Campus politics to board exams: Highlights of education policy recommendations
The TSR Subramanian committee’s recommendation comes after months of unrest at top university campuses such as Delhi’s Jawaharlal Nehru University, University of Hyderabad and Pune’s Film and Television Institute of India.
A government committee formulating India’s new education policy has proposed a new exam system for the Class 10 boards and a national-level common test for admissions to college after Class 12, among other things, in a bid to relieve students of undue stress.
It also suggested continuous evaluation of teachers, holding them accountable for the grades their students get as well as restricting how long students can reside in university hostels or stay enrolled in a course after complaints that many pupils at leading institutes took years to graduate.
The TSR Subramanian committee has made a host of other recommendations, including a uniform national test for admission to undergraduate courses and nearly doubling the government expenditure in the education sector. Here is a list of 10 key recommendations of the panel:
Read: Govt proposes time limit for enrolment in a course, occupying hostels
1. Class 10 examinations in mathematics and science should be at two levels — Part B at a basic level and Part A at an advanced level. Only those who want to study science after Class 10 need to take the Part A examination.
2. A national-level test for students who have passed Class 12 for admission to various undergraduate courses.
3. Holding teachers and headmasters accountable for learning outcomes; their career progression will be linked to their performance.
4. A minimum of 6% of GDP to be spent on education.
5. Compulsory license or certificate for teachers based on an external test every 10 years.
6. The setting up of an Indian Education Service on the lines of the all India services like the Indian Administrative Services (IAS).
7. Percentile system to replace grades or marks all across.
8. Amending the RTE Act to include private unaided religious/minority schools in the clause, providing free education to children from economically weaker sections.
9. Restricting political activity on campuses and doing away with student groups explicitly based on caste, religion or political parties. In its report to the HRD ministry, the committee also warned against letting campuses turn into “political arenas to settle national rivalries”.
10. No detention policy should be discontinued after Class 5.
Proposals in the education policy
