A comprehensive report titled ‘21 st Century Skills in India; State of the Sector Report 2022” brought out by Mysuru-headquartered Grassroots Research and Advocacy Movement (GRAAM) under UNICEF’s YuWaah project was released in New Delhi.
Atul Kumar Tiwari, Secretary to the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, launched the report at the national conference on “Democratising Digital: Breaking Barriers for 21 st Century Education” held on October 11.
In a statement here on Wednesday, GRAAM, a public policy research and advocacy initiative in India, said the report helps build a collective understanding on the India-centered assessments and interventions of 21 st century skills.
GRAAM’s Executive Director and Principal Investigator of the report Basavaraju R. Shreshta said the 21 st century skills is a complex and fragmented space with multiple terminologies, definitions, content frameworks and players. Therefore, to systematically study, map and analyse the space to promote a coherent understanding of the status of this sector, UNICEF commissioned the writing of the State of the Sector Report on 21 st century skills in India to GRAAM.
“The report talks about the significance of 21 st century skills, state of the policy on such skills in India and in-depth landscape analysis of organisations imparting them, followed by noting the challenges faced in the implementation of the new age skills, best practices and opportunities”, said Mr. Shreshta.
The 21 st century skills are imperative for the development of human capital of the country. he said. “The biggest limitation we are seeing among the students graduating from schools and universities is the ability to critically analyse the concepts taught, comprehend and communicate. We need not impart 21 st century skills as a standalone subject. It should be integrated with the curricular activities, very systematically. For instance, the Sugamya Shiksha Program of GRAAM-Makkala Sante (a market set up by students in the school) activity provides a natural platform for children to think critically, collaborate with their peers and communicate with the consumers about why their product is good.”
Mr. Shreshta felt that it was important now to develop an operational framework and process to integrate 21 st century skills in the school system of the country.
The report concludes with robust recommendations put together by the expert team providing a framework for organisations, institutes and government departments that are working towards mainstreaming 21 st century skills.
