credit in education

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Credits are one of the primary methods used to determine and document that students have met academic requirements, generally at the high school level. Credits are awarded upon completing and passing a course or required school program. In the United States, credits are often based on the Carnegie unit , or 120 hours of instructional time (one hour of instruction a day, five days a week, for 24 weeks). However, the actual duration of credit-bearing courses may differ significantly from the Carnegie-unit standard.

Most public high schools require students to accumulate credits to earn a diploma. While schools and districts determine credit requirements, states require schools to have minimum credit requirements in place. For example, a state might require students to earn a minimum of 18 credits to be eligible for a high school diploma, but a school may choose to increase credit requirements to 24 credits or higher. While credit requirements vary from state to state and school to school, they generally outline minimum requirements in the following subject areas: English language arts, mathematics, social studies, science, health, physical education, technology, and world languages. Schools also typically require students to earn a certain number of “elective” credits as well, and elective courses can span a wide variety of subject areas, including those listed above. For a related discussion, see core course of study .

In recent years, the traditional course credit has become the object of reform, particularly as an extension of proficiency-based learning or of efforts to change assessment strategies, grading practices, graduation requirements, and core courses of study in schools. Some states have sought to raise educational expectations, increase instructional time in certain subject areas, and improve student preparation by raising minimum credit requirements. For example, state regulations may require public high school students to complete four “years” of English and math—the equivalent of four credits in each subject—but only two or three years of science and social studies. As a way to promote stronger student preparation in science and social studies, states may decide to increase credit requirements. Other subject areas, such as technology, health, or world language, for example, have also been subject to increases in minimum credit requirements. Districts and schools may also elect to increase credit requirements independently, and some education organizations have recommended stronger credit requirements as a strategy for promoting higher academic achievement and more prepared graduates. In effect, increasing credit requirements in a given subject area increases the amount of time students will be taught, which increases the likelihood that they will be better educated in that subject area.

Critics of course credit may argue, however, that credit-based systems allow students to pass courses, earn credits, and get promoted from one grade level to the next even though they may have not acquired essential knowledge and skills, or they may not be adequately prepared for the next grade or for higher-level courses. The credit is often cited as one of the reasons why some students can earn a high school diploma, for example, and yet still struggle with basic reading, writing, and math skills.

A term commonly associated with credit-related reforms is “seat time”—a reference to the 120-hour Carnegie unit upon which most course credits are based. The basic idea is that credits more accurately measure the amount of time students have been taught, rather than what they have actually learned or failed to learn. For example, one student may earn an A in a course, while another student earns a D, and yet both may earn credit for passing the course. Given that the two grades likely represent significantly different levels of learning acquisition, what does the credit actually represent? In addition, if the awarding of credit is not based on some form of consistently applied learning standards —expectations for what students should know and be able to do at a particular stage of their education—then it becomes difficult to determine what students have learned or failed to learn, further undermining the credit as a reliable measurement for learning acquisition and academic accomplishment.

Some educators and education reformers argue that strategies such as learning standards, proficiency-based learning, and demonstrations of learning , among others, provide more valid and reliable ways to determine what students have learned, whether they should be promoted to the next grade level, and whether they should receive a diploma.

Credits are a familiar, understandable concept and their use is so widespread that people have become accustomed to them, which may contribute to debates about course-credit reforms, given that some may question why something so universally used needs to be changed. That said, credits are more likely to be the indirect object of debates about related issues, such as learning standards, grading practices, or proficiency-based learning.

Some advocates might argue, for example, that credits are a simple, widely used way for schools to ensure that students receive a certain amount of instructional time in important subject areas. They may also point out that minimum credit requirements imposed by states have been effective in raising educational expectations and improving student preparation in critical subject areas.

Critics of credit-based systems will likely echo the points made above, questioning whether credits should be used at all given that they are an imprecise way to measure learning acquisition and academic accomplishment. Credits, they may contend, provide a false sense of security: while having earned credit make it appear that students are learning—i.e., they have passed courses—credits may in fact be misleading and misrepresentative, since students are often able to earn credit even though they have failed to learn what the course was intended to teach. To detractors, schools should instead be measuring what students have learned or not learned—using time-based requirements such as credits, rather than learning-acquisition requirements such as learning standards, will simply allow students to continue passing courses, moving onto the next grade level, and graduating even though they may lack important knowledge and skills.

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What is a course credit system and how are credits earned, transferred? A beginner’s guide

Credit System: What is a college or course credit system and how does it work in school, technical courses and other programmes?

The “unified credit system” is intended to improve credit transfer from school to higher education level. (Photo: Shutterstock)

R. Radhika | August 22, 2022 | 10:55 AM IST

NEW DELHI: Bringing the entire education system, from school to PhD, under one uniform credit system is one of the biggest reforms the ministry of education has planned under the National Education Policy, or NEP 2020.

Redefining education based on learning outcomes; the ministry has mapped a cumulative credit system that will begin as early as Class 5. The centre is currently deliberating on the finer details. While the centre has plans to roll out the credit system for school education system in August in a phased manner, it has already been introduced in higher education institutions by the University Grants Commission (UGC) and the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE).

The National Higher Education Qualifications Framework (NHEQF), a credit system starting from Class 10 to college and university, was designed by the Department of School Education, the Department of Higher Education and the Department of Skill Development. This framework divides education into eight levels, beginning with four school, and four higher education levels. In higher education, it covers all undergraduate degrees (BA, BSc, BCom, BTech and others) postgraduate degrees (MA, MSc and more), all the way to PhD.

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The “unified credit system” is intended to improve credit transfer from school to higher education level. This will also allow students to earn credits through online programmes and facilitate blended, open and distance learning.

What is a credit system?

A credit system is a systematic way of describing an educational programme by attaching credits to its components. Essentially, a credit is a unit by which course work is measured. The workload relating to a course – how much you have to study – is measured in “credit hours”. Different types of courses or course activities will claim different durations of time or “credit hours” and are stipulated in advance. Students must complete those numbers of hours and earn the credits they fetch. For example, a student may need to complete 28 hours in the lab to earn 14 credits in a system where two hours of practicals fetch one credit.

In theory, the system allows a continuous evaluation of a student’s progress with a degree of flexibility . Under this system, the programme requirements are met only when a student has actually completed the required number and type of courses to accumulate credits.

Credit is awarded to a learner in recognition of the “verified achievement” of the defined learning outcomes. Learning outcome means the level of knowledge that students are expected to gain after completing a certain course component. This may also include skills acquired to become employable.

The learning outcome can be determined across multiple modes such as lectures, lab work, assignments, self-study, e-learning, projects undertaken and internships.

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How are credit hours calculated?

The contact hours or the total time a student spends on different components of the programme fetch credits accordingly. For example, the total learner engaged time for a one credit taught course would be 45 hours. The out-of-class activities may not be measured and quantified for purposes of grading of the credit. These activities include preparation for classes, completing assignments that form a part of the course work, and independent reading and study.

The credit hours are calculated on the basis of submissions such as reports in courses requiring students to participate in field-based projects, generally outside educational institutions. A total of 15 hours per credit will be calculated for activities such as preparation for community engagement and service, preparation of reports, independent reading and study etc.

For every programme, the student is required to earn satisfactory credit scores for progression to the next stage and also a continuation in the programme. At the end of the programme, the credits are calculated to award a cumulative grading point average or CGPA.

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Beyond this, a student can also accumulate course credits outside a programme. For instance, a BA History student can take a certificate course on data analytics at another institution. The credits will be awarded only when the student satisfactorily spends credit hours stipulated for this certificate course. These credits, however, will not be added to the final CGPA of the main programme (history) but stored as credits earned in the Academic Banks of Credit (ABC).

How does the credit system work?

AT SCHOOL-LEVEL: The ministry of education has planned to roll out a “ National Credit Framework ” that brings school education under a unified credit system. This begins at Class 5 where a student must complete 800 to 1,000 hours per year to reach credit level-1 and study for the same duration in Class 8 to reach level-2.

In secondary school, the credit level will rise by 0.5 for every year of learning, the draft states. Similarly, in Class 10, the student will be at level three and in level four in Class 12.

The hours spent include not just academic teaching and learning but also extracurricular activities like sports, yoga and music for assessment. At the end of the year, the students are awarded grade point average or a GPA based on the credits earned.

IN TECHNICAL EDUCATION : In higher education and vocational education, the credit system proposes 1,200 “notional learning hours” for earning 40 credits in a year. Each semester, a student will earn 20 credits. In the proposed college credit system, one credit is equivalent to 30 hours spent on course work. It gives equal weightage to lectures attended, tutorials, assignments and out-of-class activities such as practical or fieldwork or community engagement and service.

Meanwhile, the technical education regulator – AICTE – has implemented a credit framework from 2022-23 academic session that allows mobility from professional and vocational education to engineering. This framework starts at Class 10, at level three. At each level, assessment – a test or exam – is mandatory for earning credits and moving to the next assessment band and further progression in the academic, vocational or skilling streams. In Class 12, the student will be at level 4 of the credit system.

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For entry into level 5, the eligibility is a school leaving certificate after the completion of Class 12 with four credits. The credit level will rise by 0.5 for every year of learning. At the end of the first year of BTech, a student will receive 4.5 credits, 5 credits after second year, 5.5 in third year. A student will get six credits after completing a four-year BE or BTech programme and seven after the two-year ME or M/Tech. Students will get eight credits after a PhD degree. So, the credit level progression will be 4.5, 5, 5.5, 6, 6.5, 7, 7.5 and 8 between first year of BTech up to PhD in the field of engineering and technology.

In addition, the AICTE has directed institutions to identify the educational gaps or skill gaps and thereafter, offer suitable bridge courses for students at each entry level. “To make the students employable after every exit, the skill component with progressive enhancement in skill in respective disciplines could be introduced in the curriculum from the first year of the programme,” an official statement said.

IN OTHER PROGRAMMES: On the other hand, the UGC’s credit framework for the four-year undergraduate progammes proposes that students will have to earn 20 to 22 credits in each semester, a total of 160 credits; with one credit for 15 hours of classroom teaching. Every semester consists of 90 working days – about three months – with 40 hours of instructional time in a week.

For instance, at Delhi University, the UG framework has 22 credits every semester leading to a total of 176 credits at the end of a four-year programme with a research component.

This will consist of 48 credit hours of either a single discipline or interdisciplinary subject chosen by the student. In addition, field-based projects, a part of the undergraduate curriculum , will carry four credit hours. Research-based courses and internships will be allotted 18 credits.

Under the four-year programme, students will also have the liberty to choose two “minor” courses in order to expand their area of knowledge through interdisciplinary subjects. The minor course consists of 32 credit hours, 16 credits for each minor.

Colleges and universities across India are in the process of modifying the curriculum to implement the UGC prescribed 4-year undergraduate programme structure.

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What happens to credits if a student drops out?

All credits earned by a student will be stored in an ABC. Once this account is opened, all educational institutions will be responsible for keeping a record of academic credits each by the student and deposited in the ABC.

The centre has also planned to expand the scope of ABC to include the management of credits at the school level. The ABC will be linked to the Digilocker for verification and portability of credits.

In case a student decides to exit the programme, the ABC will store earned credits that can be redeemed for re-joining the same or an allied course within seven years.

Once a student completes the first year of college with 40 credits, they are awarded a certificate. If the student continues to the second year and completes it with 80 credits, a diploma is awarded. Similar to the first year, a student can exit at this stage with a diploma and can rejoin within seven years after redeeming the credits. Once a student completes the third year of a UG degree programme, they will be awarded a bachelor’s degree. For this, 120 credits are required.

When it comes to the postgraduate level, a student can exit after one year, with a one-year diploma. Completion of the full two-year programme will lead to a master’s degree.

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