Policy & Systemic Reforms
– Creating Enabling Structures:
For SDL to thrive, we need robust policy frameworks that champion learner autonomy and innovation. Our efforts in this pillar focus on creating the necessary structural support:
National SDL Framework (NSDLF):
We advocate for a clear, national framework that codifies the principles and desired outcomes of Self-Directed Learning. This framework would define key SDL competencies such as curiosity, effective goal-setting, metacognition (thinking about one’s own thinking), collaborative skills, resource-seeking behaviour, persistence, and critical reflection. It would also establish age-appropriate benchmarks, ensuring clear expectations for how these SDL skills develop across all educational levels, from early childhood to higher education, seamlessly aligning with the National Curriculum Framework (NCF) and NEP 2020.
Mandated Local Autonomy in Curricula:
We champion policies that empower local educational bodies, districts, and even individual schools to shape a significant portion (e.g., 20-30%) of their curricula. This allows for content to be deeply integrated with local challenges, regional language nuances, unique cultural heritage, and available community resources. For example, students could undertake projects to solve a local water scarcity issue or document traditional artisanal crafts, making learning profoundly relevant and meaningful to their lives.
Decentralized Innovation Ecosystems:
We work to repurpose existing regional educational institutions like SCERTs (State Councils of Educational Research and Training), DIETs (District Institutes of Education and Training), and Block Resource Centres. Our vision is for these to transform into dynamic “SDL Acceleration Hubs.” These hubs would be empowered to pilot innovative SDL models, rigorously track their data and impact, and then facilitate the scaling of proven interventions across wider regions, creating a grassroots-driven transformation network.