Vocational education imparted at the school level is all set to move towards a modular pattern. Keeping in mind policy dimensions and suggestions for restructuring of the vocational education curriculum at the school level, the ministry of human resource development (HRD) has proposed changes in this regard. The PSS Central Institute of Vocational Education, Bhopal, a constituent of the National Council of Education Research and Training (NCERT), has prepared a proposal on behalf of MHRD to divide vocational subjects into various modules and to assign credits to each module.

“We have proposed that vocational education should be imparted in a more flexible way. And the proposal has been prepared keeping in mind the National Qualification Framework (NQF) that talks about vertical and horizontal mobility in terms of acquiring qualifications,” said Poonam Agrawal, joint director, PSS Central Institute of Vocational Education. According to Agrawal the proposal has already been submitted to the Planning Commission by MHRD.

“It is time that we provided systematic, well planned and rigorously implemented programmes of vocational education in schools. If the proposal is approved, a student would have the flexibility to select the modules according to his/her own convenience. Each subject would be divided into various modules and would be assigned credits. A person can choose to take a module and collect certain credits. S/he can opt to work after completing the modules and return to pursue more modules. If a person completes a semester, s/he would be awarded a semester certificate. If a student completes only a few modules s/he would be awarded a competency certificate,” explained Agrawal. She said that this system would also promote multi-skills in vocational education and training. “For example, a person pursuing a course in horticulture would have the option to select certain modules in entrepreneurship too,” she said.