New Framework: Students To Get Credits For Knowing Vedas, Puranas

OB Bureau

April 14, 2023 10:37 am

New Delhi: Students may get “credits” for knowing the Puranas, the Vedas, and other components of the Indian knowledge system, according to the new National Credit Framework (NCrF) that the University Grants Commission unveiled this week.

The NCrF will incorporate learning across a variety of axes, including academics, career-related skills, and even experiential learning, involving relevant experiences and proficiency/professional levels achieved. Even online, digital, and hybrid learning could soon be “creditised” and accumulated, according to the proposal, as reported by PTI.

The NCrF document lists 64 “kalas,” or applied sciences, as well as 18 key “vidyas,” or theoretical areas, that can be taken into account for credit accumulation. The UGC released the draft of the framework for feedback from the public in October of last year with the goal of placing the school education system under a credit system. Every learning subject can be “creditised” to its assessment according to the framework.

The NCrF has split the learning ecosystem into eight levels and assigned credits based on learning hours from class 5 up to PhD level, encompassing school education for the first time under a credit structure.

Nothing is left unmeasured. Outside of classroom learning, sports and games, yoga, physical activities, performing arts, handicrafts, bagless days will also be part of the evaluation framework,” the report said. The Indian knowledge system is listed in the final report as well, and is included under the “special achievers” category. The draft of the document that was published in October lacked any mention of this.

Sports and games, personalised arts, master craftsmen of heritage and traditional skills, social work in high-impact fields like education, health care, and anti-drugs, as well as innovation and start-up, are some of the other fields that are eligible for ‘creditisation’ alongside the Indian knowledge system.

However, the text emphasised that credits must be given in accordance with standards for exceptional achievements in addition to pre-established learning outcomes. “The total credit points earned by a student will be the multiplication of total credits earned at a level of study or skilling and NCrF level assigned to that level of skilling and academic class. The framework also envisions taking into account cases wherein the student opts out of the education ecosystem and gains employment,” it said.

“At any point in time, the overall credit points accumulated by a student shall be calculated as ‘total credit points earned’ multiplied by the ‘weightage assigned to the relevant experience acquired by the student’. Credits accumulated by any student shall be stored through Academic Bank of Credit,” it added.

As per the document, credits can only be transferred when they have been approved by the appropriate awarding bodies and there is mutual agreement between the body giving out credits and the body receiving them.