This blog will focus on the following 3 fundamental principles enshrined in the NEP 2020 to analyze the impact on the education ecosystem:

• Technology use and integration through online / digital education
• Promoting multilingualism and the power of language in teaching and learning
• Imparting life skills 

NEP 2020 emphasizes the important role played by technology in the improvement of educational processes and outcomes. It sees the relationship between education and technology as being bi-directional at all levels. New forms of educational software and hardware are foreseen changing not just what students learn but how they learn, thereby placing importance of conducting extensive research on how they can be improved to meet learning objectives.

An autonomous body, the National Educational Technology Forum (NETF), will be created to provide a platform for the free exchange of ideas on the use of technology to enhance learning, assessment, planning, administration, and so on, both for school and higher education. The aim of the NETF will be to facilitate decision making on the induction, deployment, and use of technology, by providing to the leadership of education institutions, State and Central governments, and other stakeholders, evidence-based advice proving the efficacy of edtech interventions, besides identifying new areas for research and innovation in the space of AI, Machine learning and Virtual Reality.

The thrust of technological interventions will be for the purposes of improving teaching-learning and evaluation processes, supporting teacher preparation and professional development, enhancing educational access, and streamlining educational planning, management, and administration

NEP 2020 also emphasizes on the need to bridge the 'digital divide' by making available affordable computing devices for students and making access to online/ digital education resources more equitable. Mass media such as television and community radio are mediums that will be used in the interim.

Appropriate agencies such as NETF, IITs, NITs etc. would conduct pilot studies to study the effectiveness of and suggest optimizing the integration of edtech products and services into the offline education set up from primary schools to higher education institutes. The policy also understands the need for suitable training and development for teachers to be effective online educators.

As per the NEP 2020, the medium of instruction until at least Grade 5, but preferably till Grade 8 and beyond, will be the home language/mother tongue/local language/regional language. Thereafter, the home/local language shall continue to be taught as a language wherever possible. This will be followed by both public and private schools in India.

The three-language formula will continue to be implemented with the States and students being given the freedom to choose them so long as at least two of the three languages are native to India. 

Besides Hindi and Sanskrit, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Odia, Pali, Persian, and Prakrit, will also be widely available in schools as options for students, possibly as online modules, through experiential and innovative approaches, to ensure that these languages and literature stay alive and vibrant. Similar efforts will be made for all Indian languages having rich oral and written literatures, cultural traditions, and knowledge.

For the enrichment of the children, and for the preservation of these rich languages and their artistic treasures, all students in all schools, public or private, will have the option of learning at least two years of a classical language of India and its associated literature, through experiential and innovative approaches, including the integration of technology, in Grades 6-12, with the option to continue from the middle stage through the secondary stage and beyond. 

In addition to high quality offerings in Indian languages and English, foreign languages, such as Korean, Japanese, Thai, French, German, Spanish, Portuguese, and Russian, will also be offered at the secondary level, for students to learn about the cultures of the world and to enrich their global knowledge and mobility according to their own interests and aspirations.

The teaching of all languages will be enhanced through innovative and experiential methods, including through gamification and apps, by weaving in the cultural aspects of the languages - such as films, theatre, storytelling, poetry, and music - and by drawing connections with various relevant subjects and with real-life experiences. Thus, the teaching of languages will also be based on experiential-learning pedagogy.

Read: Effectiveness of PLRRPAR Framework to improve your English skills

Read: How English teachers can use Glibzter Immersive while applying the PLRRPAR Framework

Studies will be undertaken to pilot new ways of assessment using education technologies focusing on 21st century skills. The NEP 2020 gives importance to holistic and multidisciplinary education with emphasis on enhancing communication skills, discussion, debate, team work, critical thinking, resilience and problem solving among others.

The motivation to write this blog comes from the article published in the editorial of The Hindu newspaper (19th Sept, 2024) titled Shed the myopia, refocus on the relevance of English, co-authored by Adv. Ra. Shhiva and Sabur Ali M, founders of Citizens for Law and Democracy (CLAD)

After perusing the entire NEP 2020 document, no where did we see any evidence of the English language being marginalized or explicitly categorized as a foreign language, with ample scope of it being used as a medium of education under the proposed three-language formula.

The NEP 2020 states that "All efforts will be made in preparing high-quality bilingual textbooks and teaching-learning materials for science and mathematics, so that students are enabled to think and speak about the two subjects both in their home language/mother tongue and in English."

We agree with the authors on the need to prioritize the promotion of English as a vital tool for national and international communication, so that every citizen can fully participate in the nation's growth story without any hindering linguistic barriers. However, the emphasis on Hindi and Sanskrit in NEP 2020 does not equate to the neglect of English in our studied opinion. 

English would still continue to be the lingua franca of the corporate world and an essential skill to have to climb the socio-economic ladder. We have a plethora of English learning apps for those students who'd have to learn English from scratch post grade 5 or 8. Our web browser extension and web app Glibzter Immersive - English Vocabulary Builder would be better suited for students having basic foundational level of English proficiency moving to intermediate and advanced levels.

Read:How Glibzter Immersive helps you build and expand your English Vocabulary

What is heartening for an EdTech company like ours is the due importance given to technology interventions and research for further innovations in the space in the NEP 2020. Using EdTech to impart 21st century skills is certainly a business opportunity that excites us at Glibzter.

Encouraging experiential language learning using creative sources such as films, music etc. is a validation for our Glibzter Immersive offering.

With the objective of bridging the digital divide, simple interventions such as Same Language Subtitling, can be used to not just learn English, but also learn regional Indian languages through subtitles and closed captions in mass media like television as well as on OTT streaming platforms such as YouTube and Netflix videos. 

Read: Same Language Subtitling: A boon for language learning via videos

What are your views on our observations about NEP 2020? Do share them with us in the comments section below.