Union Cabinet approves World Bank-aided STARS project: Know all about it!

The Union Cabinet has approved implementation of the World Bank-aided STARS project. The project seeks to support the states in implementing, developing, evaluating and improving interventions with direct linkages to improve quality of education.  STARS stands for Strengthening Teaching-Learning and Results for States.

The total project cost is estimated to be around Rs. 5,718 crore, out of which the financial support from World Bank will amount to  USD 500 million (approximately Rs. 3700 crore). This was informed by Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar during a press briefing after the Cabinet meeting. 

The project will cover six states- Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha and Kerala. This is expected to mark an important milestone and mark the beginning of the New Education Policy.

Breaking orthodox barriers, PM Modi govt’s STARS project will be based on learning with understanding. It will help improve quality of education by providing capacity building exercises for teachers & focusing on monitoring of school education system: HM Amit Shah (file pic) https://t.co/SjsQ1DMgov pic.twitter.com/Lxo70ADJ2o

— ANI (@ANI) October 14, 2020

Key Highlights 

• Under the STARS project, the identified six states will be provided support for various interventions aimed at improving the quality of education.

• The main focus and objective of the project is in line with the objectives of National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 of Quality Based Learning Outcomes.

• The Project envisions improving overall monitoring and measurement activities in the Indian School Education System through interventions in selected states.

• The project will shift focus from the provision of inputs and maintaining of outputs to actual outcomes by linking the receipt and disbursement of funds to these outcomes.

• The project will be implemented as a new Centrally Sponsored Scheme under Education Ministry's Department of School Education and Literacy. 

Two major components of the STARS project includes:

1. The project envisages the following interventions at national level:

• To strengthen Education Ministry's national data systems to capture robust and authentic data on retention, transition and completion rates of students.

• To provide support in improving states PGI scores.

• To support the strengthening of learning assessment systems.

• To support Ministry of Education's efforts to establish National Assessment Center (PARAKH). 

The STARS project will also include a Contingency Emergency Response Component (CERC), which would enable it to be more responsive in case of any natural or man-made disaster or health emergency. This will help the government respond to situations leading to loss of learning such as school closures/infrastructure damage, inadequate facilities and use technology for facilitating remote learning. 

2) The project envisages the following interventions at state level:

• Strengthening Early Childhood Education and Foundational Learning

• Improving Learning Assessment Systems

• Strengthening classroom instruction and remediation through teacher development and school leadership

• Strengthening Vocational education in schools through mainstreaming, career guidance and counselling, internships and coverage of out of school children

Key Objectives

Some of the targeted objectives of the project include to achieve:

• Increase in number of students achieving minimum proficiency in grade 3 language

• Improvement in secondary school completion rate

• Improvement in governance index scores

• Strengthening of learning assessment systems

• Partnerships developed to facilitate cross-learning between states

• Improvement in the State level service delivery

Background

The centre has also envisaged to implement a similar ADB funded project in five states such as Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Uttarakhand, Jharkhand and Assam.