IIE Vol. 13 No. 2 (December 2025)
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Item Turning Back: Indian Mythology and its Eternal Power in the Indian Classroom(Chitkara University Publications, 2026-07-29) Sangeeta PantNgũgĩ wa Thiong’o, in his book “Decolonizing the Mind,” argues that language is the most powerful instrument of colonization as it is closely knitted to cultural identity. When the East India Company was colonizing the country, teaching English in order to create an “educated class of Indians,” a slim volume appeared in London under the title “Ancient Ballads and Legends of Hindustan” in 1882. Toru Dutt, the author of this very thin verse, had grown up being drenched in English literature, French poetry, and a colonial education system that was put together to deliberately shape Indians who think in English idioms and adore the English literature canon. Yet, in the final years of her very short life, she turned back to Savitri’s Argument with Death, Sita’s Exile, amongst other multitudes of stories that she had heard in her childhood. It deems it important to sit with the choice because it tells us something that the Indian education system has not fully absorbed: that mythology does not stand as an opposing giant to modern education but as one of its casualties and that recovering it should be treated as an act of deliberate will rather than cultural sentiment. In the modern classroom, we have forgotten to tell stories of Indian mythology. Education in India can be traced back to classes that were conducted under trees, and stories were passed down from generation to generation. Since then, Indian mythology has acted as a repository of the civilization’s collective memory. Our Indian literary heritage, such as the Ramayana, Mahabharata, our puranas, and regional folklores, has worked as a bridge for values, culture, and language. National Education Policy 2020 (NEP 2020), the road map for every teacher in the country, calls for the integration of the Indian Knowledge System (IKS) in education. It is also seen emphasizing repeatedly storytelling, Indian national traditions, and ancient Indian literature, highlighting their value in language development and imagination. UNESCO has emphasized how cultural heritage and indigenous languages help shape culturally and environmentally cautious individuals. Storytelling of mythology in the modern classroom of Generation Z, Alpha, and beyond can aid in the cognitive and psychological development of the students. This idea is backed by the study of Bruno Bettelheim’s work “The Uses of Enchantment” (1976). In her work, she was able to discover that recitation of traditional stories and fairy tales shaped the students’ ability to cope with fear, understand emotions, and build moral reasoning. Researchers like Roger Schank and Jerome Bruner have been able to prove through their research how information shared in the form of stories is remembered better as compared to isolated facts. Their work is of the view that storytelling in the classroom paves the way for long-term memory and increased engagement and helps learners form connections between newly absorbed information and existing, retainable information. Use of stories of Indian mythology and regional legends in the Indian classroom will produce a set of avid students who are not culturally detached from their society’s history in a fast-paced, digitalized world. Rabindranath Tagore, in Personality (1917), shares how the highest form of education is not an education that gives us facts but teaches us to live in harmony with all existence. To restore mythology in the classroom is not an attempt to romanticize the past or minimize scientific temper but to rightfully acknowledge that a truly holistic education cultivates both reason and imagination. Therefore, recovering mythology should not be seen as a display of cultural nostalgia but as a conscious educational action that will connect the young learners of Generation Z, Alpha, and beyond with their civilizational memory while shaping them to think critically.Item Continuous Professional Development and Teacher Effectiveness: A Structural Equation Modeling Study in the Somali State of Ethiopia(Chitkara University Publications, 2026-06-13) Abdiaziz Sheik Mohamed; Manoj GovindarajBackground: Teacher professional development is a significant factor in the quality of the education system. Ethiopia continues to improve its educational institutions and develop teachers; however, the Somali Regional State faces several challenges, including inadequate institutional support, delayed and low salaries, inconsistent training programs, insufficient student motivation strategies, and inadequate learning environments. Purpose: This study examines the significance of teacher professional development in sustaining an efficient educational system in the Somali Regional State of Ethiopia, with a specific focus on the influence of institutional support, motivating promotion, and recognition of teacher professional development. Methods: A quantitative cross-sectional design was used to gather information from 265 teachers in the Somali Regional State of Ethiopia using a structured questionnaire instrument, which was analyzed in SPSS and PLS to investigate the relationships among factors of challenges in teacher professional development. Results: The result highlights effective teacher professional development, which requires the successful integration of institutional support and specific conditions. The findings demonstrate that the latent constructs explain more than 50% of the variance in the observed indicators. Examination of the measurement model suggests that the constructs also demonstrate adequate indicator reliability, internal consistency, and convergent validity. The strong outer loadings, high CR and rho-A values, and adequate AVE scores all together suggest that the measurement instruments have psychometric validity appropriate for examining structural models. Conclusion: The study concluded that, for the classroom process to become even more efficient, it should focus on professional development using technology and on increasing teachers’ abilities. This is a big deal for policymakers, school leaders, and sector professionals in their efforts to ensure the efficiency of teaching within educational institutions.Item National Education Policy 2020: Promise and Practice(Chitkara University Publications, 2026-04-30) Umang Raj Gupta; Sonali JaiswalBackground: National Education Policy 2020 is one of the most radical changes in the Indian system of education in the twenty-first century. It seeks to revolutionize the education system through holistic learning, interdisciplinary knowledge, vocational integration, and digital innovation, and reinforce basic literacy and numeracy. The inclusive policy will also focus on inclusivity, multilingual education, social-emotional development, as well as conserving the cultural and intellectual traditions of India. The policy aims at providing equitable and quality education to all learners by aligning it with other global education systems like Sustainable Development Goal 4. Purpose: This essay is a critical analysis of NEP 2020 commitments and implications in Indian education. It tries to examine the philosophical underpinnings, policy agenda, and transformational opportunities of the reform and determine the structural and institutional obstacles that can influence its effective execution. Method: The research takes a conceptual and analytical approach through an extensive literature review of academic literature, policy documents, and secondary sources on education reform in India. Government reports, international policy frameworks, comparative education studies, and empirical results of organisations like UNESCO and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (2019), NITI, are the key sources. It is also through analysis that international education systems like Finland, Singapore, and Japan have been compared and insights into the system have been provided. Results: The results indicate that NEP 2020 provides a paradigm shift with its foundation of literacy, experience-based learning, vocational experience, the introduction of technology, and cross-disciplinary education. The study, however, finds that there are major problems of implementation such as teacher readiness, infrastructural differences, digital divide, language policy issues, and coordination among states. Conclusion: NEP 2020 has great potential to transform Indian education into a more inclusive, flexible, and globally competitive system. However, it will require long-term investment, capacity building on the part of teachers, institutional preparedness, and joint working of policymakers, teachers, and communities to change policy vision into effective practice in the classroom.Item Comparative Study of Policies and Practices of Community Engagement in Universities of Maharashtra(Chitkara University Publications, 2026-03-31) Nisha Jitendra Valvi; Sanjeev SonawaneBackground: Community engagement has emerged as one of the future directions of higher education extension. Community engagement helps to build the community, as well as the social and economic foundations that support equity and diversity in higher education and offers opportunities for people to participate in a democratic way. Community engagement encompasses a range of approaches, including consultation, co-operation, and participation. It is imperative to understand that it requires community support for effective implementation. Why should one be involved in community engagement? To effectively meet the diverse needs of the community; to help people develop a sense of ownership and accountability in terms of giving back to society; to take pride in service to the community; to take on the challenge of solving community issues collectively; to access funding to conduct initiatives for the community; and to make the work happen in reality in a practical way. Purpose: Through this research, the researcher addresses the innovative and best practices of community engagement in universities in India, with a special focus on universities in Maharashtra, and compares these policies and practices (innovative and best) among state, private, and deemed-to-be universities. Method: A comparative method was used by the researcher. The sample of the study consisted of 9 states, private, and deemed-to-be universities selected by the researcher, and under these universities, community engagement practices of 5 departments were studied for the identification and comparison of best and innovative policies and practices of community engagement. Result & Conclusion: Through this research study, the researcher concluded that the majority of universities do not have a formal policy for community engagement, but programmes/activities are organized through the National Service Scheme (NSS) and Student Welfare Department (SWD) extension programmes. Also, there is no formal course/unit/module on community engagement. The researcher also concluded that, as there is no set policy with regard to community engagement, there is no mission or vision for incorporating community engagement into postgraduate courses.Item PARAKH Rashtriya Sarvekshan 2024: Reflections on Indian School Education System Post-NEP 2020(Chitkara University Publications, 2026-02-28) Arabinda Kumar Sahoo; Anjali BajpaiBackground: The National Council for Educational Research and Training has released the PARAKH Rashtriya Sarvekshan (Nationwide Survey) 2024 report, summarizing nationwide assessment results conducted on the same day. The report highlights the status of school education in India. Purpose: The report plays a pivotal role in the landscape of school education. However, there are several points where the national report left unprecedented aspects which need to be tackled timely. Methods: This article is based on document analysis of the national report. The analysis was done on the secondary data on performance of the learners in the PARAKH Rashtriya Sarvekshan (Nationwide Survey). Results: This article presents a holistic overview of the PARAKH Rashtriya Sarvekshan 2024 report along with highlighting the marginal gaps where the policy makers can ponder upon. Conclusion: The findings of the analysis reveal that there exists a significant gap in the learning competencies of learners based on disparities in resource allocation and social inequality, which needs to be addressed urgently. In the context of new results, its significance is evident.Item Awareness and Usage of Digital Resources: A Study among the Research Scholars in the State University of Uttarakhand(Chitkara University Publications, 2026-02-16) Rajendra Singh Khati; Mamta Aswal; Bhaskar ChaudharyBackground: Knowledge of digital technology is crucial for everyone in today’s world, as it is leaving an indelible mark on education day by day. Therefore, digital literacy becomes essential for students engaged in research. In light of the impact of technology, the researcher conducted a study to assess the awareness and use of digital resources among the research scholars at SSJ University, Almora, in the hill state of Uttarakhand. Purpose: The primary objective of the study was to assess the level of awareness and usage of digital resources among the research scholars enrolled in the PhD programme. Methods: A descriptive survey was employed, given the nature of the study. A sample of 48 research scholars from the social science and science faculties was selected using random sampling, and data were collected using a self-constructed tool, viz., the Digital Awareness and Usage Questionnaire. Results: After data analysis, it was found that most research scholars have equal awareness of digital resources across specific demographic variables. Some differences were found in the use of digital resources based on family income, gender, and locality. Female and science scholars are integrating digital resources more than their male counterparts. Twenty percent of science scholars fall into the ‘high usage’ category, whereas none of the humanities scholars are represented in this category. Additionally, the low-income group shows 0% representation in the ‘Very High’ usage category. A gap was also observed between awareness and usage: 33% of respondents reported very high awareness, while only 4% reported very high usage. Research scholars are aware of digital resources, but most of them do not use them to the extent of their awareness. Conclusions: Based on the findings, it is recommended that HEIs should adopt innovative research approaches, strengthen technological infrastructure, integrate digital technology functionally through training workshops for capacity building, and implement policy interventions that focus on digital proficiency and promote digital transmission.