NEP 2020 in the classroom: Policy to Practice

National Education Policy and FLN Acquisition in India

• The National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 aims for universal acquisition of Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN) by Class two.

• The government has implemented programs to ensure every child acquires FLN by Class two.

• Over 80% of the 15,728 rural schools visited in the Annual Status of Education Report 2024 reported receiving a directive to implement FLN activities.

• Over 75% of these schools have at least one teacher received in-person training on FLN.

• Teachers have expressed clear and on-scale communication of the importance of FLN.

• Challenges and opportunities for teachers vary based on the local context.

• Post-training support systems are crucial, with states varying in the amount and type of support provided.

• Teachers often struggle to make full use of the guidelines and materials provided to them.

• The use of teaching-learning materials (TLM) in the classroom is evident in ‘demonstration’ mode, with teachers using the TLM, not the students.

• The issue of syllabus completion is a significant challenge, with decisions on what and how to teach primarily based on syllabus completion.

• The National Initiative for Proficiency in Reading with Understanding and Numeracy (NIPUN) Bharat has shifted focus on FLN and improved learning levels at the foundational stage.