Stricter NEP norms for opening new colleges in Odisha
The department in a letter to all vice-chancellors of public universities, has asked them to verify availability and adequacy of facilities for both core and non-core subjects in colleges affiliated to them before recommending the grant of permission. Besides, from now on any proposal for changing the name of an institution, its location, ownership, trust or its closure will be decided based on public opinion.
Officials said on receipt of such applications, public objections will be called for at the institution's expense for a period of one month. Any objection received will be duly considered by the authorities concerned before taking any decision on the proposals.
These steps are aimed at maintaining quality in higher education and prevent mushrooming of substandard institutions. At the meeting, proposals of at least 22 private degree colleges to open new PG courses on their campuses were rejected due to lack of infrastructure and faculty members.
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Mint
2 hours ago
- Mint
India's National Education Policy has been a victim of ignorance
Gift this article We are at the fifth anniversary of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. Having been a member of the NEP drafting committee, I am frequently asked, 'You invested so much time on this, what do you think has actually happened on the ground?" The tone ranges from accusatory to genuinely curious. My response: 'It's too early to tell." We are at the fifth anniversary of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. Having been a member of the NEP drafting committee, I am frequently asked, 'You invested so much time on this, what do you think has actually happened on the ground?" The tone ranges from accusatory to genuinely curious. My response: 'It's too early to tell." This is partly because two of these five years were roiled by the pandemic, forcing schools to shut down and governments to scramble. And then at least one year after that was spent on recovering lost learning. Combine that with the 20-year time horizon of the NEP and it does seem too early to say anything on how successful the policy has been. But that would be a cop-out, because the NEP did set out milestones along this 20-year horizon. The clearer and more definitive ones were written down. So, while it is too early to tell its effect on Indian education, it's not so when it comes to assessing the efforts to bring it to life on the ground. While the NEP is more transformative for higher education than school education, I will limit my assessment to school education, which I observe closely. An equally large number are attacking it for things that are not even implicitly there. The most amusing offenders are states on both ends of the spectrum—a few that have boldly declared that they have implemented the NEP fully while having done precious little, and then those that rail against the NEP while implementing many of its recommendations. Some of this stems from a misreading or deliberate distortion of the policy, but some of it might be because people just don't read, astonishing as this may be. Some of them insist that they are implementing the NEP, even as they do things that are often antithetical to the letter and spirit of the policy. Others smugly contend that they have courageously attacked the evil that is the NEP. Let us take two examples. The three-language formula has been a feature of Indian education since 1968. If anything, NEP 2020 made it more flexible and responsive to local and regional preferences. Yet, it became a political flashpoint, with critics either unaware of the policy's actual provisions or projecting their own anxieties onto it. Similarly, claims that the policy promotes privatization are baffling to anyone who has actually read the document, which emphasizes strengthening public education. To return to my very brief assessment of the milestones approached, I will describe three under-recognized shifts that are unfolding driven by the NEP—changes that will over time redefine Indian school education. The first is a system-wide focus on early childhood education (ECE). Research has long shown that ages 3 to 8 are critical for every dimension of development of the child—physical, cognitive, social, ethical and emotional. Yet, India's education system has historically neglected this phase. Spurred by the NEP, there is widespread work on curricular transformation, infrastructure upgrades and teacher development for ECE. Everywhere in the country, you can hear the buzz of early childhood education, including in the vast public anganwadi system. We are in the early stages, but this is laying the foundation for a truly equitable and effective system. Children from vulnerable and disadvantaged communities and homes will benefit the most—if we don't let the momentum slip. Also read: India's consensus on school education makes space for optimism The second change is the policy push for mother tongue-based education in gaining early literacy. Evidence is clear that children learn best in a familiar language. Yet, India has not implemented this approach adequately, exacerbating the crisis we have in basic education. The NEP's approach effectively tackles the multilingual reality of our classrooms as well as aspirations for learning English. As states are beginning to adopt this approach, alongside implementing other key policy measures in foundational literacy as well as numeracy and teacher support, we are likely to see an improvement in basic educational outcomes. The third and potentially even more far-reaching set of changes are in teacher education. For decades, the system for it has been marred by poor quality and corruption. In a very real sense, this state of teacher education has been at the heart of our troubles in school education. The NEP has confronted all the issues in teacher education head-on. By introducing four-year integrated programmes in top universities—making them the benchmark qualification and moving the entire teacher education system to that approach—to complement decisive regulatory reforms, we have reached the cusp of a new era. Also read: Invest heavily in education: It's the cornerstone of a Viksit Bharat We often blame India's Constitution for our own failings or use it to legitimize our whims. The NEP has also been treated a bit like that. But much like the Constitution, the National Education Policy has transformative potential. It is up to us to make what we will of it. For a start, we should at least read it. Topics You May Be Interested In
New Indian Express
4 hours ago
- New Indian Express
Delhi Cabinet approves free laptop scheme for meritorious students; hikes cash awards for Olympic winners
NEW DELHI: The Delhi Cabinet on Tuesday decided to provide free i7 laptops to 1,200 meritorious Class 10 students under the Mukhya Mantri Digital Education Scheme. Education Minister Ashish Sood announced the establishment of ICT labs in 175 schools, each equipped with 40 computers, criticizing the previous AAP government for the lack of functional computer labs in schools. The Cabinet has also hiked the cash awards for Olympic and Paralympic medallists from the national capital. To encourage the sports ecosystem, Olympic gold medallists will now be given Rs 7 crore, silver medallists Rs 5 crore, and bronze medallists Rs 3 crore. Olympic and Paralympic medal winners were earlier awarded Rs 3 crore, Rs 2 crore, and Rs 1 crore respectively. "As many as 1,200 meritorious students who have passed Class 10 with good marks will be given i7 laptops. This will benefit students from underprivileged backgrounds. This will be in line with the National Education Policy, and children from underprivileged backgrounds will benefit from this,' he said. He also hit out at the AAP dispensation over "non-functional" computer labs in government schools and announced that ICT labs will be established in all state-run schools. "There were some people who called themselves the fathers of the education revolution. There are 1,074 government schools. I invite you to witness the education revolution there... None of them has a functional computer lab," Sood alleged. "At a time when we are talking about experiential learning, AI, and data science, our government school students don't have functional computer labs or ICT labs," he added. Sood said the Delhi government will set up 100 Information and Communication Technology (ICT) labs in Delhi schools.
Time of India
4 hours ago
- Time of India
NEP 2020 to be adopted across Goa schools by 2028, Chief Minister confirms
PANAJI: Goa Chief Minister on Tuesday said the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 will be implemented in all schools in the state by 2028. In a written reply tabled in the state assembly, Sawant, who also holds the education portfolio, said that the policy has already been implemented at the undergraduate level at all non-technical colleges in Goa. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now The chief minister was responding to a question by BJP MLA Nilesh Cabral. He said that the implementation of NEP is underway in a phased manner in schools and will be completed by 2028. Sawant said that for higher education, the NEP 2020 is being implemented as per the directives of the Ministry of Education, UGC, NITI Aayog and recommendations of the Chief Secretaries' Conference held at Dharamshala. He said block-level training programmes were organised for teachers, focusing on key areas that are in line with the NEP.
