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In a significant departure from the draft proposals released for public feedback in April this year, the National Curriculum Framework (NCF), released by the Centre on Wednesday, mandates teaching of three languages, including two Indian languages, in classes 9-10, and two languages, including one Indian language, in class 11-12.
The final version of the NCF has also dialled down on the emphasis on immediate transition from annual to semester system in class 12. According to sources, several states objected to this proposal as they were not ready for the transition, given the infrastructural challenges — in terms of teaching and assessment – the shift to the semester system would have posed. The final NCF now states that “in the long term”, all boards should change to semester or term-based systems.
The final framework reiterates the draft document’s recommendation on holding the class 12 board exam twice a year. “Board exams will be offered at least twice a year to ensure students have enough time and opportunity to perform well. Students can then appear for a board exam in subjects they have completed and feel ready for. They will also be allowed to retain the best score,” it states.
The mandate of teaching two Indian languages in classes 9-10 and one Indian language in classes 11-12 was included following “extensive feedback” from as many as 4,000 organisations in the past three months, sources told The Indian Express. It is learnt that RSS-affiliated organisations had expressed dissatisfaction over the draft NCF not laying emphasis on Indian languages, especially in classes 11-12.
“The first draft was a very early version, and was expected to undergo substantial changes following the deliberations and feedback received, leading up to the final NCF,” said a member of the 13-member steering committee that authored the final document.
The changes were last discussed by members of the steering committee at a meeting in the beginning of July, after which the final document was submitted to the Union Minister of Education, Dharmendra Pradhan, on July 30.
The steering committee was headed by former ISRO chief K Kasturirangan, and included Fields medalist Manjul Bhargava, former chairperson of National Book Trust Govind Prasad Sharma, Jamia Millia Islamia Vice-Chancellor Najma Akhtar, founder Chairman of Dalit Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry Milind Kamble, and founder director of NGO Language and Learning Foundation Dhir Jhingran, among others.
The draft document advocated the teaching of three languages (referred to as R1, R2 and R3) in classes 6, 7 and 8, and two languages in classes 9 and 10 (R1 and R2). No guidelines were provided for language learning in classes 11 and 12.
According to the April draft, R1 denoted the mother tongue or home language, R2 could be any other language (including English), and R3 was any language that wasn’t R1 or R2. State governments and relevant school boards were granted the freedom to decide the classification of R1, R2 and R3.
However, the final NCF mandates the compulsory instruction of three languages (referred to as R1, R2 and R3) up to Class 10. “At least two of these three languages — R1, R2, and R3 — must be native to India,” it says. “In classes 11 and 12, students will have to study two languages and one of them has to be an Indian language,” it adds.
Currently, most school boards, including the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), assess students on two languages in the Class 10 board exam and one language in the Class 12 board exam. However, some state boards mandate the teaching of a regional language up to Class 10, such as Marathi in Maharashtra and Bengali in West Bengal. The final NCF makes the study of Indian languages imperative across schools and boards, contrary to the optional nature of these subjects at present.
It’s important to note that the National Education Policy 2020 and the NCF, based on the education policy, are not binding on the states. The NEP is a policy that states are free to adopt, while the NCF provides guidelines on how school education should be conducted in classrooms.
The final NCF states that students will be assessed on a maximum of seven subjects in Class 12. Currently, Class12 students of most school boards have a maximum of six subjects.
It also offers students the freedom to pursue a mix of science and humanities to reduce the rigid boundaries separating arts, commerce and science in Classes 11 and 12 across school boards.
