The NISHTHA Scheme is the world’s largest capacity-building teacher training programme. It was launched in 2019-20 by the Ministry of Education’s Department of School Education and Literacy. It is a National Mission under the Centrally Sponsored Scheme of Samagra Shiksha. Its objective is to improve learning outcomes at the elementary level through an Integrated Teacher Training Program.

This topic of ‘NISHTHA Scheme’ is important from the perspective of the UPSC IAS Examination, which falls under General Studies Paper 2 (Mains) and General Studies Paper 1 (Preliminary), particularly in the society and Social Issues section UPSC IAS EXAM. In this article, we shall discuss ‘NISHTHA Scheme’ and learn about the Teachers’ Training Programme in India, Its Objectives, Outcomes, Status, and why the NISHTHA scheme is needed. & More.

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What is NISHTHA Scheme?

The National Initiative for School Heads' and Teachers' Holistic Advancement (NISHTHA) is a capacity-building program for teachers and school principals in India.

• The Ministry of Education launched the program in 2019.
• It aims to improve the quality of education in elementary schools. It provides teachers with training on a variety of topics. This includes pedagogy, child development, and ICT.
• The program is being implemented in all states and union territories of India.
• Over 5 million teachers have been trained under the program so far.
• The program has been praised for its reach and impact.

Objectives of the NISHTHA Scheme

The primary objective of the NISHTHA Scheme is to motivate and equip teachers to encourage and foster critical thinking in students through an elementary capacity-building training program.

Teachers will acquire skills and knowledge in various areas, including

• 18 activity-based training modules.
• Multi-departmental efforts converge.
• Integration of Information and communication technologies (ICT) in teaching-learning and assessment.
• Teachers are taught to use art as a pedagogy, encouraging students to be more innovative and creative.
• Improving Social-Personal Skills and Establishing a Safe and Healthy School Environment.
• School security and safety.
• Provide inclusive education that includes health and well-being.
• Demonstrate School Leadership Qualities.
• Teachers and school administrators are informed about new educational initiatives.

The NISHTHA integrated teacher training program aims to develop the skills of approximately 42 lakh elementary participants.

• Teachers
• Heads of Schools (Principals)
• Faculty members of SCERTs -State Councils of Educational Research and Training.
• Faculty members of DIETs – District Institutes of Education and Training.
• Block Resource Coordinators and Cluster Resource Coordinators from all States and UTs.

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Implementation of NISHTHA Scheme

Key Resource Persons (KRPs) and State Resource Persons (SRPs) that the State and UTs have identified will directly conduct training; these individuals will then be trained by 120 National Resource Persons that have been identified from the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT), the National Institute of Educational Planning and Administration (NIEPA), and other sources.

With the fundamental issues and expected effects of NISHTHA, States, and UTs can contextualise the training modules and use their own materials and resource people. Activity-based modules with built-in continuous feedback, an online monitoring and support system, training demand, and impact analysis are some of the program's standout features (Pre and Post training).

Expected Outcomes of the NISHTHA Scheme

Here are some expected outcomes of the NISHTHA Scheme:

• Student learning outcomes will improve.
• Teachers will be trained as first-level counsellors to be aware of and responsive to elementary students' social, emotional, and psychological needs.
• Developing a supportive and enriching inclusive education will improve the learning environment in the classroom.
• Students’ creativity and innovation will improve due to teachers receiving training in using art as a pedagogy.
• Students’ personal-social skills will improve as a result of proper teacher training.

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How will the NISHTHA Scheme Operate?

The NISHTHA program operates in three phases: NISHTHA 1.0, NISHTHA 2.0, and NISHTHA 3.0.

Source: gov.in

• NISHTHA 1.0 is an online course for primary and upper-primary-level teachers. 
  • It was launched in August 2020. 
  • It aims to reach approximately 24 lakh secondary school teachers and principals. 
  • It covers primary and upper primary schools across 30 states/UTs in 11 languages.
• NISHTHA 2.0 is an online course for secondary or senior secondary-level teachers. 
  • It was launched in July 2021. 
  • It aims to reach approximately 10 lakh secondary school teachers and principals across all states and UTs.
• NISHTHA 3.0 is a Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN) program covering pre-primary to class 5th. 
  • It was launched in September 2021 on the DIKSHA portal. 
  • It aims to reach nearly 25 lakh Pre-Primary and Primary School Teachers and School Heads across all states and UTs.

NCERT has developed special packages for each phase of the NISHTHA Scheme. The package includes online modules, generic modules, and subject-specific modules.

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Why is the NISHTHA Scheme needed?

NISHTHA Scheme is needed in the Indian education system for a variety of reasons, some of which are discussed below:

• To improve the quality of Indian school education through Integrated Teacher Training Programme.
• To develop competencies among all elementary school teachers and principals.
• To inform teachers and school principals about new school education initiatives.
• To address the issue of uninspired and demoralized Indian teachers, it is proposed that the teaching profession be completely overhauled using innovative teaching techniques.
• To inspire and equip school teachers and heads to encourage and foster critical thinking in their students.

Current status of the NISHTHA Scheme

The Ministry of Education will soon launch NISTHA 4.0 – Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) on the DIKSHA Platform.

The NISHTHA 4.0 training program aims to reach approximately 25 lakh Pre-Primary and Primary school teachers and heads across 36 states and UTs.

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NISHTHA Scheme UPSC Facts and Figures

Here are some facts and Figures about NISHTHA Scheme Teachers’ Training Programme for UPSC Exam:

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Conclusion

The NISHTHA initiative will encourage school teachers and administrators to improve their skills in areas such as AI (Artificial Intelligence) for better student learning, competency-based acquiring knowledge and testing, ICT (information and communication technology) in teaching, learner-centered pedagogy, school leadership ability, school-based evaluation, school safety, and security.

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UPSC Previous Year Questions

Q1. National Education Policy 2020 is in conformity with the Sustainable Development Goal-4 (2030). It intends to restructure and reorient the education system in India. Critically examine the statement. (UPSC Mains 2020, GS Paper 2).

Q2. Implementation of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) based projects/programs usually suffers in terms of certain vital factors. Identify these factors and suggest measures for their effective implementation. (UPSC Mains 2019, GS Paper 2).

Q3. The quality of higher education in India requires major improvements to make it internationally competitive. Do you think the entry of foreign educational institutions would help improve the quality of higher and technical education in the country? Discuss. (UPSC Mains 2015, GS Paper 2).

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