Poshan Bhi Padhai Bhi

Poshan Bhi, Padhai Bhi, an Early Childhood Care and Education program under Mission Saksham Anganwadi and Poshan 2.0 was launched recently. The program aids the government’s vision in ensuring the holistic development of children. Read here to learn more about the program.

The government is committed to ensuring the holistic development of all children under the age of 6 years, with a focus on building their skills in the key development domains identified under the National Education Policy 2020 (NEP).

The skills and domains are physical/motor, cognitive, socio-emotional-ethical, cultural/artistic, and the development of communication and early language, literacy, and numeracy.

They are under the purview of ‘Poshan bhi Padhai bhi’ which is in pursuance of the recommendations of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and the ECCE Taskforce established by the Ministry of Women and Child Development.

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Poshan bhi Padhai bhi

Poshan bhi Padhai bhi is a key initiative for strengthening Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) which is an important component of Mission Saksham Anganwadi and Poshan 2.0 (Mission Poshan 2.0) and envisaged under the National Education Policy.

Poshan Bhi Padhai Bhi is a pathbreaking ECCE program to ensure that India has the world’s largest, universal, high-quality preschool network, as suggested by the National Education Policy.

As per the guidelines of the National Education Policy 2020, with ‘Poshan bhi Padhai bhi, Government has taken up the goal of strengthening the foundations of the country’s future generations.

• The government will target children’s development in every domain mentioned in the National Curriculum Framework, viz., physical and motor development, cognitive development, socio-emotional-ethical development, cultural/artistic development, and the development of communication and early language, literacy, and numeracy.
• All States will follow the national ECCE task force recommendations for a play-based, activity-based learning pedagogy, targeted specifically at developmental milestones of 0-3-year-olds as well as 3-6-year-olds, including special support for Divyang children.
• Through the changes introduced by the “Poshan bhi, Padhai bhi” ECCE policy, every child would be provided with at least two hours of high-quality preschool instruction daily.
• As stated in the NEP, Anganwadi Centres will be strengthened with high-quality infrastructure, play equipment, and well-trained Anganwadi workers/teachers.

Poshan bhi Padhai bhi will focus on:

• Promoting holistic and quality early stimulation and pre-primary education for children, ensuring the use of developmentally appropriate pedagogies, and emphasizing the links with primary education as well as early childhood health and nutrition services.
• Poshan Bhi, Padhai Bhi program will provide for the mother tongue as primary teacher instruction medium, different types of teaching-learning material (visual aids, audio aids, audio-visual and bodily-kinesthetic aids) to Anganwadi Sewikas, and help build a Jan Andolan, to involve communities in strengthening the foundations of the country’s future generations.

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Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE)

The period from birth to eight years old is one of remarkable brain development for children and represents a crucial window of opportunity for education.

• UNESCO believes early childhood care and education (ECCE) that is truly inclusive is much more than just preparation for primary school.
• It can be the foundation for emotional well-being and learning throughout life and one of the best investments a country can make as it promotes holistic development, gender equality, and social cohesion.

Globally, 75% of children were enrolled in pre-primary education one year before the official primary entry age in the school year ending in 2019, but in sub-Saharan Africa and Northern Africa and Western Asia the rate was about 50% (GEM Report 2021).

ECCE was a weakness in many before the COVID-19 pandemic. The closure of schools and other institutions during the crisis times posed an immense threat to the developmental potential of young children.

ECCE is a fundamental and integral part of the education system and a solid foundation on which to build lifelong education, lives, and careers.

• UNESCO’s work for ECCE is s aligned with target 4.2 of Sustainable Development Goal 4 which aims to ‘By 2030, ensure that all girls and boys have access to quality early childhood development, care and pre-primary education so that they are ready for primary education.’
• As inscribed in the Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989), young children have the right not only to survive but to thrive and develop to their fullest potential.
• The SDG4 – Education 2030agenda marked the first global commitment to ECCE beyond the education community and was followed by other international and regional initiatives and statements.

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India: Poshan bhi, Padhai bhi, and ECCE

As mentioned in the beginning, poshan bhi padhai bhi has been launched as a crucial initiative of the ECCE program.

Early Childhood Care and Education aim to facilitate the optimum development of the child’s full potential and lay the foundation for all-round development and lifelong learning.

The broad objectives of the ECCE program are to:

• Ensure each child is valued, respected, feels safe and secure, and develops a positive self-concept.
• Enable a sound foundation for the physical and motor development of each child- as per each child’s potential.
• Imbibe good nutrition routines, health habits, hygiene practices, and self-help skills.
• Enable children to effectively communicate and foster both receptive and expressive language.
• Promote the development and integration of the senses.
• Stimulate intellectual curiosity and develop a conceptual understanding of the world around you by providing opportunities to explore, investigate and experiment.
• Enhance the development of pro-social skills, social competence, and emotional well-being.
• Develop a sense of aesthetic appreciation and stimulate creative learning processes.
• Imbibe culturally and developmentally appropriate behavior and core human values of respect and love for fellow human beings.
• Enable a smooth transition from home to ECCE center to formal schooling.
• Enhance scope for overall personality development.

Mission Saksham Anganwadi and Poshan 2.0 is an Integrated Nutrition Support Programme.

• It seeks to address the challenges of malnutrition in children, adolescent girls, pregnant women, and lactating mothers through a strategic shift in nutrition content and delivery and by the creation of a convergent ecosystem to develop and promote practices that nurture health, wellness, and immunity.

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Way forward

As per the guidelines of the National Education Policy 2020, with ‘Poshan bhi Padhai bhi, Government has taken up the goal of strengthening the foundations of the country’s future generations.

Along with training Anganwadi workers, it is essential to improve proper infrastructure, including basic amenities like toilets, clean water, and sufficient space for children to learn and play.

The program will also benefit from community involvement, especially from local experts, retired teachers, and others willing to participate.

-Article written by Swathi Satish