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PRASHAST 2.0: Enhancing Inclusive Education by Mandating Universal Disability Screening
To support the push for inclusive education, the Ministry of Education held an orientation workshop on PRASHAST 2.0 and other provisions for Children with Special Needs (CwSN). The workshop brought together all the States and Union Territories to support the identification, screening, and support provisions in schools.
The workshop, arranged by the Department of School Education and Literacy (DoSEL), focused on the newly developed PRASHAST 2.0 application and the pressing need for the early identification of children who need additional educational support. This is part of the overall positioning of the initiative linked to NEP 2020, the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016, and the Samagra Shiksha Inclusive Education.
A Quick Overview of PRASHAST 2.0
PRASHAST stands for Pre-Assessment Holistic Screening Tool. The first PRASHAST application was developed by the Department of School Education and Literacy in 2022 to assist in the school-level screening of disability as per the RPwD Act, 2016, and was developed by the CIET, NCERT. To further develop the disability screening process, PRASHAST 2.0 relies on the digital screening and the capture, tracking, and monitoring of the data. The Ministry has also linked the upgraded tool with UDISE+, and school education data will now be more effectively linked with disability screening.
The goal of this screening process is to connect children who are experiencing learning difficulties and/or disabilities with educational support and interventions as early as possible, and most importantly, to do this as soon as possible.
Concerns Regarding Enrollment Gap
During his keynote, Secretary, DoSEL, Shri T. K. Anil Kumar, addressed the difference between the estimated number of Children with Special Needs and the number of Children with Special Needs in the school enrollment data. The data referenced came from disparate sources and timeframes. The post pointed out that Children with Special Needs made up approximately 1.73% of the total child population of India according to the 2011 Census. The enrollment of children with special needs in UDISE+ was reported as 0.89% in comparison to overall enrollment.
The percentage of 0.89% was also cited in previous official UDISE data. A reply from the Ministry of Education regarding UDISE 2021-22 reported that the enrollment of Children with Special Needs was 0.89% of total school enrollment. This comparison shows that there are several policy challenges when it comes to the identification, enrollment, and sustained participation in education.
States Required to Enhance PRASHAST Implementation
The Ministry has directed States and UTs to regard all measures as priorities for the implementation of inclusive education. The following were the specific instructions from the Workshop:
- The UDISE+ Student Progression exercise should be expedited
- PRASHAST 2.0 should be implemented promptly and teacher sensitization completed
- Capacity for inclusive education should be enhanced
- Accessibility audits of schools under Samagra Shiksha must be carried out
- Universal screening of PRASHAST 2.0 should be prioritized
The inclusion of teachers in the above is warranted as teachers and school staff are usually the first to identify the educational and other needs of children.
Current PRASHAST 1.0 Platform Description
Current PRASHAST describes a two-level screening process. Regular teachers conduct primary screening based on observable traits. Special educators carry out secondary screening and validation for students flagged in the primary screening. This distinction is important because PRASHAST is a screening and a pre-assessment tool and not a medical diagnostic tool. PRASHAST helps the schools to recognize students who may need to be assessed and supported. The system also intends to enhance the monitoring process and ensure that identification does not become the process endpoint.
Inclusive Education Under NEP 2020
This process is a part of the broader system of inclusive education under NEP 2020 and focuses on equity and inclusion frameworks. Already, Samagra Shiksha, to enhance access for CwSN, includes identification and assessment camps, assistive devices and transport, scribe and escort services, learning materials in Braille and large print, stipends for girls with special needs, and other teaching-learning materials.
The Ministry is also increasing teacher training and digital resources to facilitate more accessible mainstream classrooms.
The Larger Challenge is What Follows Screening
PRASHAST 2.0 will improve identification, but by itself, screening will not close the inclusion gap. The challenge encompasses what follows identification - timely assessment, an accessible classroom, skilled teaching staff, assistive technologies and learning resources, and support services for students.
The Ministry is more closely linking access audits, teacher sensitization, and UDISE+ with the disability screening process, rather than having these as separate activities.
Final Thoughts
PRASHAST 2.0 and its training clearly indicate that the Ministry intends to concentrate more closely on the identification of Children with Special Needs in the Indian School System. The Government is responding to the needs of Children with Special Needs by integrating Digital Screening with UDISE+ Data, Teacher Capacity Building, and Accessibility under Samagra Shiksha. The true measure of the system's success will be whether the identified Children with Special Needs receive timely and relevant Educational support.
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