Innovation in India means embracing structural change in our schools – Punekar News | So Good News

Bangalore, October 10, 2022: When we talk about innovation, unfortunately, education is one of the last sectors to actually make a change and shift from long-held practices to innovative, research-backed practices that have a positive impact on student learning. traditional methods. Early 1900s educator and educational philosopher John Dewey shared many progressive approaches to teaching and learning that have been shown to be more effective than the traditional rote and industrial school models that are widely used today.

India introduced the New Education Policy (NEP) two years ago, with little change seen in public and private schools. While Covid-19 has delayed implementation, high levels of bureaucracy can be blamed for the fact that nothing has changed in India and other public and private sectors around the world. It is easier to follow tradition than to retrain millions of teachers and school leaders to introduce more progressive approaches to teaching and learning.

One of the big changes at UNT is the shift from “10+2” (grades 1-10 + grades 11-12) to a 5-3-3-4 pattern (PreK-2nd grade; 3rd-5th grade; 6th grade). change. -8 and 9-12 grades). Redistributing teacher and leader training along these lines will have an amazing impact on how and what we teach in India. The biggest impact of this is to eliminate the need for board exams in class 10th. Why is there a 10th grade exam when you finish 12th grade in high school? One answer is that forty-odd years ago, the four-year high school curriculum was changed to a 10+2 model, with students choosing to continue or drop out of high school for another two years; so 10th class board is required.

Class 10 board exams are so entrenched in the Indian educational mindset that an engineer with a master’s degree and 10 years of practical experience has to show it in his resume when he applies for a job 15 years after his class 10 board. It seems odd that this person would place so much emphasis on an exam that measures so little of their education and knowledge and professional trajectory.

The time spent on teaching 10th boards, studying for 10th boards and taking 10th boards, not to mention the anxiety and tension they cause, would be better spent on actually teaching and learning the subjects, conceptual development. understanding, competencies and character to develop the drive necessary to participate in the ever-changing job market!

So, the most innovative thing that can be done to really change and change the way teaching and learning is done in India is to do away with the 10th class board exams and retrain the teachers and school heads, along with the parents, on what is really needed. the future, what to learn and how we should learn. If the weight of the 10th boards continues, no other educational innovation will be possible, as they will all be window dressing until it’s time to prepare for the exam, often a year in advance. It is a serious waste of study time for all Indian students to know what is really needed in this developing world. We can no longer talk about what works for the Indian labor market in India, but in the larger context of India’s growing share of the global market.

Dr. Ted Mokrish, Head of School, Canadian International School, Bangalore