The Draft National Education Policy 2019, which mentions about some long-awaited shifts in the education sector, is a praiseworthy document. However, some inclusions need to be reconsidered before it is finalised, opined civil society leaders at a consultative workshop held here on Monday.
The Sustainability Foundation organised the workshop in collaboration with the National Coalition for Education to come out with key points of recommendations on the policy as the Union Ministry of Human Resource Development is seeking inputs and suggestions on the Draft NEP from citizens by June 30.
“We welcome the policy as it talks about inclusion of both early childhood education and secondary education under the RTE, doubling the budgetary allocation for education, strengthening decentralised mechanisms of teacher management and support and a possible come back of the no-detention policy which was scrapped by the earlier BJP-led NDA Government,” said Foundation chairman Naba Kishor Pujari.
Pujari said the demand on Common School System (CSS) is longstanding and justified as the Education Commission of India in its report in 1964-66 recommended it for all children irrespective of their class, caste, religion or linguistic background. The CSS needs to be incorporated in the policy.
“Secondly, the policy specifically promotes private schools in the name of quality education whereas there is no evidence to prove that private schools deliver quality education. We hope that our feedbacks are taken into consideration for the better future of children of our country,” he added.
The Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) member’s recommendations include proper time allotment for a brief explanatory review, clarifying role priorities of different committees, redefining PTR norms, addressing the target to achieve inclusive education as mentioned in policy 2030, specifying refining infrastructure, selection of teachers, teachers’ capability, teacher’s training in the Action, clarity assessment of Foundation state of learning and merging process of preschool and school.
They also recommended inclusion of mother parents in SMCs along with educationists, provision of mother tongue-based multilingual education up to middle stage, ensuring subject-wise teacher from middle stage of education, starting vocation education from secondary stage, taking out Anganwadi Centres from school campuses, provision of research, functioning, structure and accountability of the State Regulatory Authorities and relationship between the State and Central Regulatory Authorities.
Foundation trustee Dr Subhashree Das, Dr Prashant Kumar Acharya, Dr Smarita Pradhan, Anil Pradhan, Santosh Kumar Patra, Smruti Ranjan Jena, Kshanika Das and many other policy experts on education from international NGOs and Odisha RTE Forum and members of grassroots level NGOs from 15 districts participated.