The National Education Policy 2020 (NEP) has ushered in transformative changes in the educational landscape of India, particularly in the field of Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE).

About Anganwadi System

• Genesis of the Anganwadi System under ICDS (1975): The Anganwadi system, established in 1975 under the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) scheme, aimed to provide support for children aged 3-6 years. 
• Limited Educational Emphasis: However, its primary focus remained on nutrition, health check-ups, and vaccination. 
  • While some pre-school activities were included, education was not the central emphasis. 
• Early Learning Divide: Private schools have long had nursery classes, while government schools admitted children only from Class 1. 
  • This sowed the seeds of inequality in a child’s educational journey even before formal schooling began. 
• Stagnation of Public ECCE Infrastructure: The public sector’s ECCE infrastructure stagnated at approximately 14 lakh Anganwadi centres for a long time.

NEP 2020: Ushering in Structural Transformation

• The National Education Policy 2020 introduces a new 5 + 3 + 3 + 4 educational structure, with the first five years designated as the Foundational Stage. 
• This Foundational Stage is further divided:
  • The initial three years (ages 3-6) will be dedicated to pre-schooling.
  • The subsequent two years (ages 6-8) will cover Class One and Class Two.
• A key objective is to ensure that every child receives three years of pre-schooling. 
• To achieve this, the government is establishing ‘Balvatikas’ within government schools.
• Balvatikas are designed as play-based nursery classes that will provide nursery-equivalent facilities in government schools, thereby reducing historical inequities.
  • The ultimate goal is to ensure that early childhood care and education is available for every child in the 3-6 age group by 2030, particularly through Balvatikas.

Three Key Structural Shifts Driving ECCE Transformation

• Expansion of the ECCE Sector:
  • The opening of Balvatikas (three pre-school classes) in government schools will substantially increase the availability of public ECCE classes.
  • This expansion demands significant implications for personnel management, including financing, recruitment, training, and deployment of skilled ECCE providers.
  • The Ministry of Education is already allocating budgets under the Samagra Shiksha scheme for ECCE. 
  • Some states, such as Haryana, Odisha, and Gujarat, are effectively utilising these funds to establish Balvatika classes. 
  • However, other states, like Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, are lagging in fully implementing these provisions or are under-utilising the allocated funds.
• Migration from Anganwadis and Increased Emphasis on Education:
  • There is a visible trend towards a greater emphasis on education within ECCE services, shifting from a predominant focus on health and nutrition.
  • This shift is evident in regions like Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, where the introduction of pre-school classes in primary schools has led to a substantial migration of 4-6 year olds from Anganwadis to schools.
  • Parents are overwhelmingly choosing school-based pre-school classes over Anganwadis, driven by the perception that schools offer superior educational opportunities. This trend risks emptying Anganwadis, potentially reducing their core function primarily to nutrition.
  • It is imperative for the Anganwadi system to adapt by stressing education as a core part of its services. 
  • The Ministry of Women and Child Development’s ‘Poshan bhi Padhai bhi’ (Nutrition and Education too) initiative is a timely response to this need. 
  • Its success hinges on effective ground-level implementation and increasing the time Anganwadi workers dedicate to educational activities.
  • At the same time schools must avoid excessive ‘schoolification’ of pre-schooling. This means not burdening 3-6 year olds with textbooks or exam pressure. 
  • Instead, the focus must remain on play-based learning, 
• Reorientation of the Anganwadi System and the Critical Role of Home Visits:
  • Perhaps the most transformative shift is the potential reorientation of the Anganwadi system to focus predominantly on children aged 0-3 years through home visits, rather than primarily serving 3-6 year olds at the centres.
  • Historically, Anganwadis struggled to provide adequate attention to pregnant and lactating mothers and infants (0-3 years old) because most of their time was occupied by the 3-6 year olds attending the centres.
  • Research, including the ‘Perry Preschool at 50’ study in the US and a Yale University study in Odisha, consistently highlights the critical role of home visits in early childhood development programmes. The first 1000 days of a child’s life are exceptionally critical, with 80% of brain development occurring during this period.
  • With government schools taking responsibility for 3-6 year olds, a unique opportunity emerges for Anganwadi workers. They can now redirect their focus towards 0-3 year olds and the care of pregnant and lactating mothers through more intensive home visits.
  • Anganwadi workers can visit homes to provide crucial counselling to new mothers on nutrition, breastfeeding, hygiene, and brain stimulation activities for infants. This model has already proven successful in countries like Cuba and Brazil.

Conclusion

The transformation of early childhood care and education, driven by NEP 2020, represents a monumental stride towards ensuring equitable and holistic development for every Indian child. 

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