Education Sector in the Union Budget 2022-23, Analysis by Arun C Mehta
Based on the information made available in the Union Budget 2022, an effort has been made to have a look at the budget, actual and revised estimates in case of the allocation made to the Ministry of Education. Needless to mention that the ministry has two departments namely the Department of School Education & Literacy and the Department of Higher Education all the activities of the ministry fall under these two departments.
However, the focus of the present note is more on the School Education Department which plays a pivotal role in ensuring that it sends an adequate number of secondary graduates to the higher education without which the goal of 50 per cent GER as envisaged in NEP 2020 is not likely to be realized by 2030.
Without improving the efficiency of the school education, the higher education sector is not expected to receive an adequate number of secondary graduates because of which the school education department must receive adequate funds to initiate activities as adopted in the NEP 2020.
Click below to read full length article.
Panel meets with some shortlisted candidates for next NCERT chief
Indian Express, January 15, 2022
The committee to select the next director of the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) held interactions with a few shortlisted candidates on Thursday, sources said. The autonomous body, which assists and advises the government on policies for improvement in school education, has not had a full-time director for more than a year now.
The five-year term of the previous full-time director of the autonomous body, Prof Hrushikesh Senapaty’s, ended in November, 2020. Since then, Prof Sridhar Srivastava has been holding the position as director in-charge.
Sources said Prof Srivastava was among the candidates with whom the search-cum-selection committee held interactions on Thursday. The other candidates include head of the NCERT’s Department of Education in Social Sciences, Dr Gouri Srivastava, and the principal of the Bhubaneswar Regional Institute of Education (RIE), Prof PC Agarwal. The RIE is a constituent unit of the NCERT.
Latest Educational News from Centre Square Foundation Weekly Newsletter
August 13, 2021
- The Rajasthan Education Department is working on preparing digital lessons for specially-abled children under Samarth Abhiyan. Teachers have already been onboarded to give lectures in sign language and the department is planning to extend this initiative to cover visually impaired students of the state.
- The Education Ministry has roped in the National Council for Applied Economic Research (NCAER) to help expand vocational education in schools. NCAER will be tasked with helping Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) schools identify constraints, prepare solutions and help enroll half of their students for vocational education.
- The governing council of the State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT) has approved the ‘Deshbhakti Curriculum’ for Delhi schools. The curriculum will be implemented in all Delhi government schools from the current academic session which will start on August 15. The curriculum aims to instill the spirit of patriotism and nationhood in students.
- The Odisha government plans to construct playgrounds in 5,000 schools in the next three years. Buoyed by the performance of the Indian hockey team at the Olympics, the government also plans to promote sports from the school-level and design the curriculum with a focus on sports and physical education classes.
- The Delhi Lieutenant Governor has asked the administration to set up an expert panel to devise a strategy to reopen schools in the national capital. According to officials, the panel will work to finalize a detailed SOP, assess preparedness of schools, check vaccination of teaching and non-teaching staff and address concerns of parents, and a decision in this regard will be taken thereafter.
- The Delhi Board of School Education (DBSE) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with International Baccalaureate (IB) to implement IB programmes in 30 government schools this year, including 20 of its new Schools of Specialised Excellence (SOSE). As per a document shared with teachers, admissions to the SOSEs will be conducted through an aptitude and interest test and interface, where necessary.
- According to a parliamentary panel, the consequences of keeping schools closed for physical classes due to the current Covid-19 pandemic are too serious to ignore. The panel insisted that reopening of schools could be beneficial for students. The panel also made several suggestions regarding the proper reopening of schools which include accentuating vaccine programs and staggered attendance.
[For details visit CSF Webpage Past Issues]
