The crisp October air carries more than just the changing of seasons, it brings with it a increased awareness about learning differences and educational inclusion. As autumn leaves transform the landscape, October marks an important month dedicated to disability awareness, with World Dyslexia Awareness Week spanning the first week and ending in World Dyslexia Awareness Day on October 8th. This month serves as a reminder that learning is not a one-size-fits-all journey, particularly relevant as we examine India’s National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, which has now completed its fifth year of implementation.
Before moving ahead it is important here to understand what Dyslexia is and how it results into the hidden challenge in learning. Dyslexia, a neurological condition affecting approximately 3-7% of the global population, represents far more than difficulty with reading. It is a specific learning disability that disrupts how the brain processes written language, characterized by challenges in accurate and fluent word recognition, poor spelling abilities, and difficulties with phonological processing—the manipulation of sounds within words. The International Dyslexia Association defines it as a condition that “is characterized by difficulties with accurate and/or fluent word recognition and by poor spelling and decoding abilities,” typically resulting from deficits in the phonological component of language that are often unexpected given other cognitive abilities.
In India, where linguistic diversity adds complexity to learning challenges, dyslexia’s prevalence mirrors global statistics. Studies indicate that approximately 11.2% of Indian primary school children experience dyslexia, while dysgraphia (writing difficulties) affects 12.5% and dyscalculia (mathematical learning challenges) impacts 10.5% of the school population. These learning disabilities collectively represent what experts term Specific Learning Disorders (SLD), with meta-analyses suggesting an overall prevalence of 8% among Indian children, though some studies report rates as high as 16.49%.
Beyond dyslexia lies a constellation of learning differences that impact how children acquire foundational skills. Dysgraphia manifests as difficulties in handwriting, spatial planning on paper, and the cognitive challenge of thinking and writing simultaneously. Students with dysgraphia may exhibit illegible handwriting, inconsistent spacing, and struggle with converting thoughts into written expression despite adequate intelligence and instruction.
Dyscalculia, often termed “mathematical dyslexia,” affects number processing, mathematical reasoning, and the ability to understand quantity relationships. Children with dyscalculia may have difficulty reading clocks, counting money, identifying patterns, and performing mental calculations. These conditions often co-occur, with approximately 30% of children with SLD experiencing behavioral and emotional problems as secondary consequences of their learning struggles.
The recognition of these diverse learning needs becomes particularly significant when examining India’s educational landscape, where October’s disability awareness initiatives intersect with the broader challenges of implementing inclusive education policies.
NEP 2020: A Vision for Transformation
The National Education Policy 2020, approved on July 30, 2020, emerged as India’s first comprehensive education policy of the 21st century, replacing the 34-year old NEP of 1986. Conceptualized by the committee led by Dr. K. Kasturirangan, this ambitious framework envisions a holistic transformation of India’s educational ecosystem through principles of access, equity, quality, affordability, and accountability.
At its core, NEP 2020 introduces a revolutionary 5+3+3+4 pedagogical structure, replacing the traditional 10+2 system. This framework encompasses five years of foundational stage (ages 3-8), three years of preparatory stage (ages 8-11), three years of middle stage (ages 11-14), and four years of secondary stage (ages 14-18). This structure aligns with cognitive development patterns, ensuring that educational approaches match children’s developmental stages.
The policy’s objectives extend beyond structural changes to encompass fundamental philosophical shifts. It emphasizes mother tongue instruction in early years, recognizing that children learn best in familiar linguistic environments. The integration of vocational education from Grade 6 onwards, multidisciplinary learning approaches, and flexible curricula reflect an understanding that education must prepare students for a rapidly changing world while respecting India’s cultural diversity.
For students with disabilities, NEP 2020 represents a paradigm shift toward genuine inclusion. The policy explicitly recognizes the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act (RPWD) 2016 and commits to creating barrier-free educational environments. It expands the definition of Socially and Economically Disadvantaged Groups (SEDGs) to include persons with disabilities, signaling a comprehensive approach to educational equity.
Five Years of Implementation: Achievements and Outcomes
After half a decade of implementation, NEP 2020 has achieved notable milestones that demonstrate its potential for transformative impact. The foundational literacy and numeracy initiative, NIPUN Bharat, launched in July 2021, has reached over 4.2 crore students across 8.9 lakh schools. This mission aims to ensure that every child achieves foundational skills by Grade 3 by 2026-27, recognizing that “children who fall behind, get left behind”.
In Uttar Pradesh alone, remarkable progress has been documented through the NIPUN Lakshaya App evaluations. The state achieved 43% of schools attaining NIPUN Vidyalaya status (minimum 80% NIPUN students) in 2024-25, a dramatic increase from 16% in 2023-24 and just 4% in 2022-23. The Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) 2024 validates this progress, showing Uttar Pradesh achieving the highest percentage point improvement in Grade 3 literacy and numeracy.
Higher education has witnessed significant growth, with total enrollments rising to 4.46 crore, representing a 30% increase since 2014-15. Female enrollment has surged by 38%, with women’s gross enrollment ratio now surpassing men’s. The Academic Bank of Credits (ABC) has enabled flexible learning pathways, while the introduction of CUET as a common entrance examination has streamlined undergraduate admissions.
For inclusive education specifically, over 1.15 lakh students from SEDGs and 7.58 lakh girls have enrolled in residential schools. The PRASHAST App supports disability screening, while specialized teacher training through NISHTHA has reached over 4 lakh educators via digital platforms like DIKSHA and PM e-Vidya.
Technological integration has accelerated, with 72% of schools now having internet access. Innovative tools like e-Jaadui Pitara for AI-powered play-based learning and AI bots such as Katha Sakhi and Teacher Tara are enhancing educational delivery. The National Research Foundation, established with a ₹50,000 crore hybrid funding model, has strengthened research ecosystems, contributing to India ranking 3rd globally in research publications.
The Inclusion Imperative: NEP 2020’s Disability Provisions
NEP 2020’s approach to inclusive education extends beyond mere accommodation to genuine transformation of educational environments. The policy mandates recruitment of special educators with cross-disability training in all school complexes, ensuring that teaching becomes more inclusive and responsive to diverse learning needs. This represents a significant departure from traditional special education models that often segregated students with disabilities.
The policy addresses the historical confusion between the Right to Education Act 2009 and the RPWD Act 2016 regarding educational options for children with disabilities. NEP 2020 clearly establishes three pathways: neighborhood schools for inclusive education, special schools for specialized needs, and home-based education for children with severe disabilities. This clarification provides parents and educators with clear frameworks for educational decision-making.
Early childhood care and education (ECCE) receives particular emphasis for children with disabilities, recognizing that early intervention significantly impacts developmental outcomes. The policy promotes use of assistive technology, standardization of Indian Sign Language for deaf students, and creation of accessible infrastructure across all educational institutions.
The establishment of PARAKH (Performance Assessment, Review, and Analysis of Knowledge for Holistic Development) specifically addresses assessment needs of students with learning disabilities, moving beyond traditional testing methods that often disadvantage neurodivergent learners. This represents a crucial shift toward recognizing diverse ways of demonstrating knowledge and competence.
Critical Analysis: The Gap Between Vision and Reality
Despite significant achievements, NEP 2020’s implementation reveals substantial gaps between ambitious objectives and ground-level realities. The policy’s success depends on achieving 6% of GDP spending on education, yet current allocation remains at approximately 4.6%, significantly below the target established by the Kothari Commission in 1966. This funding shortfall undermines the policy’s transformative potential, particularly for inclusive education initiatives that require substantial infrastructure investments.
Implementation varies dramatically across states, creating educational inequities that contradict NEP’s equity objectives. States like Tamil Nadu and West Bengal have resisted key provisions, developing alternative State Education Policies (SEPs) that maintain conventional structures. This resistance reflects deeper issues of federalism in education, where the policy’s centralized vision conflicts with state autonomy in educational governance.
The digital divide poses another significant challenge, particularly affecting students with disabilities who may require specialized assistive technologies. While 72% of schools have internet access, rural areas continue facing connectivity challenges that limit access to digital learning resources. This technological gap disproportionately impacts marginalized communities, including students with disabilities who depend on technology for educational access.
Teacher preparedness remains inadequate despite training initiatives. Many educators lack the specialized skills needed for inclusive education, particularly in identifying and supporting students with learning disabilities. The policy’s emphasis on continuous professional development requires sustained investment that many states cannot provide within existing budget constraints.
The Commercialisation Concern: Education as Commodity
Critics argue that NEP 2020 inadvertently promotes commercialization of education through its emphasis on public-private partnerships (PPPs) and institutional autonomy. The closure of 89,441 public schools since 2014, contrasted with establishment of 42,944 private schools, suggests a concerning trend toward privatization that may exclude economically disadvantaged students, including many with disabilities.
The Higher Education Financing Agency’s (HEFA) loan-based funding model shifts educational costs to students through fee structures, potentially creating barriers for families of children with disabilities who already face additional expenses for specialized services. The establishment of the Higher Education Commission of India (HECI) with centralized powers to authorize, monitor, and recommend disinvestment from institutions raises concerns about political manipulation and fee standardization.
Private institutions operating within the NEP framework may prioritize profit over inclusion, potentially creating elite educational environments that exclude students requiring additional support. This commercialization tendency contradicts the policy’s equity objectives, particularly for students with disabilities who require sustained, specialized intervention rather than market-driven educational approaches.
The emphasis on institutional ranking and performance metrics may incentivize schools to avoid enrolling students with disabilities, perceiving them as potential drains on institutional performance indicators. This market-oriented approach fundamentally conflicts with inclusive education principles that celebrate diversity rather than standardized outcomes.
Challenges in Governance and Implementation
NEP 2020’s implementation faces significant governance challenges that affect its inclusivity objectives. The lack of Central Advisory Board of Education (CABE) meetings since September 2019 demonstrates inadequate consultation with states, undermining collaborative implementation essential for educational transformation. Federal disagreements over provisions like the three-language formula and mother tongue instruction create implementation inconsistencies that affect students with disabilities disproportionately.
Infrastructure constraints pose particular challenges for inclusive education. Many schools lack basic accessibility features like ramps, accessible toilets, and appropriate classroom layouts for students with mobility challenges. The shortage of qualified special educators compounds these infrastructure deficits, creating environments where students with disabilities cannot fully participate in educational activities.
Regulatory delays in establishing key institutions like HECI and implementing the National Curriculum Framework for Teacher Education have hindered systematic reform implementation. These delays particularly impact inclusive education initiatives that require coordinated policy implementation across multiple institutional levels.
Monitoring and evaluation systems remain inadequate for tracking inclusive education outcomes. The absence of robust data systems for measuring disability inclusion prevents evidence-based policy refinement, limiting the ability to address implementation gaps effectively.
Lack of Political and Stakeholder Will
Perhaps most significantly, NEP 2020’s implementation reveals concerning gaps in political will and stakeholder commitment to inclusive education. While policy documents articulate strong commitments to inclusion, resource allocation and implementation priorities often reflect different values. The continued emphasis on standardized testing and competitive rankings contradicts inclusive education principles that celebrate diverse learning pathways.
Many educational administrators and teachers demonstrate resistance to inclusive practices, viewing students with disabilities as burdensome rather than valuable community members. This attitudinal barrier proves more challenging to address than structural or resource constraints, requiring sustained cultural transformation that extends beyond policy mandates.
Parent and community engagement in inclusive education remains limited, partly due to insufficient awareness about disability rights and educational options. The policy’s success depends on broader social acceptance of neurodiversity and learning differences, requiring sustained advocacy and education efforts that extend beyond formal educational institutions.
Political priorities often emphasize quantifiable outcomes like enrollment numbers and test scores rather than qualitative improvements in educational experiences for marginalized students. This focus on measurable metrics may inadvertently discourage inclusive practices that require individualized approaches and diverse outcome measures.
Steps Ahead: Creating Inclusive Learning
As October’s disability awareness initiatives remind us, creating truly inclusive education requires sustained commitment to recognizing and celebrating learning differences. NEP 2020 provides a robust framework for this transformation, but realizing its potential demands addressing fundamental implementation challenges.
Increased funding to achieve the 6% GDP target remains essential for supporting inclusive infrastructure, teacher training, and assistive technology access. This investment must prioritize equity over efficiency, ensuring that resource allocation addresses the additional costs associated with inclusive education rather than viewing them as burdensome expenditures.
Teacher preparation must undergo fundamental transformation, moving beyond superficial disability awareness to deep understanding of universal design for learning, differentiated instruction, and collaborative support models. This requires sustained professional development that extends throughout educators’ careers rather than one time training interventions.
Community engagement strategies must expand to include disability advocacy organizations, parent support networks, and student voice initiatives that center the experiences of learners with disabilities. These partnerships can provide crucial insights for policy refinement and implementation improvement.
Assessment and evaluation systems need reconstruction to include various learning styles instead of judging everyone by the same test. This transformation requires developing innovative assessment approaches that recognize different ways of showing knowledge while maintaining educational rigor.
In a nutshell: October’s Promise for Educational Transformation
As NEP 2020 completes its fifth year, the juxtaposition of seasonal change with disability awareness initiatives provides powerful metaphor for educational transformation possibilities. The policy’s achievements in foundational literacy, higher education access, and technological integration demonstrate its transformative potential. However, realizing genuine inclusion for students with disabilities requires addressing fundamental challenges in funding, implementation consistency, commercialization pressures, and stakeholder commitment.
Like autumn’s gradual transformation of landscapes, educational inclusion requires patient, sustained effort that recognizes both progress and persistent challenges. NEP 2020 provides the framework for this transformation, but success depends on collective commitment to creating educational environments where every learner, including those with dyslexia, dysgraphia, dyscalculia, and other learning differences can flourish and contribute their unique talents to society.
The journey toward inclusive education mirrors October’s seasonal transition: gradual, sometimes challenging, but ultimately transformative. As we commemorate World Dyslexia Awareness Day and reflect on NEP 2020’s evolution, we must commit to sustaining this transformation beyond awareness months toward year-round inclusive practices that celebrate the full spectrum of human learning diversity.