Students to study under new curriculum as envisaged by NEP by 2022 : PM Narendra Modi

After unveiling the National Education Policy, the Modi government is all set to come out with a new curriculum framework for school students by 2022 that would seek to promote critical thinking.

Addressing the conclave on ‘School Education in 21st Century’, Prime Minister Narendra Modi made a strong to inculcate critical thinking and a scientific learning among students and take reduce the reliance on a marksheet as a means of evaluation.

“We will develop a National Curriculum Framework to make learning an integrated, inter-disciplinary, fun-based and complete experience,” Modi said adding that it would be unveiled in 2022, when India celebrates its 75th anniversary of Independence.

He said students will be able to move towards a new future through this forward-looking, future-ready and scientific curriculum. The National Curriculum Framework was last reviewed in 2005.

The Prime Minister said there was a need to promote critical thinking, creativity, collaboration, curiosity and communication skills among students and encourage them to understand concepts such as sustainable future and sustainable science.

“Students need to learn concepts such as coding, artificial intelligence, Internet of Things, cloud computing, data science and robotics early,” he said.

The Prime Minister said that a marksheet had become a “pressure sheet” for the children and a “prestige sheet” for parents, and that the NEP 2020 aimed to remove this pressure.

“Instead of a mark sheet, the National Education Policy has proposed a holistic report card which will be a detailed sheet of unique potential, aptitude, attitude, talent, skills, efficiency, competency and possibilities of the students,” Modi said.

The Prime Minister also stressed on imparting primary education – at least till grade five – in the mother tongue of the student.

“I see there is a misunderstanding on this count. The National Education Policy does not bar any one from learning in any language other than the mother tongue,” the Prime Minister said.

He said it would be better for the student to learn foreign languages other than English. “But we will also promote Indian languages so that our youth is acquainted with languages and cultures of different states and strengthen ties with each other,” the Prime Minister said.