UGC, AICTE, NCERT must come together to create framework for mapping future skills: Edu Minister Pradhan

On Tuesday, Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan announced that the Centre is considering ways to incorporate skilling into the school education system, and emphasized the need for a framework for mapping future skills. Pradhan also stated that degrees should be de-linked from competency, and that a future where competency prevails should be envisioned.

Speaking to reporters ahead of the 3rd G20 Education Working Group Meeting, the minister discussed the importance of understanding and adopting best practices and global models to aid the implementation of the new National Education Policy. Foundation literacy and numeracy, tech-enabled learning, future of work, and research collaborations are among the priority areas for discussion during the third G20 Education Working Group meeting.

Pradhan called for the University Grants Commission (UGC), All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE), and National Council of Education Research and Training (NCERT) to collaborate in creating a framework for mapping future skills. The G20 Education Working Group will hold several events, including a conference on deep technology and transforming logistics for coastal economies, a workshop on the future of work and skill architecture, a seminar on building capacities for lifelong learning, and an exhibition on the future of work, as part of the deliberations leading up to the meeting.

The first meeting of the G20 Education Working Group was held in Chennai earlier this year, followed by the second at Amritsar last month. There will be three supplementary meetings of the education group before a consensus is reached in June.