Educational Planning in India: Meaning and Definitions and Everything Else (2024)

Read this article to learn about the meaning, definition, significance and types of educational planning in India.

Meaning:

There is a saying that if there is a will there is a way. It signifies the will of an individual comes into picture after thinking which can be done through planning in mental level. The term planning is the major guideline for development of any individual, institution, organisation and society in every respect. ‘Now our country India is a democratic, dynamic and developing one marching to become a country of super power by 2020 A.D. Behind this target there is a systematic and deliberate planning.

Planning is essential for development of every nation and according to which changes would have been brought in social, political, economic, cultural and educational sphere in a systematic and orderly manner.Simply speaking planning means to think before acting, and to act according to facts, not, conjectures or speculation.

Definitions:

“Planning is to design some action to be done before hand.”

—Oxford English Dictionary

“Planning selects among alternatives explores, routes before travel begins and identifies possible or probable outcomes or action before the executive and his organisation committed to any.”

—Hugman and Schwartz

“Planning is regarded as the process of setting out in advance a pattern of action to bring about overall national policies by the closest possible articulation of means and ends.”

—Philips

In the light of above definitions, it can be highly stated that planning is the process of preparing a set of decisions for action in the future and directed towards realizing some goals by the best possible means. Hence the essence of planning is the assessment of as many operational alternatives as possible and then selecting the best for launching action.

In another context planning is considered as a process of thinking which refers to many possible alternatives of action which are likely to achieve the goals of a programme, institution or organisation. It has to choose or decide the best alternative of future action in relation to both the goals and available resources.

Planning is essential in the field of education entitled as “Educational Planning” which is a major requirement in the contemporary society. The complexities of the present scientifically developed and technologically advanced society have given special position to the need for planning in education.

Like planning in any field, educational planning has to explore the best possible means of making the greatest use of available resources leading to the maximum realization of the educational aims and objectives, both individual and social.

So educational planning may be defined as a systematic design of action for realization of educational aims and objectives for individual and social development through maximum utilization of available resources. In practical perspective, educational planning is defined as a process utilized by an administrator while performing the role of a leader, decision-maker, change agent and so on.

Significance of Educational Planning:

1. To make every programme of an educational institution or organisation grand success.

2. Proper educational planning saves time, effort and money as planning in every field is a time-saving, an effort-saving and a money-saving activity.

3. Educational planning is a sound method of solving educational problems by avoiding the trial and error method of doing things.

4. Educational planning is essential for the best utilization of available resources.

5. Educational planning checks wastage and failure and contributes to the smoothness, ease and efficiency of the administrative process in the field of education.

6. Through proper planning in education, education can be the best means by which society will preserve and develop its future value system, way of life of an individual, knowledge, skills and applications, and culture of the country.

7. Through proper educational planning, the means and ends of the society can be properly interacted through educational system. It implies that the educational system utilizes a large proportion of the country’s educated talents and a major part of public expenditure.

8. Educational planning is highly essential for preparing a blueprint or plan of action for every programme of an educational institution or organisation.

9. Planning in education is necessary for making one’s educational journey goal-oriented and purposeful.

10. It is essential to maintain, sustain and enhance the thinking process of an individual, institution or organisation.

11. Planning in education is necessary to highlight the universal aims of education required for every nation for its development in every respect.

12. To bring total development of a nation in time, in which educational development is one among its various aspects.

13. To reflect the modern developments like explosion of knowledge, advancement of science and technology, development of research and innovation while reformulating the aims and objectives of education in the light of the particular situation a country is facing.

14. It explores and provides the best possible means of making the wide use of available resources leading to maximum realization of the educational goals.

15. Educational planning facilitates gathering of educational experts, teachers, supervisors and administrators for taking decision in relation to the realisation of purposes of educational programme.

16. Educational planning gives equal importance to the purposes of different classes of experts such as sociologists, economists, scientists, politicians, educationists etc.

Types of Educational Planning:

1. Administrative Planning:

Generally speaking administrative planning refers to planning in administrative perspective. In the field of education, administrative planning relates to distribution of responsibilities and powers for different levels of education. In administrative educational planning, the administrative responsibilities and powers are phase-wise planned in relation to the level of different educational administrators.

This planning of education makes a detail plan on structure and organisation of education at different levels – primary, secondary, higher secondary, higher – general, technical and professional. This planning prepares planning on duration of an educational programme, organisation and co-ordination of educational programmes, financial allocation or budget for the programme, engagement of educational officials in the programme, and smooth management of the programme etc.

2. Academic or Curricular Planning:

This type of educational planning refers to planning for smooth academic transaction of the syllabus for any course at any level of education. It encompasses planning on education in relation to needs and demands of the individual and society.

Formulation of educational goals, formation of curriculum committee for development of curriculum and selection of appropriate strategies and methods of teaching, planning of content units, planning for evaluation, planning for review of the curriculum, planning for use of library, planning for special provision for the gifted and remedial instruction for slow learners etc.

3. Co-curricular Planning:

This planning of education is necessary for bringing total development of a student in one point and total development of an educational institution or organisation in another point. This planning includes planning for student welfare services, planning for sports and games, planning for social activities and programmes, planning for cultural activities and programmes, planning for hobbies etc.

4. Instructional Planning:

This sort of planning in education is macro-level in nature as its deals with planning in classroom situation in relation to a particular topic of a concerned subject. This planning refers to emotional and organisational climate of the classroom.

It includes planning for specification or instructional objectives, selection and organisation of learning activities, selection of appropriate means for presentation of learning experiences, monitoring of the learning or instructional progress, selection of suitable evaluation techniques for learning outcomes etc.

5. Institutional Planning:

This type of educational planning gives a practical shape to the meaning of educational planning. In this context educational planning refers to the needs and requirements of every institution to be achieved through creation and maintenance of a planning atmosphere in the institution.

Although institutional planning includes all types of planning cited above by focusing on curricular and co-curricular planning, but there is the need of having a discussion on institutional planning. This situation occurs because of two basic purposes. Such as-to give a practical meaning, shape and form to educational planning and to start educational planning at the grass-root level.

By “Institutional Planning” we mean the plans initiated, formulated and implemented by individual educational institutions. Certifying it as a planning at grass-root levels it includes all types of planning in its jurisdiction.

These are:

a. Planning for administration.

b. Planning for academic or curricular development.

c. Planning for non-academic or co-curricular activities

d. Planning for school-community relations.

e. Planning for discipline.

f. Planning for developmental activities or programmes.

g. Planning for proper utilization of community resources for total development of the institution.