Governance
New Initiatives for Education Sector
- 30 Jul 2021
- 5 min read
Why in News
Recently, the Prime Minister launched multiple initiatives in the education sector at a conference, to mark the completion of one year of reforms under the National Education Policy 2020 which aims at making India a global knowledge superpower.
- The Prime Minister also noted the role played by portals like Digital Infrastructure for Knowledge Sharing (DIKSHA) and Study Webs of Active Learning for Young Aspiring Minds (SWAYAM) in online education during the pandemic.
Key Points
- Academic Bank of Credit:
- It is envisaged as a digital bank that holds the credit earned by a student in any course. It is a major instrument for facilitating multidisciplinary and holistic education. It will provide multiple entry and exit options for students in Higher education.
- It will make the youth future-oriented and open the way for an Artificial Intelligence (AI) -driven economy.
- Engineering in Regional Languages:
- 14 engineering colleges in eight States are going to start engineering studies in five Indian languages: Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Marathi and Bangla.
- This emphasis on mother tongue as the medium of instruction will instil confidence in the students from poor, rural and tribal backgrounds.
- In a recent survey, the All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE) discovered that 42% of the students surveyed nationally, favoured pursuing Engineering in regional languages.
- The AICTE is creating a database of resources to allow colleges to offer more programmes in regional languages and developed a tool to translate engineering content into 11 languages.
- 14 engineering colleges in eight States are going to start engineering studies in five Indian languages: Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Marathi and Bangla.
- Vidya Pravesh & SAFAL:
- Vidya Pravesh, a three month play based school preparation module for Grade 1 students will be released along with SAFAL (Structured Assessment For Analyzing Learning Levels), a competency based assessment framework for Grades 3, 5 and 8 in CBSE schools.
- National Digital Education Architecture (NDEAR):
- It will help in building up a new education ecosystem that will create a digital foundation leading to self-governance of all parties involved, particularly states and the Centre.
- It lets educationists do evaluation based on talents and abilities, helping students understand their area of specialties that can be utilised in their future profession.
- National Education Technology Forum (NETF):
- It will provide independent evidence-based advice to central and state government agencies on technology-based interventions. A special focus will be on improving technology access at the grassroot education level.
- Schools will be required to have skilled professionals. In addition, schools will have to hire qualified candidates to teach emerging technological skills to students.
- Once the forum is set up, school-wise information will be sought on how technology is being used for imparting academic content and what steps are being taken to enhance research.
- It will be funded by the government but at a later stage, private funding and support from industry bodies would be invited.
- It will provide independent evidence-based advice to central and state government agencies on technology-based interventions. A special focus will be on improving technology access at the grassroot education level.
- NISHTHA 2.0:
- It will provide training to teachers as per their needs and they will be able to give their suggestions to the department. It will have 68 modules including 12 generic and 56 subject-specific modules and will cover around 10 lakh teachers.
- NISHTHA is the largest teachers’ training programme, first of its kind in the world to motivate and equip teachers to encourage and foster critical thinking in students.
- It will provide training to teachers as per their needs and they will be able to give their suggestions to the department. It will have 68 modules including 12 generic and 56 subject-specific modules and will cover around 10 lakh teachers.
- Sign Language as a Subject:
- Indian sign language, for the first time, has been accorded the status of language subject. Students will be able to study it as a language also.
- There are more than 3 lakh students who need sign language for their education. This will give a boost to Indian sign language and will help the divyang people.
Related Previous Initiatives
- National Programme on Technology Enhanced Learning.
- Rashtriya Ucchatar Shiksha Abhiyan (RUSA).
- Prime Minister's Research Fellowship (PMRF).
- Scheme for Promotion of Academic and Research Collaboration (SPARC).
- Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan.
- NEAT.
- PRAGYATA.
- Mid Day Meal Scheme.
- Right To Education (RTE) Act, 2009.
- Beti Bachao Beti Padhao.
