Characteristic and Parts of National Policy on education (1986)

by Yuvi - December 2, 2020

Characteristic and Parts of National Education policy 1986 / NPE 1986

Introductory Part

The Essence & Role of Education

1)            Education for all: In our national perception education is essentially for all. This is fundamental to our all round development, material and spiritual.

2)            Acculturating Role: Education has an acculturating role. It refines sensitivities, temper and independence of mind and spirit – thus furthering the goals of socialism, secularism and democracy enshrined in our constitution.

3)            Manpower Development: Education develops manpower for different levels of economy. It is also the substrate on which research and development flourish, being the ultimate guarantee of national self-reliance.

4)            A Unique Investment: In sum, education is a unique investment in the present and the future.

III.           National System of Education

The concept of a national system of education implies that, upto a given level, all students, irrespective of caste, creed, location or sex, have an access to education of a comparable quality. To achieve this the Govt. will initiate appropriately funded programmes. Effective measures will be taken in the direction of the common school system recommended in the 1968 policy.

1)            Common Education Structure: The 10+2+3 structure has now been accepted in all parts of the country. Regarding the further breakup of the first 10 years, efforts will be made to move towards an elementary system comprising 5 years of high school.

2)            Based on a National Curricular Framework: National curricular framework which contains a common care along with other components that are flexible. The common core will include the history of India’s freedom movement, constitution, and other content essential to national unity. All these elements are designed to promote values.

3)            International Understanding: Education has to strengthen this world view and motivate the younger generations for international co-operation and peaceful co-existence. This aspect cannot be neglected.

4)            Providing equal opportunity: To promote quality, it will be necessary to provide for equal opportunity to all not only in access, but also in the conditions for success. Besides awareness of the inherent equality of all, conditions will be created through the core curriculum.

5)            Developing understanding of the diverse cultural and social systems: Steps will be taken to foster among students an understanding of the diverse culture and social systems of the people living in different parts of the country. The young will be encouraged to undertake the rediscovery of India, each in his own image and perception.

6)            Understanding universal character of universities: In higher education in general and technical education in particular, steps will be taken to facilitate inter regional mobility by providing equal access to every Indian of requisite merit, regardless of his origins. The universal character of universities and other institutions of higher education is to be underscored.

7)            Special emphasis on research and development: In the areas of research and development and education in science and technology, special measures will be take to establish network arrangements between different institutions in the country to pool their resources and participate in projects of national importance.

8)            National support for implementing educational programme: The nation as a whole will assume the responsibility of providing resource support for implementing programmes of educational transformation, reducing disparities, adult literacy, universalization of elementary education etc.

9)            Life long education: Life long education presupposes universal literacy. Opportunities will be provided to the youth, housewives, agriculture and industrial workers and professionals to continue the education of their choice, at the pace suited to them. The future thrust will be in the direction of open and distance learning.

10)          Role of institutions of national importance: UGC, AICTE, ICAR and Indian Medical Council are the institutions of national importance. Integrated planning will be instituted among all these bodies so as to establish functional linkages and reinforce programmes of research and post graduate education.

Education for Equality 

Education for equality includes following points:

1)  Education for women’s equality: Women’s studies will be promoted as a part of various courses and educational institutions encouraged to take up active programmes to further women’s development. Major emphasis will be laid on women’s participation in vocational, technical and professional education at different levels.

2)  The Education of Scheduled Castes: The central focus in the SC educational development is their equalization with non S.C. population at all stages and levels of education. Under the new policy, the following measures have been contemplated:-

  • Incentive to families to send their children to school regularly till they reach the age of 14.
  • Pre-matric scholarship scheme for children.
  • Special steps to provide non-formal education for the dropout.
  • The recruitment of teachers from scheduled castes.
  • Location of school buildings, balwadis and adult education centres in such a way as to facilitate full participation of the SCs.

3)  Minorities: Education for minorities, this is necessary to maintain equality and justice. This will naturally include the constitutional guarantee given to them to establish and administer their own educational institutions and protection to their languages and culture.

4)  The Handicapped: NPE integrate the physically and mentally handicapped with the general community as equal partners. The following measures will be taken for this purpose:-

  • Provision of special schools with hostels of district headquarters as far as possible.
  • Vocational training of the disabled.
  • Voluntary efforts for the handicapped children.
  • Reorientation of teacher training programme to deal with the special difficulties of the handicapped children.

5)  Adult Education: The new policy has suggested a vast programme of adult and continuing education particularly in the age-group 15-35 years through various ways and channels:-

  • Establishment of centres in rural areas for continuing education.
  • Worker’s education through the employers.
  • Post-secondary education institutions.
  • Wider promotion of books, libraries and reading rooms.
  • Radio, Television and Films as mass and group learning media.
  • Creation of learners’ group and organization.
  • Programmes of distance education.
  • Organizing assistance in self learning.
  • Need and interest based vocational training programme.

Reorganization of Education at Different Stages

(A)  ECCE (Early Childhood Care and Education) 

NPE recognizes the holistic nature of child development, vis-nutrition, health and social, mental, physical, moral and emotional development. Early childhood care and education (ECCE) will, therefore, receive high priority and be suitably integrated with the integrated child development service programme, where possible. Day care centres will be provided as a support service for universalization of primary education.

Proposed Programme: ECCE will be, in the first instance, directed towards the most unprivileged group i.e. those who are still outside the mainstream of formal education. Some of these can be defined as follows:-

  • Very poor urban ‘slum’ communities.
  • Working children in the unorganized sector.
  • Construction workers in urban and rural areas.
  • Landless agricultural labour.
  • Itinerant for seasonal labour, who have a mobile transient life style, like road-workers.
  • Family labour and household chares in rural areas and artisan household.
  • Forest dwellers and tribals in remote areas.
  • Ecologically deprived areas where children are required to fetch fuel, fodder, water and do other household chores, most of the day time.

(B)  Elementary Education: The new thrust in elementary education will emphasize two aspects –

  • Universal enrolment and universal retention of children upto 14 years.
  • A substantial improvement in the quality of education.

Child Centred Approach: A child centred and activity based process of learning should be adopted at the primary stage. As child grows, the component of cognitive learning will be increased and skills organized through practice.

School facilities: Operation blackboard will be undertaken with immediate effect to improve primary schools all over the country.

OB (operation blackboard): It envisages at least two reasonably large rooms that are usable in all weather, and the necessary toys, blackboards, maps, charts and other learning material. At least two teachers, one of whom a woman, should work in every school, the number increasing as early as possible to one teacher per class etc.

(C) Non-formal education: It include – launching systematic programme of NFE, utilizing modern techniques and aids (AV aids, radio cassette players etc.), curriculum related to the need of the learners and involving voluntary agencies to promote NFE.

(D) Secondary education: Secondary education begins to expose students to the differentiated roles of science, the humanities and social sciences. This is also an appropriate stage to provide children with a sense of history and national perspective and give them opportunities to understand their constitutional duties and rights as citizens. Access to secondary education will be widened to cover areas unserved by it at present.

Pace setting schools: it is universally accepted that children with special talent or aptitude should be provided opportunities to proceed at a faster pace, by making good quality education available to them. Pace setting schools intended to serve this purpose will be established in various parts of the country on a given pattern.

Navodaya Vidyalayas: Under the scheme of Navodaya Vidyalayas for catering to the category of high achievers, one such vidyalaya would be set up in each district during the 7th five year plan period.

(E)  Vocationalisation of education: The new policy observes that the introduction of systematic, well planned and rigorously implemented programmes of vocational education is crucial in the proposed educational reorganization.

 A distinct stream: Vocational education will be a distinct stream intended to prepare students for identified occupations spanning several areas of activity.

Coverage: It was proposed that vocational courses would cover 10% of higher secondary students by 1990 and 25% by 1995. Steps would be taken to see that a substantial majority of the products of vocational courses are employed or become self-employed.

Dual Responsibility: The establishment of vocational courses or institutions will be the responsibility of the government as well as employers in the public and private sectors.

Technical and Management Education

Some polytechnics in the rural areas have started training weaker groups in the those areas for productive occupations through a system of community polytechnics. The community polytechnic system will be appropriately strengthened to increase its quality and coverage.

The All India Council of Technical Education, which has been given statutory status, will be responsible for planning formulation and the maintenance of norms and standards, accreditation, funding of priority areas, monitoring parity of certification and awards and ensuring the co-ordinated and integrated development of technical and management education. Mandatory periodic evaluation will be carried out by duly constituted Accreditation Board.

VII.         Making the System Work 

                Efforts should be made for making the system work.

VIII.        Reorienting the Content and Process of Education

                Population Education: Population Education must be viewed as an important part of the nation’s strategy to contain the growth of population. Starting at the primary and secondary levels with inculcation of consciousness about the looming crisis due to expansion of population, educational programmes should actively motivate and inform youth and adults about family planning and responsible parenthood.

                Mathematics Teaching: Mathematics should be visualized as the vehicle to train a child to think, reason, analyze and to articulate logically. Apart from being a specific subject, it should be treated as a concomitant to any subject involving analysis and reasoning. With the recent introduction of computers in schools, educational computing and the emergence of learning through the understanding of cause effect relationships and the inter play of variables in the teaching of mathematics will be suitably redesigned to bring it line with modern technological devices.

Sports and physical education: Sports and physical education are an integral part of the learning process, and will be included in the evaluation of performance. A nation-wide infrastructure for physical education, sports and games will be built into the educational edifice. Available open spaces in urban areas will be reserved for playgrounds, if necessary by legislation.

  1. The Teacher and Teacher Education

                The Teacher: Pay and Allowance: The movement shall be providing pay and allowances to teachers at all level which are in keeping with their education qualifications, professional and responsibilities and the expected status in society.

Housing: Special measures will be taken to provide housing facilities for teachers in urban as well as rural areas.

Study Leave: All teachers will be entitled on fully pay, one long-term study leave.

Special provisions for women teachers: All women teacher desirous of being posted as such provided that the latter are working in desert, hilly, tribal or remote rural areas.

Teacher Education: Professional growth: It is intended to link career advancement with professional growth.

  1. The Management of Education: For the proper management of education, co-operation of various bodies should be there. So that the aim of education should be realized.

National Level: There must be co-operation among various agencies from local bodies to national level so that the management of education should be done in a perfect way. National Level Bodies like – NCERT, UGC etc. make effort for the proper management of education.

                State Level: State Level agencies like PSEB, SCERT also make efforts for the proper management of education.

                District Level and Local Level: Various bodies of district and local level like DIET, DOE, Jila Parishad, Gram Panchayat should also contribute in the task of managing the education in a effective manner.

                Voluntary Agencies: Voluntary agencies should also play their valuable role for upgradation and management of education so that the aim of NPE should be realized.

  1. Resource & Review

NPE has laid down that the investment on education be gradually increased to reach a level of 6 percent of the national income as early as possible. While the actual requirement will be computed from time to time on the basis of monitoring and review.

XII.         The Future: Provisions included in NPE should be based on future needs.

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