National Council of Educational Research and Training
The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) is an autonomous organisation of the Government of India that was established on 1 September 1961 as a literary, scientific and charitable Society under the Societies' Registration Act (Act XXI of 1860). Its headquarters are located at Sri Aurbindo Marg in New Delhi.[1] Dr Hrushikesh Senapathy has been director of the council since September 2015.[2] NCERT assists and advises the central and state governments on academic matters related to school education.
History
The Government of India's Ministry of Education resolved on 27 July 1961 to establish the National Council of Educational Research and Training, which formally began operation on 1 September 1961. The Council was formed by merging seven existing national government institutions, namely the Central Institute of Education, the Central Bureau of Textbook Research, the Central Bureau of Educational and Vocational Guidance, the Directorate of Extension Programmes for Secondary Education, the National Institute of Basic Education, the National Fundamental Education Centre, and the National Institute of Audio-Visual Education.[3] It is separate from the National Council for Indian Education.
Objectives
The council's objectives are:
- Implementation of the National Curriculum Framework
- Universalisation of elementary education
- Vocational education
- Education of groups with special needs
- Early childhood education
- Evaluation and examination to reform IT education
- Competitive value education
- Education of girls
- Production of teaching-learning experience
- Improvement in teacher education
- Improvement of thought of student
Actions
NCERT has a comprehensive extension programme in which departments of the National Institute of Education, Regional Institute of Education, Central Institute of Vocational Education and field advisers' offices in the states are engaged in activities. Several programmes are organised in rural and backward areas to reach out to functionaries in these areas.
The council acts as the Secretariat of the National Development Group for Educational Innovations. The council has been offering training facilities, usually through attachment programmes and participation in workshops, to education workers of other countries. The council publishes textbooks for school subjects from Classes I to XII. NCERT publishes books & provides sample question papers that are used in government and private schools across India that follow the CBSE curriculum.
An online system named e-pathshala has been developed for disseminating educational e-resources including textbooks, audio, video, periodicals and a variety of other print and non-print materials, ensuring their free access through mobile phones and tablets (as e-pub) and from the web through laptops and desktops (as flipbooks).
Controversies
Ever since its establishment, the organisation has faced a great deal of controversy and continues to do so today. The controversy centers around allegations of attempted "saffronised" rewriting of Indian history (i.e., making lessons consonant with the Hindutva). Allegations of historical revisionism with a Hindu nationalist agenda arose in two periods: under the Janata Party government 1977 to 1980 and again under the Bharatiya Janata Party government from 1998 to 2004. In 2012, the organisation has been blamed for publishing 'offensive' cartoons against B.R. Ambedkar, the architect of the Indian Constitution and thus lodging an insult to the Constitution, in its textbooks. The controversy led to the resignation of NCERT chief advisors Yogendra Yadav and Suhas Palshikar and an apology from the government.
References
- ↑ Kumar, Prabhat. "Memorandum Of Association". Retrieved 12 September 2016.
- ↑ Pokhriyal, Sachin (12 September 2015). "NCERT gets its new Director as Dr Hrushikesh Senapaty". Retrieved 2 September 2016.
- ↑ Leading the Change: 50 years of NCERT, NCERT, 19 August 2011
