Page 40 - EW July 2022

Cover Story

says NEP 2020 (para 8.6).
For separation of these functions,
NEP 2020 proposes an elaborate
schema in the states comprising the
Department of School Education
for “policy making and continual
improvement” of school education;
Directorate of School Education for
“operations and provision of the pub-
lic (government) schooling system”,
and the all-important State School
Standards Authority (SSSA), “an in-
dependent state-wide body” to “estab-
lish a minimal set of standards based
on basic parameters (namely safety,
security, basic infrastructure, num-
ber of teachers across subjects and
grades, probity and sound processes
of governance which shall be followed Prof. Geeta Kingdon: SSSA backsliding apprehension
by all schools)”. By this mandate, NEP
2020 eliminates official prejudice Kingdon, chairperson of the faculty Another area of darkness in Indian
against private schools sanctified by of economics of international educa- education on which the TSR Subra-
the landmark Right of Children to tion at the top-ranked University Col- manian and Dr. Kasturirangan re-
Free & Compulsory Education (RTE) lege, London and president of City ports threw a strong beam of light is
Act, 2009. Montessori School, Lucknow, ranked vocational education which perhaps
T HE CRITICAL IMPOR- in the co-ed day category of the lat- caste system of the country’s Hindu
#1 in Uttar Pradesh (pop.215 million)
for reasons rooted in the pernicious
est EducationWorld India School
TANCE of the SSSA is
majority, has been woefully neglected
underlined by the wide
powers conferred on this Rankings 2021-22, the government by post-independence central plan-
is already backsliding on the issue of
ners and the academy.
independent authority to direct pri- independence of SSSAs. The 60-page NEP 2020 policy doc-
vate schools to make transparent “Division of the role of the state ument admits that “less than 5 per-
public disclosure of all regulatory in- Directorate of Education as operator, cent” of India’s youth in the 19-24 age
formation (i.e, financial accounts) on assessor and regulator of the school group “has received formal vocational
a public website maintained by SSSAs education system and appointment education” as against 52 percent in the
and to adjudicate “any complaints or of an independent SSSA is perhaps US, 75 percent in Germany an 96 per-
grievances arising out of the informa- the most important systemic reform cent in South Korea. Similarly, your
tion in the public domain”. The prime proposed in NEP 2020. However two editors have repeatedly been high-
function of the SSSA spelt out in para years after the policy was approved by lighting that whereas the number of
8.7 of NEP 2020 is “protecting parents Parliament, there’s been no progress vocational education and training in-
and communities from usurious prac- on this front. On the contrary CBSE, a stitutes (VETs) in neighbouring China
tices, including arbitrary increases in subsidiary of the Central government is 500,000, in India they aggregate a
tuition fees” by private schools. which has 25,000 affiliated govern- mere 14,000.
In the circumstances, it’s vitally im- ment and private schools for which In acknowledgement of this glaring
portant that the SSSA in every state is it prescribes governance standards lacuna in India’s education system,
a truly independent body which will and conducts board examinations, in 2013 a National Skills Qualifica-
impartially set equivalent standards has been appointed SSA for Central tions Framework was announced by
of minimal infrastructure, teacher- government and CBSE schools. And an ambitious National Skill Develop-
pupil ratios, teacher qualifications and there is every indication that state ment Corporation (NSDC, estb.2009),
training for government and private governments are set to follow its ex- a public-private initiative chaired by
schools and maintain parity between ample and appoint state examination former TCS chairman S. Ramado-
the actual cost of education provision boards as SSSA. This will surely com- rai, to establish sector skills councils
in government schools and fees per- promise their independence and per- to draw up syllabuses and curriculums
mitted to be levied by private schools. petuate discrimination against private for VET programmes.
However according to Prof. Geeta schools,” warns Prof. Kingdon. Since then, little has been heard

40 EDUCATIONWORLD JULY 2022