Page 19 - 15JAN2020E-1

ELECTION 2018
EDUCATION

educational institutions once every five to seven years. lack of autonomy and no clear career progression
All existing higher education institutions should be system are also major impediments to faculty moti-
accredited by 2030. Currently, higher educational vation. The draft Policy recommends development of
institutions can only be set up by Parliament or state a Continuous Professional Development programme
legislatures. and introduction of a permanent employment (ten-
The draft Policy proposes that these institutions ure) track system for faculty in all higher education
could be allowed to be set up through a Higher Edu- institutions by 2030. Further, a desirable student-
cation Institution Charter from NHERA. This Charter teacher ratio of not more than 30:1 must be ensured.
will be awarded on the basis of transparent assess- The Committee observed that the curricula remain
ment of certain specified criteria. All such newly con- rigid, narrow, and archaic. Moreover, the faculty of-
stituted higher educational institutions must receive ten lacks the autonomy to design curricula, which
accreditation as mandated by NHERA within five negatively impacts pedagogy. It recommends that
years of being established. all higher education institutions must have complete
The committee has recommended that higher edu- autonomy on curricular, pedagogical and resource-
cation institutions should be restructured into three related matters.
types: (i) research universities focusing equally on re-
search and teaching; (ii) teaching universities focusing EDUCATION GOVERNANCE
primarily on teaching; and (iii) colleges focusing only The Committee observed that there is a need to revisit
on teaching at undergraduate levels. All such institu- the existing system of governance in education, and
tions will gradually move towards full autonomy — bring in synergy and coordination among the differ-
academic, administrative, and financial. ent ministries, departments and agencies. It has rec-
ommended creation of a National Education Com-
FOCUS ON RESEARCH mission or Rashtriya Shiksha Aayog, as an apex body
The Committee observed that the total investment for education, to be headed by the Prime Minister.
on research and innovation in India has declined This body will be responsible for developing, imple-
from 0.84 per cent of GDP in 2008 to 0.69 per cent menting, evaluating, and revising the vision of edu-
in 2014. India also lags behind many nations in num- cation in the country on a continuous and sustained
ber of researchers (per lakh population), patents and basis. It will oversee the implementation and func-
publications. tioning of several bodies including the National Coun-
The draft Policy recommends establishing a Na- cil of Educational Research and Training (NCERT),
tional Research Foundation, an autonomous body, the proposed National Higher Education Regulatory
for funding, mentoring and building the capacity for Authority, and National Research Foundation.
quality research in India. The Foundation will consist It has also suggested that the Ministry of Human
of four major divisions: sciences, technology, social Resources and Development must be renamed as the
sciences, and arts and humanities, with the provision Ministry of Education in order to bring focus back on
to add additional divisions. The Foundation will be education.
provided with an annual grant of 20,000 crores (0.1
per cent of GDP). FINANCING EDUCATION
The draft Policy recommends making undergradu- The Draft Policy reaffirmed the commitment of
ate programmes interdisciplinary by redesigning spending 6 per cent of GDP as public investment in
their curriculum to include a common core curricu- education. Note that the first National Education Pol-
lum and one or two areas of specialization. Students icy (NEP) 1968 had recommended public expenditure
will be required to choose an area of specialization as in education must be 6 per cent of GDP, which was re-
‘major’, and an optional area as ‘minor’. iterated by the second NEP in 1986. In 2017-18, public
A four-year undergraduate programmes in Liberal expenditure on education in India was 2.7 per cent of
Arts will be introduced and multiple exit options with GDP.
appropriate certification will be made available to stu- The draft Policy seeks to double the public invest-
dents. Further, within the next five years, five Indian ment in education from the current 10 per cent of
Institute of Liberal Arts must be setup as model multi- total public expenditure to 20 per cent in the next
disciplinary liberal arts institutions. 10 years. Of the additional 10 per cent expenditure, 5
per cent will be utilized for universities and colleges
FACULTY MOTIVATION (higher education), 2 per cent will be utilized for addi-
The Committee observed that poor service conditions tional teacher costs or resources in school education
and heavy teaching loads at higher education institu- and 1.4 per cent will be utilized for early childhood
tions have resulted in low faculty motivation. Further, care and education.

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