The path-breaking interventions and concrete efforts by the government are transforming the educational scenario of Jammu and Kashmir. The School Education Department has taken up several initiatives like reducing dropout ratio, increasing enrolment rate and others. The whole nation is witnessing significant transformation in the education system with implementation of new National Education Policy. The policy has put special emphasis on engagement and involvement in both classroom as well as field study.
Notably, Mentorship Programme: Student Teacher Engagement for Educational Reinforcement (STEER) will revolutionize the school education system by identifying learning gaps and understanding the constraints being faced by the children, their capabilities besides providing the teachers an opportunity to bring changes in their teaching methods.
Under this mentorship program, more than 21,000 schools have been covered and five lakh students have been mapped. Moreover, 40,000 teachers have been trained to mentor the students in 1:10 ratio. Further, efforts are being made to improve the quality of school education and employment-oriented higher education through the National Education Policy. Necessary changes have been made in the education system to cater to the human resource requirement of the fourth industrial revolution and digital economy of the twenty-first century.
Under the policy, Higher Education Council will ensure that colleges and universities become hub of research and innovation and contribute in developing a highly skilled national human capital. An innovative education system is being developed through a uniform academic calendar, updated curriculum, robust research ecosystem, institutional restructuring, implementation of a three tier feedback mechanism and digital initiatives like e-Samarth. As per official data, 4841 students have been registered for general degree and professional courses under the Prime Minister’s Special Scholarship Scheme for the current financial year and after three decades of stagnation, schools were made operational for 200 days last year, reflecting seriousness of government to transform education sector. Moreover, 70,000 children have joined classrooms through the ‘Aao School Chalein’ campaign and recorded a 17.87 per cent increase in enrollment in the year 2022 through special focus on early child care and education.
