The Centre has told the Delhi High Court that a National Curricular Framework for School Education (NCFSE) will be developed as per the National Education Policy 2020 (NEP) and a comprehensive strategy document has been prepared in this regard by the Ministry of Education and the National Council for Education Research and Training (NCERT).
The Central government, in response to a petition seeking a common syllabus and curriculum in schools, said that under the NEP, the national framework will be made available in all regional languages and will be based on principles of the policy, frontline curriculum needs, deliberations with stakeholders including State governments, ministries, and expert bodies and that a National Steering Committee for its development has already been formed.
It further informed that NCFSE shall be revisited and updated once every 5-l0 years taking into account frontline curriculum and State Council of Educational Research & Training (SCERT) are to undertake the development of State Curriculum Framework by adoption/adaptation of the national framework.
The petitioner, lawyer Ashwini Kumar Upadhayay, filed a PIL earlier this year seeking a “uniform education system” having a common school syllabus and curriculum in the mother language while claiming that such a framework will not only remove disparity and discriminatory values but also enhance virtues and improve quality of life.
“Chapter 4 'Curriculum and Pedagogy in Schools' of the "National Education Policy, 2020" under Para 4.30 'National Curriculum Framework for School Education (NCFSE) ' mentions that The formulation of a new and comprehensive National Curricular Framework for School Education, NCFSE 2020-21, will be undertaken by the NCERT- based on the principles of this National Education Policy 2020, frontline curriculum needs, and after discussions with all stakeholders including State Governments, Ministries, relevant Departments of the Central Government, and other expert bodies, and will be made available in all regional languages,” said the Ministry of Education in its affidavit dated July 14.
“Presently, as per the National Education Policy, 2020, the National Curriculum Framework (NCF) will be developed. In this regard, a comprehensive strategy document has been prepared jointly by the Ministry of Education (MoE) and NCERT… On 21.09.2021, the Ministry of Education formed the National Steering Committee under the chairmanship of Dr. K Kasturirangan for the development of National Curriculum Frameworks,” the affidavit, filed through central government lawyer Manish Mohan said.
The Centre, in the affidavit, informed that its Samagra Shiksha scheme—which is an integrated scheme for school education-- aims at providing quality education, bridging social and gender gaps in school education, ensuring equity and inclusion at all levels of school education as well as supports States in implementation of Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009.
Provisions have also been made in the scheme for textbooks to all children in government and local body schools including madarsas desirous of introducing the state curriculum, it stated.
The Ministry of Education added that pursuant to another scheme for providing quality education in a madrassa, provisions were introduced to grant financial assistance to encourage traditional institutions like madrasas and maktabs to introduce modem education through subjects such as Science, Mathematics, Social Studies, Hindi and English in their curriculum.
It added that madrasas were required to obtain recognition as schools from the State government for availing any assistance under the scheme, which has now been transferred to the Ministry of Minority Affairs, and only those madrasas were considered for the grant which was affiliated to any recognized school education board i.e. State Board of School Education, CBSE, etc.
(With PTI inputs)
