Delhi Chief Minister (CM) Arvind Kejriwal, on Saturday, 6 March, announced that the national capital is going to have its own school education board.
Announcing the establishment of ‘Delhi Board of School Education’, the Chief Minister said that the board will “bring revolutionary changes in the education system of Delhi”, thereby “taking Delhi to new heights’.
The CM added that the “focus will not be on learning by rote. It will be on understanding (of concepts) and personality development.”
THREE MAJOR GOALS
The three major goals of the new board, as shared by the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), are:
- Students to be ready to take responsibility of the country
- Students to forget the difference between religions, caste, and the rich and the poor, and become good people.
- To get children ready to provide employment, not seek it.
He also informed that the students will be assessed throughout the year; and promised international standards of education.
MORE DETAILS
At present, Delhi has approximately 1,000 government schools and 1,700 private schools. The Chief Minister has further said 20-25 government schools will be affiliated to the new state education board in the coming academic year and their CBSE affiliation will be removed.
The decision, as to which schools will be made part of the new board, will be taken following discussions with school principals, teachers, and parents, said the CM.
‘REVOLUTIONARY CHANGES’ SO FAR
Further, Kejriwal said that the “revolutionary changes” that have been brought into Delhi’s education system include:
- Delhi has started spending 25 percent of the budget on education.
- Children were sent abroad to participate in an Olympiad.
- Teachers and principals received training from foreign educators.
- Mission Buniyaad and Happiness Curriculum were initiated.
WHAT DOES DELHI’S EDUCATION MINISTER SAY?
Meanwhile, Delhi’s Education Minister Manish Sisodia has lauded the new school board, saying it “will become the basis for fulfilling a very big dream of improving education.”
“In this, it will be ensured that every child becomes a good citizen, takes responsibility of the country by becoming a staunch patriot, and becomes a good person. This board will free education from ‘passing an exam through rote learning’.”
BACKGROUND
The Aam Aadmi Party had announced setting up of a separate education board for the capital in its annual budget in March 2020.
The Delhi Education Minister had informed that they are studying the policy in detail and have already been working on some of the reforms proposed in it.
“There are a few anomalies but there are a few good things, too. I have told the two committees that our board will be in sync with the NEP because as a nation we are together but the focus will not be on evaluating students once a year and encouraging rote learning in process.”
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