Meaning of Educational Planning:

Educational Planning is a process utilized by a administrator while performing the role of a leader,
decision-maker, change-agent and so on. It is a basic management task. It is a means of achieving higher
levels of effectiveness. It’s uniqueness lies in its future – orientation or anticipation mode.

Today educational planning is an absolute requirement. The complexities of modern technology is

society have given rise to the need for planning in education. Increasing population, man-power needs,
ecology, decreasing natural resources and haphazard applications of scientific developments requires
educational planning. To meet these problems, educational planning becomes a necessity and planning
competence becomes mandatory. It is unavoidable for bringing about a desirable changes in the
educational organizations for promoting the organisational health- it’s effectiveness and functional
efficiency.

Nature of Educational Planning:

======================================================

1. Forecasting: Educational Planning is describing or defining or determining events, conditions and

needs of some future point in times. It implies forecasting of important factors in education such as
number and types of students and expansion of facilities needed for them.

2. Interpretation: It should also called for interpretation of future data and it’s translation into
competencies or operational capabilities demanded to maintains effectiveness under the conditions
anticipated.

3. Goals and Objectives: It is a means of generating relevant present and future goals and objectives for
the organization.

4. Decision-Making: It is the preparation or pre-courses in the decision-making process. It helps in

determining the optimal decisions or choice rendered. While educational administration is mostly
decision making, planning in education is only the other side of it.

5. Operations Optimization: Educational Planning is performance improvement or operation

optimization. It’s for the enhancement of existing conditions rather than for those that exists in the
uncertain future. It is to guide the actions of the operations.
6. Problems Prevention: It is a kind of contingency anticipation or problem-prevention. It should
minimize the magnitude of an educational problem likely to be encountered at some future point in
time. It should spell out the procedures to be followed if some crisis or contingencies arise.

7. Management Change: Educational Planning is a part of organizational renewal. MBO, PERT and
various other forecasting techniques are part of the process of educational planning. It provides a
mechanism, a model or a tool for achieving specific objectives of an organization.

8. Complexity Resolution: Educational Planning is complexity resolution, a process for co-ordination and
control. It is interpreted as a means of coping with complexity or co-ordination of facets of such
projects.

Importance of Educational Planning:

===========================

1. Choice of Best Alternative: Modern educational planning is a logical systematic and scientific process
different from the elementary kinds of procedures utilized in the past of bringing about changes in the
systems of education. Earlier ad-hoc decisions were taken by the administrators to solve immediate
problems faced by them.

2. Team Work: Modern educational planning emphasis that only the top administrator or the
government should be involved in planning. Planning should be a responsibility of all people concerned
with the desired change. A team of experts, responsible people and those who are to implement the
plan should determine the goals and appropriate ways of attaining them.

3. Social and Economic Goals: It emphasis that the goals of a democratic society should be social and
economic concerned with the welfare and progress of all citizens rather than the selfish goals of some
special interests groups. The expected goals of the society and need of children and young pupils in the
school’s and colleges should be the broad frame of reference.
4. Co-operation: It emphasis involvement of representatives of most of the concerned sectors of the
society in the process of planning. Co-operative planning is considered an important principles of
planning in all fields.

5. Anticipation: It anticipates probable developments and needed change in future, much ahead of time
so that proper facilities, supporting media and required resources for implementing the planned change
may be secure. Thus, relevant changes and efforts are avoided and the changes are effectively
implemented.

6. Remedial Measures: Educational Planning is remedial and guidance oriented. With appropriate
planning procedures it is possible to identify maladjustments or deficiencies in the system that causes
educational problems. Identifying causes of the educational problems and suggesting relevant solution is
the main objectives of educational planning.

7. Scientific Changes: Changes made on ad-hoc piecemeal basis to solve immediate problems may create
some kinds of problems in course of the time. Hence, modern educational planning carefully and
objectively collects data, interprets and analysis inter-relationships between present and future needs.

Principles of Educational Planning:

===================

1. Educational Planning must be one aspect of general national planning.

2. Research is based planning based on system analysis.

3. Planning must be a continuous process.

4. It should find a definite place in educational organizations.

5. It should takes into consideration resources and establish conditions of work.

6. Planning must be realistic and practical.

7. It must involves actives and continuing participation of all interested individual and groups.

8. The contents and scope of planning should be determined by the needs of the individuals and groups
to be served.

9. It should utilized the services of specialists without allowing them to dominate.

10. It should provides opportunity for all persons and groups to understand and appreciate the plans .

11. It should provides for continuous evaluation.

12. It should have opportunity for modification for further actions.