Page 66 - EducationWorld September 2020

Special Report

EARLY CHILDHOOD CARE & EDUCATION proposed by NEP 2020.
Swati Popat Vats veloped countries that have designed Restructuring of ECCE to include 5 years
common core ECCE curriculum of foundational learning (3-8 years)
guidelines such as EYFS (UK), EYLF For this proposed restructuring to
(Australia) and EYDL (Singapore). succeed, clear planning is needed.
These are excellent documents that First, continuity of curriculum needs
detail standards covering infrastruc- to be ensured. Second, a massive
ture requirements, safety processes, national campaign needs to be
curriculum goals, assessment launched to recruit and train teach-
systems, etc, providing high-quality ers to deliver education to children
benchmarks for ECCE centres, teach- in the 3-8 years age group. Third,
ers and parents. NCERT must study standalone private preschools, most
these countries’ ECCE policies and of whom provide education until the
adapt their best practices. There’s no age of five, need to be assured that
point wasting time on reinventing their children will be automatically
the wheel. enrolled in neighbourhood schools
● NCERT and SCERTs should invite for learning continuity until they at-
curriculum and child development tain the age of eight years.
experts and organisations such as the
ECA which have a wealth of experi- Developing a cadre of high-quality ECCE
ence to contribute to the design of teachers.
NCPFECCE. This is dependent on creating a
● Currently, there’s too much focus national ECCE qualification and
r. Swati Popat Vats is presi- on the development of cognitive formally training all in-service ECCE
dent of the Early Childhood rather than social skills in ECCE cur- teachers. ECA has developed an
DAssociation (ECA, estb.2011) riculums. NCPFECCE should strike a excellent ECCE teachers training
which has a membership of 38,000 balance between the two to develop module for children in the 0-8 years
preschools countrywide, and presi- socially and emotionally capable and group.
dent of the Association for Primary ‘happy to learn’ children.
Education and Research. What are the major implementation
How satisfied are you with NEP 2020’s Strengthening the country’s 1.4 million roadblocks?
According to NEP 2020, four minis-
recommendations for early childhood anganwadis and their integration into
care and education (ECCE)? school complexes/clusters as recom- tries are in charge of ECCE — educa-
tion, women and child development,
NEP 2020 clearly acknowledges that mended by NEP 2020. health and family welfare, and tribal
over 85 percent of a child’s cumula- For historical reasons, government- affairs. A special joint task force
tive brain development happens promoted anganw adis lack quali- should be constituted to ensure
prior to the age of six years and that fied ECCE teachers, quality learning smooth integration of ECCE into
ECCE is the foundation of all future materials and infrastructure. primary education. There’s the dan-
learning. This is cause for celebra- Against this backdrop, integrating ger of ECCE being lost in boundary
tion. To its credit, the policy has anganw adis into school complexes/ disputes between these ministries.
made sensible proposals to improve clusters as proposed by NEP 2020 is NEP 2020 states that regulation
all ECCE programmes except in the a good idea as it will enable them to should be light but tight. I fear that
area of teacher training. share resources and ensure learn-
ing continuity. But care needs to be state governments may take this as a
What are your implementation/sugges- taken to ensure that the develop- license to come down hard on private
tions for the following: ment needs of youngest children preschools.
National Curricular and Pedagogical are prioritised. Most important, we
Framework for Early Childhood Care and need to design a mechanism to de- Is there any important area of ECCE
Education (NCPFECCE) velop quality teachers and improve which NEP 2020 has failed to address?
● NCERT has been tasked with learning outcomes in anganwadis ● The policy should have prescribed
developing NCPFECCE within two countrywide. SER has developed a common national ECCE teacher
A
sub-frameworks — for 0-3 year-olds an assessment scale for preschools qualification. This would have en-
and 3-8 year-olds. I hope the phi- which should be strengthened and hanced societal respect for teachers
losophies and pedagogies of globally deployed in all preschools country- and ensured better salaries.
respected ECCE pioneers such as wide. ● The policy has failed to stress the
Friedrich Froebel and Maria Montes- But to do this, it’s imperative to need for parent education.
sori and Indian educationists Gijub- increase the budgetary allocation ● The PARAKH National Assess-
hai Badheka, Rabindranath Tagore, for the ICDS programme. In Union ment Centre proposed by NEP 2020,
Mahatma Gandhi, Tarabai Modak Budget 2020-21, a mere Rs.20,532 should have been tasked with assess-
and Anutai Wagh will be reflected in crore was allocated for 1.4 million ment of early years education. This
the frameworks. anganwadis. This needs to be tripled would have ended regressive testing
● We need to follow the lead of de- to implement the ECCE reforms practices of some preschools.

66 EDUCATIONWORLD SEPTEMBER 2020