NEP and Higher Education: Translating Policy into Action

The new National Education Policy, 2020 approved by the Union Cabinet is set to bring seminal changes to the Indian education system. It introduces several changes in the Indian Education System from the school level to the higher education level with the objective to sustainably transform the country’s academic system into an equitable and vibrant knowledge society. It plans to increase public investment in education, introduces an interdisciplinary and flexible curriculum as well as the establishment of a single regulatory body for all of higher education. It’s within this context that the webinar seeks to initiate a discourse on the operational challenges the stakeholders would have. 

NEP, 2020 deals with a wide range of themes such as the interface of education and technology, vocational education, teacher training, affordable and quality education, interdisciplinary approach to teaching and learning, among others. 

In continuation to the dialogues on Education initiated by Centre for Public Policy Research, a second series of discussion will be held on January 21, 2021 around India’s Higher Education Space. 

To explore the aforementioned themes, CPPR brings together a distinguished educationist and policy professional to discuss the opportunities and challenges NEP presents to India. The webinar intends to engage academic fraternity, Civil Society members and other key stakeholders into a meaningful dialogue. 

Date and time: January 21, 2021 (Thursday) | 4:30 pm to 6:30 pm

Venue: Virtual Platform – Zoom

Click here to Register

The session objectives and key discussion points are listed below

Session Objectives

  • Bring together a wide spectrum of stakeholders to discuss Higher education landscape in India where the NEP 2020 will be implemented
  • Understand the challenges faced by the stakeholders in the implementation of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020
  • Understanding the changing educational landscape induced by COVID-19 in the context of reforms envisioned in the NEP, 2020.
  • To facilitate and address the concerns raised by relevant stakeholders by apprising policymakers at the State level.

Key points of discussion

  • Assessing the reality of attaining a 50% GER in Higher education by 2035
  • Discuss the new system of multidisciplinary bachelor’s degree and the option of multiple exit points
  • Analyse the new system of transfer of credits with the introduction of ‘Academic Bank of Credits’
  • Assess the new governance structure of Higher Education in India with the setting up of Higher Education Commission of India (HECI)
  • The focus on improvement in research and building research capacity with the National Research Foundation
  • Assess the provisions for Online Education in the new structure and its advantages and limitations
  • Challenges in implementation of the various recommendations for Higher Education proposed by the NEP 2020

Panellists:

  • Dr Shakila Shamsu

Dr Shamsu is Special Advisor (Education Policies) at CPPR. She was formerly OSD (New Education Policy) in the Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Education (MoE). She has been the Secretary to the Committee to Draft National Education Policy. She was also the Nodal Officer of the flagship Government of India (GoI) Scheme of National Mission on Teachers and Teaching (NMTT). Her core areas cover education planning and policymaking, teacher education, ICT and Open & Distance Learning and inclusive education. Her academic career spans over 39 years in teaching and academics in the University of Mumbai and IGNOU and over 14 years in the GoI. 

  • Dr D Dhanuraj (Moderator)

Dr D Dhanuraj is the Chairman of the Board of Trustees and the Chief Executive of CPPR, of which he is also one of the founding members. He has extensively worked in the field of Education, Livelihood and Urbanisation. He has co-authored the e-book on “Vision for Higher Education Reform” and the Paper on “Understanding the status of Higher Education in India: Challenges and Scepticism towards serious Investments in the sector”