SWAYAM stands for Study Webs of Active Learning for Young Aspiring Minds. This is a program under the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD). Former President Shri Pranab Mukherjee launched SWAYAM and SWAYAM Prabha. There are 32 Direct To Home (DTH) channels operationalised for telecasting education content free of charge. For more information on UPSC Exam, visit the given link IAS Exam.
What is SWAYAM?
SWAYAM is a free online education program started by the Government of India.
What was the need for starting SWAYAM?
It was started to achieve 3 important principles of education policy
- Acess
- Equity
- Quality
Are courses free?
Yes, the SWAYAM course is free of cost. Fees are only levied if the learner requires a certificate.
How is the SWAYAM program conducted?
- It is conducted through a platform that facilitates the hosting of all courses.
- Courses included are from Class 9 till post-graduation.
- Courses can be accessed by anyone, anywhere at any time.
- More than 1,000 specially chosen faculty and teachers were part of preparing these courses.
What are the main features of SWAYAM program?
- Video lecture
- Specially prepared reading material that can be downloaded/printed.
- Self-assessment through quizzes and tests.
- There is an online discussion forum for clearing doubts.
SWAYAM – 9 National Co-ordinators
There are 9 National Coordinators for various courses and levels of education.
Below table gives details on 9 National Coordinators
| AICTE (All India Council for Technical Education) | For self-paced and international courses |
| NPTEL (National Program on Technology Enhanced Learning) | Engineering |
| UGC (University Grants Commission) | Non-technical post-graduation education |
| CEC (Consortium for Educational Communication) | For undergraduate education |
| NCERT (National Council for Educational Research Training) | For school education |
| NIOS (National Institute of Open Schooling) | For school education |
| IGNOU (Indira Gandhi National Open University) | Out of school students |
| IIM B(Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore) | Management studies |
| NITTTR (National Institute of Technical Teachers Training & Research) | Teacher Training Program |
All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE)
AICTE was appointed as the 9th National MOOC (Massive Open Online Course) Coordinator in 2017. AICTE will handle all the courses that do not fall under the purview of any othe National Coordinator (NC).
National Program on Technology Enhanced Learning (NPTEL)
NPTEL is a project of the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) under the umbrella of 7 Indian Institutes of Technology (IIT’s) and Indian Institute of Science (IISc).
- IIT Bombay
- IIT Delhi
- IIT Kanpur
- IIT Kharagpur
- IIT Madras
- IIT Guwahati
- IIT Roorkee
NPTEL Features
- It has the largest repository of courses in Engineering, Basic Sciences, Humanities and Social Science subjects.
- NPTEL youtube channel is the most subscribed educational channel
- NPTEL has more than 54000 + hours of video content, transcribed with subtitles.
University Grants Commission (UGC)
- It was established in 1956, through an Act of Parliament.
- The objective was to maintain the standards of university education in India.
- Headquarters in New Delhi; regional centres in Pune, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Bhopal, Guwahati and Bangalore.
Consortium for Educational Communication (CEC)
- Needs of higher education are addressed through powerful media like Television along with other Information and Communication Technology (ICT).
- CEC is the National Coordinator for Undergraduate MOOC and 11 SWAYAM Prabha DTH channels.
CEC has developed around 322 Undergraduate MOOC’s covering the following disciplines.
- Arts
- Literature
- Language
- Social Sciences
- Natural & Applied Sciences
- Management
National Council for Educational Research Training (NCERT)
- The main objective is to improve school education in India.
National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS)
- Trained more than 13 lakhs, untrained in-service elementary teachers, through SWAYAM platform
- Operates through a network of 5 departments, 22 regional centres.
- NIOS offers 42 courses on SWAYAM platform.
Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU)
- Established by an Act of Parliament in 1985.
- Tried to increase the Gross Enrollment Ratio (GER) by offering high-quality teaching through Open and Distance Learning (ODL) mode.
- It has a network of 67 regional centres.
Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore (IIM Bangalore)
- 1st Management College in India to offer Massive Open Online Courses (MOOC’s) on the edX platform.
- It is the coordinating institute for management education for SWAYAM.
National Institute of Technical Teachers Training and Research (NITTTR)
- NITTTR was established in Chennai in 1964.
- The objective is to improve the quality of Engineering Education system in India
- NITTTR Chennai also serves as one of the National Coordinator (NC) for SWAYAM for the teacher training program.
SWAYAM – UPSC Notes:- Download PDF Here
The above details would help candidates prepare for UPSC 2020 exams.
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