The Ministry of Education is celebrating “ShikshakParv” during 8thto 25thSeptember, 2020 by conducting various National Webinars on the newly announced National Education Policy 2020. As part of this initiative, a National Webinar on ‘Credit Mechanism, Mobility and Academic Bank of Credit’’ was organized on 25thSeptember, 2020 wherein Prof. BhushanPatwardhan, Vice-Chairman, UGC, Prof. R.P. Tiwari, Member UGC & Vice-Chancellor, Central University of Punjab, Prof. SandeepSancheti, Vice-Chancellor, SRM Institute of Science and Technology, Prof. (Dr.) S.P. Thyagarajan, Former Vice-Chancellor of Madras University were invited as Speakers. Dr. (Mrs.) PankajMittal, Secretary General, Association of Indian Universities, New Delhi was invited as Speaker and Moderator in the Webinar. Dr. Surender Singh, JS, UGC coordinated the webinar.
The webinar was initiated by Dr. PankajMittalby highlighting the importance of ShikshakParv and the concept behind the Webinar on Credit Mechanism, Mobility and Academic Bank of Credit asenvisaged in the NEP 2020. She mentioned that the NEP 2020 is a much needed, forward looking & innovative, student centric policy where the student is the king having all kinds of freedom like multiple entry and exit options, choice of subjects, choice of duration, choice of earning credits from various higher education institutions and freedom of speed. All these freedoms and choices will come to the students through Academic Credit Bank (ABC).
Prof. SandeepSanchetimentioned that ABC will promote the flexibility, multiple entries and multiple exits, life-long learning and freedom to the students in choosing the subjects and will enable them to design their own degrees as they will be able to choose their own bouquet of courses. He appreciated the concept of examination on demand and explained in detail the building blocks of ABC.
Prof. R.P.Tiwari talked about the role of ABC for creating a life-long learning society and various benefits it will accrue to the students. He emphasized that the main objectives of the ABC are to promote student centric higher education system and enable students to select courses and institutions; allow them to choose a pace for their studies to complete their degrees as per their choice. He also mentioned that ABC will promote access, equity, quality, flexibility, collaboration and transparency to improve the competitiveness and efficiency in India’s higher education system.
Prof. BhushanPatwardhan appreciatedthe attempts made by UGC in line with the NEP recommendations to liberate the Indian higher education from a slew of regulations and regulators. Academic Bank of Credits shall facilitate the integration of the campuses and distributed learning system, by creating student mobility within inter and intra university system. He also emphasized that the ABC may help in seamlessly integrating skills and experiences into a credit based formal system by providing a credit recognition mechanism.
Prof. Thyagarajan during his course referred to the tradition knowledge system of India and felt that 64 Kalas and 14 Vidyas imparted in the ancient time are beingreintroduced in ABC. The ABC will lead to life-long learning by promoting learning and relearning cycles multiple times. He felt that through this concept higher education space will move from rigidity to flexibility, make students knowledge creators instead of users of knowledge and their holistic development and make them job creators rather than job seekers. The integration of skill education with the academic stream will improve the employability and lead to global citizen education.
