An alumna of the Delhi School of Economics and London School of Economics with a doctorate in education and peace studies from London Metropolitan University, Dr. Jyoti Bose is principal of Delhi’s highly regarded Springdales School, Dhaula Kuan (estb.1983).

Are you satisfied with the Union Budget 2018-19 allocation of Rs.85,010 crore for education? 

The Kothari Education Commission (1964-66) had recommended that the Central plus state governments spend 6 percent of GDP on public education. That was five decades ago. Most Western countries allocate 5-7 percent of their much larger GDPs to education. For India which aspires to create a pool of skilled workforce to fuel economic growth, the allocation is totally inadequate. Moreover, the real problems of Indian education lie in a domain beyond the budget — when will we liberalise some of the archaic rules that govern education?

The Union government proposes to scrap the no-detention until class VIII provision of the RTE Act. Are you in favour of this amendment? 

While promoting primary students automatically has resulted in a steady decline in academic rigour in senior classes, reintroduction of the detention policy will have a negative impact on children, particularly from deprived and marginalised backgrounds, resulting in dropouts. We must tread carefully and with sensitivity if we want the best for our children. 

What is your solution to reforming the country’s exam/assessment system? 

The CCE (continuous and comprehensive evaluation) scheme was a disaster because it was implemented in haste. The CCE was well-intentioned but unfortunately because of inadequate staff training, subjectivity and lack of clarity, it had to be done away with. So we are back to class X and XII board exams. I suggest we bring some relief to the current system by enriching the curriculum beyond textbooks, connecting knowledge to experiential learning, doing away with memorisation and introducing practical skills-based education.

What are your Top 3 suggestions for reforming K-12 education? 

• Infuse imagination, innovation, experimentation and creativity in the education system.

• Develop life and other meaningful skills of students to prepare them for the rapidly changing global economy.

• Indian K-12 education needs to move focus from content, methods of study and exams to a more flexible and open system.