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Tag: Education Policy

  • Draft Higher Education Policy in Final Stage of Review

    Draft Higher Education Policy in Final Stage of Review

    The draft Higher Education Policy is in the final stage of review, ahead of being submitted to Cabinet for approval.

    This was disclosed by the Minister of Education and Youth, Hon. Fayval Williams said the timeline for approval is subject to Cabinet’s agenda.

    “But I would expect that before the end of this fiscal year, which ends March 31, it should be a public document, open for scrutiny,” the Minister added.

    She was speaking during the Jamaica Union of Tertiary Students (JUTS) Capacity Building Workshop, at the University of the Commonwealth Caribbean in Kingston, on Friday (February 17).

    The Policy is intended to streamline Jamaica’s tertiary sector cohesively and efficiently, to drive better outcomes for students and the economy at large.

    Minister Williams said the document was drafted in consultation with several stakeholders, including members of JUTS.

    While noting that Jamaica’s tertiary enrolment levels need to be improved to better facilitate a significant percentage of the population being certified, she said the Ministry is aware of the financial constraints impacting some persons desirous of accessing higher education.

    “I know it is not easy financially. In fact, in the Policy, when it came to me initially, that [aspect] was… missing. I charged all those who were putting together the Policy to come back with substantive portions of it dealing with the financing of tertiary education,” Mrs. Williams stated.

    Meanwhile, the President of JUTS, Christina Williams, who sits on the Policy Committee, told JIS NEWS that student leaders from various tertiary institutions were part of the consultations.

    “They (presidents) have been able to [articulate] the different interests and the desires of the students they represent. It [will] be great to announce to the world that Jamaica has its first Higher Education Policy, and we look forward to a strong implementation process,” she said.

    The workshop was aimed at supporting student leaders to effectively execute their roles at the tertiary institutions they attend.

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  • Education Minister Will Address Students’ Queries Regarding NEP 2020

    Education Minister Will Address Students’ Queries Regarding NEP 2020

    On 1st October, Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank will be addressing students’ queries regarding NEP 2020 through a live session on social media handle- Twitter and Facebook.

    On 1st October, Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank will be addressing students’ queries regarding National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. A live session will be held on the Education minister’s official social media handles. The students can ask questions regarding NEP 2020 with #NEPTransformingIndia.

    Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank shared this information through his official twitter handle. He wrote on twitter “Dear students, on 1st October I will be answering all your queries related to #NEP2020 that you shared earlier with me on my Twitter page. Save the Date and feel free to spread the word.”

    The National Education Policy (NEP 2020) is the first education Policy of the 21st Century. The policy was being released on 29th July 2020. The new education policy came after 34 years of the previous education policy in 1986. The New Education Policy 2020 is aimed at bringing major reforms in school education as well as higher education.

    PM Narendra Modi: By 2022 Every Student will be Evolved into Students’ Queries Regarding NEP 2020

    Since the policy got approval from the cabinet many webinar and conferences are conducted so far to spread awareness regarding the policy. Recently the government organized the ‘Shiksha Parv’, it was held from 8 to 25 September. At the event, Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the conclave on ‘Education in 21st Century’.

    PM Narendra Modi mentioned that by 2022 every student will be evolved into the National Education Policy. He further conferred that “Now, students will not have to be limited to the watertight boundaries of commerce, science, and humanities and will choose any subjects they want to choose. It will bring the focus of marks and mark sheet based education back to learning based education”.

    Some of the major changes proposed under NEP 2020 includes changing the 10+2 school system to 5+3+3+4 format, diluting the board exams and changing the assessment system, teaching in mother tongue till at least class 5, the common entrance exam for admission to colleges, multiple exits, and entry points in college degrees, setting up of Academic Bank of Credit, replacing UGC, AICTE, NAAC with a single autonomous body among several others.

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  • Increasing Women’s Participation in Abroad Education and How they are Breaking the Barriers?’

    Increasing Women’s Participation in Abroad Education and How they are Breaking the Barriers?’

    Pooja comes from a grounded middle-class family where every member contributes to the household income to make it work. She is a hard worker whose diligence led her to pursue engineering at a decently recognized university and now her wildest dreams are about to come true as she will be pursuing a master’s in computer science at a top-ranked university in the USA. Her story is mimicked by hundreds and thousands of bright young minds who straddle various strata of society but have pushed through the barriers that generations prior couldn’t or didn’t have the opportunity to do so. These young and talented Women’s Participation is preparing to be future leaders and the industry is witnessing a steady rise in their penchant to pursue higher education abroad.

    I recently also came across a research paper from 2016 It was interesting to see how some of the findings directly corroborate with the pace and direction that the study abroad industry has taken especially in the context of Indian students with a specific focus on female students.

    The study found that when it came to studying abroad, male students were more likely to come from varied socio-economic backgrounds than female students. For female students, the higher propensity to study abroad was seen amongst the middle to the upper middle class and more so where the parents themselves were well educated. The likelihood of a female student studying abroad increased greatly when the mother was also well-educated and thereby influencing the family’s decision to allow and encourage the female student to pursue higher education abroad.

    This still holds largely true as we witness in the industry an increasing number of female students pursuing higher education abroad owing possibly to a slight change in the family setup (more openness or being more liberal to encourage female students to pursue higher education) and with the increasing number of financial institutions or NBFCs available now. The ability for families to take advantage of loans and that too not requiring collateral has possibly encouraged more students and especially female students, to look abroad.

    We have also seen an increase in female students pursuing STEM-designated fields of education, especially at the Master’s level. The study had seen a much higher number of male students pursuing STEM-oriented masters (53% Indian male students compared to 30% female students), and the industry is seeing a more encouraging sign over the past 5 years now, with an increasing percentage of Women’s Participation students pursuing STEM courses thereby bridging the gap seen earlier.

    For more conservative households, as the research indicated, the thinking of the parents was sometimes high on reluctance to let the male pursue studies abroad as they feared that they may not return to take care of their parents in the future. However, interestingly when it came to the female, the thinking might indicate that the female would in any case move households after marriage and hence might be a bit more open to allowing them to pursue education abroad. We definitely see a shift in mindsets across families now moving slightly away from this traditional thinking to that of being supportive of women to pursue education or a career even upon return to India.

    What is noteworthy for parents and students is that there are a plethora of factors each family will weigh when making their final decisions. However, the good news is that with the increase of financial institutions making it viable for families to fund this dream, the focus also needs to be on the longer-term plan for the students. Do they wish to settle in the study abroad destination or return to India to pursue a career? Challenges and merits exist on both sides, however, in Women’s Participation more weight should be given to this when families make a decision. When spending that much money, a strong future plan or orientation needs to be in place to make the decision well worth it and for the return on investments to make sense.

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  • Jamia’s Academic Council, Executive Council Yet To Approve Implementation Of National Education Policy

    Jamia’s Academic Council, Executive Council Yet To Approve Implementation Of National Education Policy

    The academic and executive councils of Jamia Millia Islamia are yet to approve the implementation of the National Education Policy (NEP) in the university even though the new academic session is set to begin in two months. Though the NEP has been approved in principle by the university, it requires the stamp of the Academic Council (AC) and the Executive Council (EC) for implementation.

    Registrar of Jamia Millia Islamia Nazim Husain Al Jafri said the process to approve the NEP is underway and it will be done before July 15. “Though the policy is yet to be approved by AC and EC, we have begun the process for the implementation of the new policy. We are hoping to approve the policy by July 15. The university has formed a committee for the NEP approval. We are likely to table the policy in Academic Council soon and later it will be passed by EC,” Mr. Jafri told PTI.

    The NEP approved by the Union Cabinet replaces the 34-year-old National Policy on Education framed in 1986 and is aimed at paving the way for transformational reforms in school and higher education systems to make India a global knowledge superpower.

    A choice between three or four-year undergraduate courses, multiple entry and exit options in degree courses adding three-and-half crore seats in higher education institutions, which will now have a single regulator, discontinuation of MPhil programmes, and fixation of fees are among the higher education reforms outlined in the new NEP.

    Explaining the process of the approval of any change in the education policy, Jafri said a committee is usually formed that submits its report asking for the recommendations from various Heads of Departments. Then the new policy is approved by the Faculty Committee and thereafter is presented before the Academic Council.

    “Following the approval by Academic Council, the policy is sent to Executive Council, the highest statutory body of the university,” he said.

    Even though the NEP is yet to be approved, various departments have started finalising the curriculum for four-year graduate programmes. The departments are holding discussions and deliberations to prepare the syllabus. “The curriculum is expected to be finalised by July 15,” said Mr. Jafri.

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  • Madras High Court Seeks State’s Response On Implementation Of National Education Policy 2020

    Madras High Court Seeks State’s Response On Implementation Of National Education Policy 2020

    The Madras High Court has directed the State Government to file its counter affidavit in a PIL filed by one Arjunan Elayaraja, seeking to implement the National Education Policy, 2020 in the State of Tamil Nadu.

    When the matter came up before the bench of Chief Justice Munishwar Nath Bhandari and Justice D Bharatha Chakravarthy, the court took on record the counter affidavit filed by the Secretary to the Union Ministry of Education. Further, it granted four weeks’ time to the state government to file its counter.

    In his affidavit, the Ministry submitted that after the announcement of NEP by the Prime Minister, the Ministry and other implementing agencies under its control have started taking initiatives for the implementation of the Policy. Since Education is an entry in the concurrent list, the States/UT have also been requested to take appropriate measures to implement the Policy in its letter and spirit. The same is being followed up through a series of communications, the details of which were also provided.

    As per the affidavit, the Government of India initiated the formulation of the National Education Policy by initiating a consultation process. The three-pronged consultation process was started in January 2015. The online consultation was conducted through MyGov.in portal. Grassroot consultation level was conducted from the village level up to the state level. Thematic expert consultation, and Zonal and National level consultations were also carried out.

    It was also submitted that the Ministry of Education (then Ministry of Human Resource Development) had also constituted a 5-member committee for the evolution of the New Education Policy on 31st October 2015 under the chairmanship of late Shri. T.S.R Subramaniam, former cabinet secretary to the government of India, and reports were submitted. The Ministry also formulated “Some Inputs for the Draft National Education Policy” 2016. These were placed before both the houses of the Parliament.

    Further, these were also considered by the “Committee for Draft National Education Policy” under the chairmanship of Dr. Kasturirangan and a draft was submitted by Committee in 2019. Based on the draft, an education dialogue was conducted with the MPs of Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, Kerala, Karnataka, and Odisha.

    It was also submitted that meetings were held with the State Education Secretaries of School Education and State Secretaries of Higher and Technical Education. Thus it is after due deliberations that the National Education Policy was finalized and announced.

    Previously, the court had opined that there was no harm in teaching Hindi as a third language, as part of NEP. The court had noted that the people of the state were at a disadvantage when they went outside the state without knowing the Hindi language. The Advocate General had submitted that it was the discretion of the state government to take a suitable call.

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  • Assam Government Decides to Restructure School Education Policy in Line with NEP

    Assam Government Decides to Restructure School Education Policy in Line with NEP

    On Wednesday, the Assam Cabinet decided to restructure the state education policy, in order to line up with the National Education Policy. The new re-structured education policy will make schooling education a 15-year affair, compromising four categories- foundation, preparatory, elementary, and senior secondary, said Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma. The foundation category will have five years till Class two, while the next three years will be preparatory. The elementary category will comprise classes six, seven, and eight, and the classes between nine and 12 will be called senior secondary.

    According to the new National Education Policy (NEP 2020), there will be a 5+3+3+4 structure comprising 12 years of schooling and three years of pre-schooling, replacing the old 10+2 structure.

    The Chief Minister told the reporters that the changes in the structure will be notified on April 1, 2022, and the new syllabus will be introduced from April 1, 2023.

    Commission to train youth

    The Assam Cabinet has further decided to set up a commission that will train youths, particularly those from the vernacular medium, for employment in all-India government services and admission into medical and engineering colleges. The CM said that initially 100 youths from each district will be selected for coaching by reputed institutes of the country.

    Further, the Cabinet also took a decision to abolish the qualifying language paper for the state civil service examinations with certain conditions. One of the conditions is that an aspirant should speak fluently either Assamese or associated languages – Bodo or Bengali, or any other tribal language of the state and also Hindi, as many people in the state speak the language, the chief minister said.

    Other decisions are taken by the Cabinet

    The Cabinet gave its nod to a proposal to increase the number of post-graduate seats for doctors in medical colleges from 23 to 40. It decided to set up a trust for the welfare of the victims of the Assam Agitation and their families to ensure that they get continuous help with a corpus fund of Rs five crore from the government, where the public and organizations can also contribute.

    The Council of Ministers also approved the amendment to recruitment rules for constables and sub-inspectors for commando battalions in the state by prescribing stringent criteria to meet the professional requirements of the commandos.

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  • NEP 2020 Conference: Najma Heptullah Highlights Importance Of Native Languages

    NEP 2020 Conference: Najma Heptullah Highlights Importance Of Native Languages

    MIT World Peace University (MIT-WPU), Pune organized the fourth session of the National Teachers’ Congress to discuss National Education Policy (NEP 2020).


    The fourth session of National Teachers’ Congress (NTC) organized by MIT World Peace University (MIT-WPU), Pune was attended by Ms. Najma Heptullah, Chancellor, Jamia Millia Islamia, Rahul Karad, executive president, MIT University, Dr. Muril Manohar Joshi, former Union Minister, and other educational speakers. Education ministers of the states also attended the event. The theme of the conference was ‘NEP 2020: Opportunities Unlocked’


    Ms. Najma Heptullah hailed the National Education Policy (NEP 2020) as she said, “Native languages have been given special focus in the policy to help students understand their cultural roots. The policy places importance on the classical languages of our country to further inculcate a sense of pride amongst students in speaking in their mother tongue.”

    Ms. Najma

    Former Union Minister Murli Manohar Joshi termed the National Educational Policy as a robust one.

    After a gap of 30-35 years, we have a robust policy in place. The rich heritage of India has been the guiding light of this policy. NEP 2020 takes into account the local and global needs – instilling knowledge of India and its traditions and instilling strong ethics considered critical for inculcating national pride

    Mr. Joshi

    “The concept of a non-violent society, a society in which all problems are resolved by dialogue – these are the guiding principles of the NEP 2020”, he added.

    The speakers discussed other issues that had impacted the Indian educational sector and economy including Atmanirbhar Bharat, educational technology, and liberal education. Faculty from various institutes and universities participated in this discussion.

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  • New Education System Aims to Create Equitable Society: Kasturirangan

    New Education System Aims to Create Equitable Society: Kasturirangan

    Dr. K Kasturirangan, chairman of the committee that drafted the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, on Thursday said the vision of India’s new education system is to ensure that it touches each and every citizen’s life and creates a just and equitable society.

    He said this during his virtual address at the 17th convocation ceremony of the Symbiosis International University (SIU) here.

    Dr. Kasturirangan said the NEP provides an integrated yet flexible approach towards education and emphasis is given in the policy to the aspect of holistic, multi-disciplinary education as a foundational component at all levels of education.

    The vision of India’s new educational system has been crafted to ensure that it touches the life of each and every citizen consistent with their needs and necessities, besides creating a just and equitable society The approach is to realize a new system aligned with the aspirational goals of the 21st-century education while remaining rooted to India’s value systems and ethos

    Dr. Kasturirangan

    He added that “liberal education” in the contemporary discussion has its origins in India’s age-old idea of liberal arts dating back to almost 1,400 years.

    “In the modern-day social and economic landscape, this age-old Indian concept is now finding recognition in a new form. Liberal education explores the remarkable relationships that exist among the sciences and humanities, mathematics and arts, medicine and physics, etc, and more generally, the surprising unity of all fields of human endeavor,” he added.

    During the event, Adar Poonawalla, Chief Executive Officer of the Pune-based Serum Institute of India (SII) was conferred upon honorary DLitt by the SIU.

    Speaking on the occasion, Poonawalla said, “We have struggled and been able to develop a vaccine in a record time for the safety and good health of the nation and for the world. And this is indeed also a proud moment for us where we are on the verge of licensure of a COVID-19 vaccine.” The SII has partnered with pharma giant AstraZeneca and Oxford University for the vaccine.

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