STARS Project
WHY IN NEWS?
- The Union Cabinet has approved implementation of the World Bank aided- Strengthening Teaching-Learning and Results for States (STARS) project with a total project cost of Rs. 5,718 crore with the financial support of World Bank amounting to about Rs. 3,700 crore.
KEY POINTS
- The STARS project would be implemented as a new Centrally Sponsored Scheme under the Department of School Education and Literacy, Ministry of Education (MoE).
- Aim and Focus: These are aligned with the objectives of National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 of Quality Based Learning Outcomes.
- Strengthening the government-managed school education system that primarily caters to the educational needs of girls and students from marginalised groups.
- Focus on initiatives of PM e-Vidya, Foundational Literacy and Numeracy Mission and National Curricular and Pedagogical Framework for Early Childhood Care and Education as part of the Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan.
KEY AREAS:
- Access and retention;
- Right to education entitlements;
- Quality interventions;
- Teacher education and training;
- Gender and equity;
- Inclusive education; and
- Upgradation of the learning environment.
SUPPORT FOR PARTICIPATION IN PISA:
- India’s participation in the 2022 cycle of the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) survey will also be funded by this project.
- PISA was introduced in 2000 by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
- It tests the learning levels of 15-year-old children in reading, mathematics, and science. The test is conducted every three years.
- India stayed away from PISA in 2012 and 2015 on account of its dismal performance in 2009, when it was placed 72nd among the 74 participating countries.
- The government decided to end the boycott in 2019.
MAJOR COMPONENTS:
- PARAKH: Establishment of PARAKH (Performance Assessment, Review, and Analysis of Knowledge for Holistic Development) as a National Assessment Centre.
- Included in NEP, this independent and autonomous institution under the MOE will set standards for the around 60 examination boards in the country.
- Contingency Emergency Response Component (CERC): It will help the government respond to situations leading to loss of learning such as school closures/infrastructure damage, inadequate facilities and use technology for facilitating remote learning etc.
- The CERC component would facilitate:
- The rapid re-categorization of financing (to provide flexibility in the crisis situation).
- The utilization of streamlined financing request procedures (so that delays in financing is eliminated).
WAY WAY FORWARD
- The STARS programme builds on the long partnership between India and the World Bank for strengthening public school education and to support the country’s goal of providing ‘education for all’.
- STARS will support India’s renewed focus on addressing the ‘learning outcome’ challenge and help students better prepare for the jobs of the future – through a series of reform initiatives.