Like fresh air amid all the negative news around the world in 2020, the announcement of NEP is considered as a welcoming change. The education policy has impacted both school and college education, few of which many educationists did not see coming. To discuss on the same lines few of the Future Education Leaders shared their thoughts on ‘Positive Impacts of NEP 2020 on School Education’.
The panellists for the third session were: Reekrit Serai, Founder, Satluj Group of School, Aditya Berlia, Co-Founder & Pro-Chancellor, Apeejay Stya University, Arpit Panjwani, Director, Maa Anandmayee Memorial School, Shivani Malhotra, Director –School Strategy, Vega Schools, Niyati Chitkara, Principal, Chitkara international school, and Mayank Kumar, Co-founder and Managing Director, Upgrad education.
The engaging panel was moderated by Dr Annurag Batra, Chairman & Editor-in-Chief, BW Businessworld & Exchange4media.
Talking about the implementation of NEP 2020, Aditya Berlia, Co-Founder & Pro-Chancellor, Apeejay Stya University, shared how it is a revolutionary change which will bring in a more holistic approach and will empower the education industry. He said, “By 2021, major changes will come. The next one year is going to be a true heavy lift for all of us.” He said how India has never had any shortage of visions, but the tight chains have held us back. His most important takeaway is the focus on creating autonomous institutions. As his concluding statement, Mr Aditya said, “We have to be holistic, pragmatic and honest.”
“NEP is extremely progressive”, said Dr Niyati Chitkara, Principal, Chitkara International School. She believes that NEP will eradicate half the learning gaps and will also give rise to the correct assessment of students. All the tech-giants rely on research and that is what Chitkara International School is focussing on. She further stated, “Research starts from kindergarden.
For Arpit Panjwani, Director, Maa Anandmayee Memorial School, what stands out is the reform system. “It's a very well-drafted and student-centric document”, he stated. The enhancement of skills coupled with AI, Robotics will help the institutions to retain students and promote better education. “We’re continuously collecting data to improve our services for students and teachers”, he stated.
Shivani Malhotra, Director – School Strategy, Vega Schools called NEP as a ‘fresh breath of air’. “With schools just being seen as places to study, get degrees, and move on, this policy is a validation to progressive schools.” She also highlighted the positivity as a focus on foundation and literacy, the focus on Indian languages, and interdisciplinary education. “Making efforts to reduce the weight of the school bags is something from the Vedas and it promotes so much creativity.” NEP will help us with convincing the parents about holistic skills. Ms Shivani further stated, “This kind of progressive policy will help us in strengthening our pedagogy.”
“NEP aims to focus on quality, accountability and affordability. But, does NEP strive to achieve the words that have been mentioned? Yes. But if you see Indian education system, the course hasn’t changed in a century or so”, said Reekrit Serai, Founder, Satluj Group of School. He discussed the challenges that NEP 2020 comes in with as India is a third world country in many aspects. “We were the first school in North India to have a smart class. So we have always been advanced when it came to EduTech”, he concluded.