Pune: Union Minister Prakash Javadekar on Saturday termed the National Education Policy 2020 as a revolutionary reform of the 21st Century. Delivering the key-note address at the Centenary Year Teachers’ Day Celebration of the Parle Tilak Vidyalay Association of Mumbai through video link, he said early childhood education, enquiry-based education, teacher training, foundational and numeric literacy, have all been laid emphasis on.
The Minister said NEP 2020 will empower our youth, which will take the nation forward in the 21st century.
“The policy is such that it will make the teaching – learning experience enjoyable for both students and teachers” he added.
Javadekar expressed confidence that India would double the Gross Enrolment Ratio within the next 10 years from the current level of about 25%. He said students across the country have become aspirational and economic growth has pushed parental earnestness to provide good education for their children. Wider geographical spread of higher education institutions, especially covering rural areas and increased demand would be the critical factors that will improve GER in India, he added.
The Minister underlined the importance of Early Childhood Education as the main characteristic of NEP. He said, 3 -8 years of Age Group is to build Cognitive skills, curiosity and mental capacity. He also said that the education with subject understanding is important rather than rote learning.
While activity based learning is emphasized at the early states, 9th to 12th education would focus on detailed, relevant and new knowledge, which will induce scientific temper among children. Javadekar said research and innovation are key to enabling our education mould globally competitive citizens. He said 3,000 ‘Atal Tinkering Labs’ are running successfully to encourage research based innovation, which is essential for building an Aatmanirbhar Bharat.
Speaking about the role of teachers in the society, the Minister said “ a teacher does not simply teach through books or black boards. Ideal teacher is the one who instills values in students through his/her conduct”.
Four year integrated B.Ed degree is being introduced to provide holistic training programme for teachers, which will include practical teaching skills. It will encourage teachers to become teachers by choice and not as a last resort, he added.
#NationalEducationPolicy हे एक प्रगतीशील धोरण आहे, सर्वांनी त्याचे स्वागत केले आहे. हे धोरण #AatmaNirbharBharat चा पाया रचेल. शालेय शिक्षणामध्ये सुधारणा करण्याबरोबरच, मजबूत संशोधन संस्कृतीसाठीही ते महत्वपूर्ण आहे .#OurTeachersOurHeroes pic.twitter.com/kKX0rLaq7M
— Prakash Javadekar (@PrakashJavdekar) September 5, 2020
