To encourage open schooling, govt to organize awareness campaign: Javadekar

The government is planning a nation-wide awareness campaign to encourage those who had left school midway to complete at least their secondary education through open schooling.

Speaking at an event organized by the National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS), Union Human Resource and Development (HRD) Minister Prakash Javadekar said that every year five lakh students are passing through it and the target should be 10 lakh.

“We will organize a campaign to instill confidence in those people who have passed the eighth or ninth class but have not cleared tenth. We will tell them to come to National Schooling,” Javadekar said at the event where Minister of State for HRD Upendra Kushwaha and School Education Secretary Anil Swarup were also present.

The HRD minister said people, who for some reason have not been able to study beyond a certain class should utilize the opportunity provided by the open schooling.

“We are also forming norms related to open schooling especially related to Higher Education,” the HRD minister said. He said that earlier students who after Class 8 had undergone skill training at Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) were not considered equal to matriculates, but the Modi government changed that.

“Lakhs of such students have been allowed to take examinations through NIOS and they would get the advantage of their two years of study at ITIs,” he said.

Note: News shared for public awareness with reference from the information provided at online news portals.