Draft policy proposes overhaul of education sector

Extension of the Right to Education (RTE) Act to bring entire school education from pre-primary upto class 12 level under its ambit, restructuring of school curriculum and pedagogy in a new 5+3+3+4 design, system for flexible and multiple board examinations are among a host of suggestions that a government-appointed panel has made in a draft national education policy.

Under the proposed 5+3+3+4 design, the first five years of schooling of children in the age group of 3 to 8 years would be marked as Foundational Stage. This would include three years of pre-primary plus grade 1 and grade 2.

The next three years of schooling, to be marked as Preparatory Stage for the children in the age group of 8 to 11 years, will include grades 3 to 5 followed by Middle Stage (grades 6 to 8) for the students in the age group of 11-14 years and Secondary Stage (Grades 9-12) for students in the age group of 14-18 years.

“Schools will be re-organized into school complexes,” the much awaited draft policy, released by the HRD ministry on Friday, provides.

The draft education policy, which runs into 435 pages, calls for the introduction of a semester system in school education for students of classes 10 to 12, with provisions for holding “flexible and modular board examinations” to reduce the burden of examinations.”

“Students should be able to take a board examination in a given subject in whichever semester they take the corresponding class in school, whenever they feel most ready; and they should be able to take any such subject board examination again if they feel they can study and do better,” it recommends.

In the higher education sector, the draft policy proposes a restructuring of the higher education institutions, placing them under three categories, with the first primarily being focussed on research, second providing high-quality teaching across disciplines with significant contribution to research and the third providing quality teaching focussed on undergraduate education.

It also suggests the introduction of four-year undergraduate programmes in higher education institutions and restructuring of the current 3-year BA, Bsc, B Com and B Voc programmes with provisions to provide students with “multiple exit and entry options.”

The draft policy, formulated by an 11-member committee of experts under former ISRO chairman K Kasturirangan, has proposed renaming the HRD ministry as Ministry of Education to bring back focus on education and learning.

It has also recommended the establishment of a Rashtriya Shiksha Aayog (National Education Commission) as a constitutional body through an Act of Parliament, with the Prime Minister being its Chairperson.

“Rajya Shiksha Aayogs/ State Education Commissions may be constituted in each State,” it stipulates.

The draft policy has also recommended establishment of one higher education regulator—National Higher Education Regulatory Authority (NHERA)— subsuming all other bodies like UGC, AICTE and others into it.

A national programme for the professional development of faculty members of the higher education institutions has also been proposed.

The Ministry will give final shape to the draft policy after getting feedback from public and all the State governments, and place the final document before the Union Cabinet for its approval in the first week of July, a senior official told DH.