Ahmedabad: In a recent address at the APAC National Skill Conclave, Professor Rajive Kumar, Member Secretary, All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), outlined key developments in the government’s initiatives to integrate skills with education, focusing on the National Credit Framework and its impact on higher education.
The National Credit Framework, introduced after the announcement of the National Education Policy, is a major stride towards integrating skills into education, he informed. The government has empowered programs to include up to 50% of their curriculum with skill-based courses. Several universities have already implemented this framework, with some going beyond the mandated 50%.
Recognising challenges faced by institutions in implementing the National Credit Framework, the government formed a core committee specifically tasked with addressing these issues. The committee further divided its work into three parts, targeting higher education, vocational or skill education, and school education.
A significant outcome of this effort is the finalised Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for the implementation of the National Credit Framework. Prof Kumar highlighted these SOPs as enabling guidelines, empowering universities with the flexibility to incorporate skills into their curricula. The SOPs are expected to be in the public domain for review and comments soon.
One of the challenges discussed in the address was the integration of skill-based courses from tech companies into university curricula. The SOPs stress that institutions have the freedom to incorporate such courses provided they maintain transparency by clearly defining and mentioning these credits on their websites. “Transparency is the foremost criteria in implementing the national credit framework,” he said.
Addressing concerns about multiple entry and exit options in universities, Prof Kumar provided guidelines for implementation, encouraging institutions to innovate and adapt the measures according to their unique requirements.
He said, “We have to emphasise more on skills. We have asked institutions to integrate skills with their courses, and we have prepared curriculums for many of the disciplines with the help of the industries. Some of the curriculums are framed entirely by the industries and we have kept the curriculum syllabus on our website.” The SOPs are expected to promote flexibility and cater to the diverse needs of students.
Prof Kumar also highlighted the initiatives taken by AICTE, opening up the approval process for technical education. AICTE has put the draft of the approval process for the academic year 2024-2025 in the public domain. The process encourages institutions to integrate skills into their courses and provides flexibility for curriculum modification based on industry collaboration and local needs.
“We are not forcing any institution to follow this curriculum. These are model curriculums, they can modify them as per their requirement, as per the expertise of the institute, or the local needs of that area,” Prof Kumar concluded.
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