After 34 years, India introduced the New Education policy to replace the National Policy on Education, 1986. The policy drafts India’s vision of its new and better education system. The first phase of NEP 2020 implementation will be completed by April 2022. After that, the government will get an idea of how effective the policy will be for the country. 

The New Education Policy 2020 aims to bring transformative changes by providing high-quality education to students. It focuses on the student and teacher’s education with new rules to ensure that everyone is taught well. 

Let’s have a look at the big changes that NEP will bring to India’s education system. 

Structure 

NEP will replace the 10+2 structure with a 5+3+3+4 structure. The four stages will be as follows: aa

• Foundational stage – For 3-8-year-old students 

• Preparatory stage – For 8-11-year-old students 

• Middle stage – For 11-14-year-old students 

• Secondary stage – For 14-18-year-old students

To implement these changes, the curriculum has been restructured as per the National Curriculum Framework. 

Examination  

The NEP 2020 suggests that exams will not take place every academic year. Instead, students will only have to appear for the examination for classes 2, 5, and 8. Class 10 and 12 students will have to appear for a re-designed version of board exams. These exams will happen twice a year in two parts – objective and descriptive – and every student will get two attempts. 

Curriculum 

The policy aims to reduce the load of students by changing the curriculum. The new curriculum will allow them to be multilingual and inter-disciplinary. For example, if a student wants to learn bakery with chemistry, he/she will be allowed to do so without any restrictions. Moreover, coding classes will start from class 6. 

For students at higher levels of education, NEP proposes a 4-year bachelor’s degree in any undergraduate program. Each student will be allowed multiple entries and exits from degree courses. In this scheme, a student leaving a college after a year will get a certificate. If they leave after two years, they will get a diploma, and after three years a degree.  

Assessment 

The Indian government has introduced a national assessment center, PARAKH (Performance Assessment, Review, and Analysis of Knowledge for Holistic Development). PARAKH will be the standard-setting body for all the school boards recognized under NEP 2020. Moreover, it will keep a regular check on institutes and the education system.  

Common Entrance Test for Universities 

For private and public universities, a common entrance test will be conducted for admission in undergraduate non-technical courses. This entrance test will make the whole admission process simpler for students as well as colleges and universities. 

Language 

NEP 2020 also proposes the use of mother tongue and regional languages as a medium of instruction. However, it does not put a compulsion on any student to learn a language. It suggests that schools and institutions use a home or local language till class 8 to make it easier for students to understand the concepts.

Teacher Training

Apart from students, NEP also emphasizes teacher education. To become a teacher, a person has to complete a 4-year Bachelor of Education program. Recruitment of teachers into schools, colleges, and universities will also become more transparent.