State Govt makes all efforts to get expert suggestions on NEP-2019

Surjit Kumar Dhal, Bhubaneswar, July 24: The Department of School and Mass Education, through its Academic Authority — the Directorate of Technical Education (TE) and State Council for Education Research & Training (SCERT) has made all possible efforts to get suggestive feedbacks from the committees and subcommittees constituted for the different components as highlighted under the draft NEP-2019.

The Consultation aims at critically examining the draft NEP 2019 in terms of their relevance, implementation, feasibility as well as the radical reforms for creating a new education system of education.

According to officials, the draft NEP 2019 focuses on Early Childhood Care and Education, Current structure of School Education 5+3 + 3+4, language policy, school complexes, teacher management, teacher education which has been proposed to come under Higher Education, regulation of schools, Restructuring of higher Education institutions, professional development of faculty, Educational Governance and financing of education, Education through 1CT, integration of Vocational Education into the undergraduate education programme and many more suggestive reforms.

A two-day consultation was organized from July 23 aimed at having a reflective dialogue for building state consensus on the Draft National Education Policy 2019 in the presence of Minister, Higher Education Arun Sahoo, Minister of State, School and Mass Education Sameer Ranjan Das.

Advisor Odisha Adarsha Vidyalaya Sangathan, Additional Chief Secretary, S & ME Department, Commissioner-cum-Secretary, Higher Education Department, State Chief UNICEF Odisha, Directors Higher Education, Higher Secondary Education, Secondary Education, Elementary Education, State Project Director, OSEPA, Directors of different Departments, Special Secretaries and Additional Secretaries of the Department, Academics, UN Agencies, NGOs, DEOs, BEOs, Principals of Teacher Education Institutions as well as Higher Education Institutions, Teachers’ Associations, school teachers, students as well as parents took active part in the Consultation.

The suggestions and feedbacks received as an output from this consultation will be consolidated by the Directorate of TE and SCERT and submitted by end of July to MHRD for re-examination from the point of view of different states, the officials added.

Notably, the Committee for Draft NEP 2019 constituted by MHRD and choired by Dr K Kasturirangan submitted its report on December 15 last year for discussion by the stakeholders of the country.

The report proposes an education Policy which seeks to address the challenges of access, equity, quality, affordability and accountability faced by current education system.

The draft policy provides for reform at all levels of education from school to higher-education. Government of India has made the Draft Policy available in public domain for getting the feedback and suggestions from every corner of the country.