Context
The Union Education Ministry is planning to set up “PM Shri Schools” which is said to be the state-of-the-art ‘NEP 2020 labs’ equipped to prepare students for the future.
About PM Shri Schools
- PM Shri Schools will be the laboratory of National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.
- They will be fully equipped to prepare students for the future.
Key- features of PM Shri Schools
- 5+3+3+4 Approach: It could imbibe the 5+3+3+4 (to replace the 10+2 schooling system) approach of NEP covering pre-school to secondary, emphasis on ECCE, teacher training & adult education.
- Skill development and education: There will be an integration of skill development with school education.
- Focus on mother language: Prioritising learning in mother tongue which are steps for preparing global citizens for the 21st century.
- Up to 18 years: Since the NEP 2020 also increases the span of the Right to Education Act, it will now cover ages 3 to 18.
About 5+3+3+4 System
- As per the new school education system of 5+3+3+4 outlined in NEP 2020, children will spend 5 years in the Foundational stage, 3 years in the Preparatory stage, 3 years in the Middle stage, and 4 years in the Secondary stage.
- The division of stages has been made in line with the kind of cognitive development stages that a child goes through early childhood, school years, and secondary stage.
- Here is the age-wise breakdown of the different levels of the new school education system:
- 5 years of Foundational stage
- For ages: 3 to 8, For classes: Anganwadi/pre-school, class 1, class 2
- The foundational stage of education as per the national education policy will comprise 3 years of preschool or anganwadi education followed by two years of primary classes (classes 1 and 2).
- This stage will focus on teaching in play-based or activity-based methods and on the development of language skills.
- 3 years of Preparatory stage
- For ages: 8 to 11, For classes: 3 to 5
- The focus in the preparatory stage will remain on language development and numeracy skills.
- Here, the method of teaching and learning would be play and activity-based, and also include classroom interactions and the element of discovery.
- 3 years of Middle stage
- For ages: 11 to 14, For classes: 6 to 8
- As per NEP 2020, this stage of school education will focus on critical learning objectives, which is a big shift from the rote learning methods used in our education system for years.
- This stage will work on experiential learning in the sciences, mathematics, arts, social sciences and humanities.
- 4 years of Secondary stage
- For ages: 14 to 18, For classes: 9 to 12
- This stage will cover two phases: classes 9 and 10, and classes 11 and 12.
- The main change in these classes is the shift to a multidisciplinary system where students will have access to a variety of subject combinations that they can choose as per their skills and interest areas instead of being strictly divided into Arts, Science and Commerce categories.
- This stage will again push for greater critical thinking and flexibility in the thought process.
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