their interests while studying the 11th and 12th classes. There will be some primary subjects for all the students, like English, and some are optional subjects, like Music, Art, etc., which students can take according to their interests.
In a nutshell, the shift from the 10+2 system to the 5+3+3+4 formula will offer lots of opportunities, not just for developing the student’s skills or knowledge but also highlighting the area schools must focus on to thrive.