I remember being in school and thinking “Gosh! If only I could change the school system.”. Every generation has their system of education, which keeps evolving, but somehow always being questioned about how good it is.
The Government of India introduced the New Education Policy(NEP), with the intention of changing the way the next generation of children learn and acquire skills. The program tries to stay with the times by bringing in reforms in the education structure, mode of instruction and change in the University application processes.
A prominent aspect of the NEP is the multi-stream flexibility which allows students to choose subjects across different streams. This gives students more freedom to try out different subjects and find their likings. So students can now play strings as well as ace at calculus.
It proposes a change in the system from a 10+2 to a 5+3+3+4 system with 5 years of foundational education, 3 years of preparatory, 3 years of middle school and finally 4 years of secondary schooling.
The policy also lays importance to native languages by attempting to make local language as the primary medium of instruction till 8th grade. Children with disabilities will now be treated at par with other students and they would be attending the same classes together.
Gone are the days when Board Exams were a parameter to judge students. Now they would be conducted in two parts- objective and descriptive twice a year. The most demanded institutes like the IITs would now be accepting students from different fields and maybe some years later there shall be IITs in different countries as well.
The undergraduate degree courses will be of either 3 or 4- year duration, with multiple exit options. A certificate course after completing 1 year in a discipline or field, including vocational and professional areas, or a diploma after 2 years of study, or a Bachelor’s degree after a 3-year programme is about to bring the most indefinite change.
The New Education Policy promises to revamp the whole Education System in whole after an extensive duration of 30 years, in belief that it will benefit students to grow their skills in many different ways.
