The future of education comes with a blended environment and fortunately, the National Education Policy-2020 envisioned the change long ago and introduced a relevant policy to ensure the educational growth of the country, opined Anil Sahasrabudhe, chairman of All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE).
Multidisciplinary Education and Research Universities (MERU), Academic Bank of Credits, National Academic Depository are some of the revolutionary changes that are going to benefit the next generations in the post-COVID days, he said. He was speaking at the 10th edition of the University Distinguished Lecture (UDL) Series, organised by SRM University, Andhra Pradesh. The series focussed on the problem of the current times, ‘Higher Education in India in Post-COVID-19’.
Prof. Sahasrabudhe said platforms such as Swayam and National Programme on Technology Enhanced Learning (NPTEL) came into existence to digitally bring quality education to everyone. He reminded that digital education carries a boon that no one can ignore.
“Digital education has the ability to reach students anywhere and everywhere provided they are equipped with gadgets and internet connectivity. Thus, the government of India has undertaken a nationwide project under Bharat Net, Unnat Bharat Abhiyan to connect every corner of India through the internet,” he explained.
He also said the government has already established National Research Foundations to support mega research projects. Emphasising that studying in one’s native language is an essential requirement that NEP looks into, he asserted that proper administration, governance and autonomy were some of the deciding factors for the education sector in the coming days.
The chairman also revealed AICTE’s initiatives towards the advancement of the education sector — Curriculum Revisions, Project-Based Experiential Learning, Faculty Training, Industry Internships, Students Internship Programmes — are inseparable aspects of the changing education sector.
Satish Chandra, Special Chief Secretary, Higher Education, Andhra Pradesh, highlighted the challenges associated with online education and said future of education brings a blended environment with both online and offline teaching-learning options. He opined that LMS, online platforms, gadgets such as desktops, laptops or tablets are going to be a part of the new normal in education.
D. Narayana Rao, Pro-Vice-Chancellor of SRM University-AP, set the context of the event, emphasising on how the unprecedented COVID-19 crisis has resulted in the temporary closure of about 1,000 universities and about 40,000 colleges in the country, severely disrupting the teaching-learning process and research activities.
