National Credit Framework
Source: Indian Express
GS II: Policies and Developmental Studies
What is discussed under National Credit Framework?
- What are ‘Credits’ in the Education System?
- Highlights of the NCrF
Why in News?
The draft National Credit Framework (NCrF) policy to integrate the credit system was made public on Wednesday by Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan (October 19).
What are ‘Credits’ in the Education System?
- According to the draft, credits are essentially a recognition that a learner has completed a prior course of learning, corresponding to a qualification at a given level.
Image by free stock photos from www.picjumbo.com from Pixabay - It is a method of measuring learning outcomes.
- School students in India will soon be able to earn ‘credits’ from classroom learning as well as extracurricular activities and deposit them in a ‘bank’.
How does it work?
- A credit-based approach has become essential at a time when the University Grants Commission (UGC) is encouraging provisions such as the four-year undergraduate programme with multiple entries and exit options.
- It provides:
- Course flexibility
- The ability to change courses or institutions in the middle of a semester
- The ability to reenter the education system after a break without losing years
- Students can digitally deposit their credits in the Academic Bank of Credits, which functions similarly to a commercial bank, and redeem them whenever they need to.
Credit frameworks
- Credit frameworks are guidelines that schools, colleges, and universities must follow when implementing the credit system.
- The National Higher Education Qualification Framework (NHEQF), for example, lays out the guidelines for higher education institutions interested in implementing the credit system.
Highlights of the NCrF
- The proposed NCrF aims to bring all frameworks under one umbrella. It brings the entire school education system under the scope of credits.
- Only the National Institute of Open Schooling has used a credit system so far.
- The NCrF also includes vocational and skill education.
- The obtained credits will be valid for a maximum of seven years.
- School students will have access to all of the credit system’s features.
- It will eliminate the need for equivalence certification for academic programmes that meet NCrF requirements and will facilitate student transfer between schools and boards.
- After putting in 1200 hours of “notional learning hours,” a student must earn at least 40 credits to complete a year of school education.
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