The Advantages and Disadvantages of New Education Policy 2020

 

NEP 2020 Advantages: Achieving full human potential through education

The NEP 2020 has been introduced to bring monumental changes in the Indian education scenario. The following are the advantages of the new education policy 2020:

Increased expenditure on education: The increased spending on education, from earlier 3% to 6% now, will bring the much-needed funds, focus and prioritisation in the education sector.

Reduced exam stress: The changed school structure will reduce the stress of board exams and will channelize students’ focus towards practical skills and vocational learning.

Flexibility to choose subjects: Students have broader options to learn now. They have the option of choosing any subject combination from Arts, Commerce and Science and exploring a multidisciplinary arena of education.

Universalisation of education: NEP 2020 is making education a basic right. It will bring back many children back to the educational institutes and truly universalize education for children aged 3-18.

Introduces kids to coding: Introduction of computers and coding in class 6 upgrading the learning process.

 These policies are in tandem with the changing times and cater to the present and future demands of the world we thrive in.

NEP 2020 Disadvantages: Areas of Improvement

However, there are some points which have received criticism from some sections of society. The following are some of the disadvantages of the new education policy 2020:

Teaching in the mother tongue will be challenging: Teaching the fundamental subjects in the mother tongue will be a hassle as India has 22 scheduled languages and innumerable dialects. The course material will need to be converted to these languages first, and then the requirement of skilled teachers to implement this.

Widening the gap between learners: As the mother tongue is going to be the preferred medium of instruction till class 5, the introduction of English after 5th standard in government schools will widen the gap with the private schools that have been providing education in English since the beginning.

Challenge of digital divide: The digital divide present in India is even more extreme in rural areas where not everyone can afford smartphones. The problem is further compounded by the poor IT infrastructure of government-run schools, which will create implementation issues in the digitization of education.