India’s new educational policy in 2020 was introduced recently. It was only after 1992 that our third educational policy of India was introduced. It conveys the Narendra Modi government’s vision for education and is associated with a commendable vision for the 21st-century education requirement. It includes broad directions for educational reforms. The policy aims at making  India a global knowledge superpower.

NEP has the aim of increasing the gross enrolment ratio in higher education including vocational education to 50% by 2035. It also aims for a single regulator policy for higher education. The aim is to make India a strong intellectual country and to develop knowledge, skills, values which support human rights and sustainable development for human wellbeing.

The policy introduces a whole range of changes with a very progressive view. The importance of the current socio-economic conditions is very much visible with the prospect of future uncertainty. Education for a new generation of learners has to necessarily engage with an increasing digitalization of our economies. The current education requires a completely new set of capabilities in order to stand in the current market scenario. This seems to be more urgent in today’s world, with the trend towards digitalization and automation being accelerated by the pandemic.

2020 educational policy gives more stress on conceptual learning, skills like communication, leadership, entrepreneurship, teamwork. The emerging challenges such as building resilience to climate change and pandemic require a workforce able to draw cross-cutting competencies. It would lead to a workforce with a much more holistic sense of the world.

The policy proposes noteworthy changes including opening up of Indian higher education to foreign universities. It includes an introduction of four – year multidisciplinary undergraduate program with multiple exit options.

NEP states universities from among the top 100 in the world will now be able to set up campuses in India. While it doesn’t elaborate parameters to define the top 100, the government may use the ‘QS World University Rankings’, the best ranking system on the internet.

Few more eye-catching points of the new national education policy are as below –

• The 10+2 structure of school curricula will soon be replaced by a 5+3+3+4 curricular structure corresponding to ages 3-8, 8-11, 11-14, and 14-18 years respectively. 
• NCERT will develop a National Curricular and Pedagogical Framework for Early Childhood.
• A new National Assessment Centre, PARAKH (Performance Assessment, Review, and Analysis of Knowledge for Holistic Development), will be set up as a standard-setting body.
• A common National Professional Standards for Teachers (NPST) will be developed by the National Council for Teacher Education by 2022.
• A new and comprehensive National Curriculum Framework for Teacher Education, NCFTE 2021, will be formulated.
• By 2030, the minimum degree qualification for teaching will be a 4-year integrated B.Ed. degree.

This change of policy was the need of the present time. The form of gaining knowledge has changed and keeping that in mind our present government has taken few noteworthy steps. Now it’s the time for implementation of the policies for the up-gradation of education in India and to grow with it.