Steps taken by the Government to boost skill based education under NEP.
The Government of India has initiated various convergence efforts across the skill ecosystem under “Skill India Mission (SIM)”. Under the Mission, more than 20 Central Ministries/Departments are implementing Skill Development Schemes/Programmes to enhance skill levels of millions of people including School Children on pan India basis to create skilled workforce as per the needs of the Industry.
The National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 has given special emphasis on vocational education through integration and mainstreaming of vocational education with general education which will help students in acquiring various skills to meet the needs of the industries and to improve the quality of education.
The department of School Education and Literacy is implementing the scheme of Vocationalisation of School Education under the Centrally Sponsored Scheme – Samagra Shiksha by aligning it with the aims of the Skill India Mission.
The scheme aims at integrating Vocational Education with general academic education in all Secondary/Senior Secondary schools; enhancing the employability and entrepreneurial abilities of the students, providing exposure to work environment; and generating awareness amongst students about various career options so as to enable them to make a choice in accordance with their aptitude, competence and aspirations. The scheme covers Government and Government aided schools.
Under the Scheme, NSQF compliant vocational courses are offered to the students from class 9th to 12th in the schools covered under the scheme.
At the Secondary level i.e. Class IX and X, vocational modules are offered to the students as an additional subject.
At Sr. Secondary level, i.e. Class XI and XII, vocational courses are offered as a compulsory (elective) subject. Vocational Courses are selected on the basis of notional hours, age & educational qualification prescribed and suitability for school students.
The State Governments have been advised that Vocational courses are to be treated at par with other academic subjects and accorded a similar status in the scheme of subjects.
Under the Scheme, Employability Skill module has been made a mandatory part of the vocational Courses. It consists of Communication Skills, Self-Management Skills, Information and Communication Technology Skills, Entrepreneurship Skills and Green Skills.
The Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) in association with the Ministry of Education (MoE) is implementing the ‘Skill Hub Initiative’ scheme under Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana 3.0 (PMKVY 3.0).
Skill Hubs are nodal skill centres identified to provide skill development and vocational training opportunities to target school dropouts and out-of-education Student.
As a step towards implementing integrated skilling through Skill Hubs, a pilot has been launched from January 1, 2022.
The information was given by the Minister of State for Education, Smt. Annpurna Devi in a written reply in the Lok Sabha today.
