About NIOS

Need for Vocationalisation of Education in States

• dropout rate after 10th class is very high, due to economic, social and other reasons.
• therefore, it is important to provide an alternative vocational education
• the students at the secondary and senior secondary stage need to be fully equipped with basic knowledge, skills, attitude and entrepreneurship, so that they can undertake self or wage employment, if required
• illustrative sectors where vocational education can make meaningful contributions to developmental efforts are, Automobile, Handicrafts, IT, Security, Health and Paramedical, Home Science and Hospitality etc.
• NIOS has extensive experience in developing Vocational courses and the course content is interactive, easy to understand and globally recognized, providing NIOS vocational courses at schools could lead to the vocationalisation of education and may avoid duplication of effort

Aim

To introduce vocational education at Secondary level and Senior Secondary level, to enhance the employability of youth through demand driven competency based, modular NIOS vocational courses and at the same time reduce the dropout rate at the Secondary level.

Proposal

• NIOS plans to take this exercise in collaboration with the State Government
• Govt. Schools and KGBVs could become Study Centers of NIOS
• Since most of Secondary and Senior Secondary Schools already have different types of Laboratories, which could be easily be converted into Skill Development Labs in specific areas.
• In these labs, NIOS developed courses or popular/need based NIOS vocational courses for the State could be undertaken
• A suitable model could be worked out where the training is carried out in these labs with hired faculty by the schools and examinations could be carried out by NIOS with a joint certification awarded by both NIOS and the State Government.

Responsibilities of State Govt

• Sign. an MoU with NIOS for collaborating for undertaking Skill Development at the Secondary, Senior Secondary and Pre-Degree Level.
• Instruct all schools and KGBVs to encourage students from 9th to 12th Class to take up one vocational course either, in addition to their five academic subjects or take up any one NIOS stand-alone course as part of five academic subjects from 10th to 12th class.
• Set up a Skill Development Lab at nominated Government Schools.
• Identify along with NIOS, the skill development courses that could be run in these schools. These should depend on the assessed needs of that region and the infrastructure available as well as those courses where vocational opportunities are available and are in the interest of the learners.
• Ensure that according to the NIOS vocational course selected, appropriate infrastructure be created in schools and the schools then accredit themselves as NIOS Study Centers that are known as Accredited Vocational Institutes (AVI).
• Ensure that schools enroll students for NIOS vocational courses as per their aptitude, interest and talent.
• Ensure that schools hire qualified faculty as per the norms of NIOS for holding the training classes in the contact programme conducted at the labs.
• Funding for this project would be borne by the GoI/ State Government.
• Ensure that schools make available the learners for undertaking NIOS practical and theory exams on mutually convenient dates.

Responsibilities of NIOS

• To design, develop and prepare courses especially relevant to a particular state.
• To ensure that courses so developed follow NSQF norms.
• To accredit State Government Schools and KGBVs to become Study Centres of the NIOS.
• To popularize these courses through publicity, literature and media
• To print books based on NSQF norms that are easy to understand, interactive and

Skill development oriented.

• To conduct appropriate research on Skill gap and need analysis for the State for identification of need based courses.
• To develop self-learning materials in the form of CDs/Videos for the courses identified.
• To admit learners, provide learner support and undertake Mukta Vidya Vani programme and TV Programmes on Vagda Channels through DTH.
• To undertake Practical and Theory Examinations as per NIOS norms with the help of External Evaluators/Examiners.
• To provide joint certification on successful completion of the vocational courses.
• To provide ID Cards/Hall Tickets to the learners.

Implementation Mechanism

• Nodal officers will be nominated by the State Govt. who could be the principals of the schools and appropriate NIOS Regional Centre will be the Nodal Centre from NIOS for the conduct of NIOS Vocational Courses at Schools.
• Schools will nominate co-coordinators for ensuring smooth conduct of vocational training at the labs and for co-coordinating with NIOS.
• An Executive Committee would be set up to operationalise and implement the “Vocationalization of Education” in the state as also to monitor the implementation of the project.
• The Executive Committee could constitute two members from both the sides. The committee to meet on quarterly basis to implement and monitor the project.
• MoU will be operative for a period of five years w.e.f. from the date of signing.