Implementing NEP: Maharashtra forms panel to restructure school education

The government of Maharashtra has formed an inter-departmental committee for implementation of the National Education Policy (NEP) which will draw up the roadmap for converting the existing structure of school education from 10+2 to 5+3+3+4 under which for the first time, three years of pre-primary will be brought under the formal education system.

Representatives from different departments such as school education, women and child development, social welfare, tribal development and skill development, among others, will work together in the inter-departmental committee. The school education department issued a Government Resolution (GR) in this regard yesterday.

In the new structure, as per the GR, the first five years will include three years of pre-primary, Class I and II. The focus will be to enable children of these classes to read and write and an innovative ‘Happiness Curriculum’ will be developed for these classes with the help of local games and languages.

For Class III to V, activity-based interactive curriculum will be developed for students’ intellectual growth. The three years after that, Class VI to VIII, will focus on application-based practical knowledge, including skill-oriented courses.

In Class IX to XII, the final four years of school education, students will get a chance to learn subjects of their choice from a pool of 40 subjects. While the importance of board exams will be diluted, the practice of asking students to choose a stream for Class XI and XII will be removed by offering a multidisciplinary approach.