Vocational courses from class 6 onwards in govt schools

Mumbai: Students from class 6 onwards will be provided with vocational education in government and aided schools in the state from the coming academic year. The initiative is in line with the National Education Policy (NEP) of 2020, which emphasises the integration of vocational subjects such as crafts, entrepreneurial skills, traditional and local arts, agriculture, or any other subject that showcases local expertise in the curriculum.

The goal is to equip students with a variety of skills in addition to general education to prepare them to meet industry demands and embrace a modern approach to education. In addition, the school education department has also decided to include agriculture studies in the curriculum. However, whether or not the curriculum will be comprehensively covered in other subjects or will be a separate grade-based subject is yet to be finalised.

To streamline the application of vocational education, the Union government has launched the Skill India Mission, which includes school students. The Department of School Education and Literacy (DoSEL) has implemented the vocationalisation of school education scheme under the centre funded ‘Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan’ (SSA) in conjunction with the Skill India Mission.

Presently, SSA offers vocational education to students from classes 9 to 12 through courses approved by the National Skill Qualification Committee. The scheme also includes vocational courses for students in classes 6 to 8, providing them with skills required for various occupations in different sectors, helping them choose streams of their choice at an earlier stage. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) will provide detailed guidelines for these vocational courses.

SSA covers around 55 skills in a total of 19 sectors, including agriculture, apparel, automotive, banking, finance, insurance services, beauty and wellness, construction, electronics, healthcare, information technology, media and entertainment, physical education, plumbing, power retail, security, telecom, tourism, hospitality, transportation, logistics, and warehousing. Under the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana 3.0, the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, in partnership with the Ministry of Education, has launched the Skill Hub Initiative.

Kailas Pagare, state project director, SSA, said, “This activity will be implemented for the students of 65,000 schools in the state, such as zilla parishads, local bodies, and government schools, as well as students of aided schools.”

Agricultural curriculum from class 6

Under the NEP, the school curriculum is set to include vocational subjects such as agriculture. A committee of officials from the state’s agriculture and education department, as well as agriculture university teachers, have developed a plan to teach agriculture in all classes. The syllabus will be introduced in three phases - classes 1 to 5, 6 to 8, and 9 to 10 - and will cover various topics related to agriculture, including its significance, job opportunities, and farming information.

The state will appoint expert committees to create a comprehensive syllabus for this subject. Kaustubh Diwegaonkar, in-charge director, State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT) said, “We have submitted our proposal to the state government. The government will take the final decision to accept this as a separate subject or it will be a part of other subjects.”