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“Nation” and “nurture”: quandaries in constructing India’s National Talent Search Examination (NTSE) (1963–2013)

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Title: “Nation” and “nurture”: quandaries in constructing India’s National Talent Search Examination (NTSE) (1963–2013)
Authors: Philip, Rachel1 (AUTHOR) rachel@iitj.ac.in
Source: Paedagogica Historica. Sep2025, p1-21. 21p.
Subject Terms: *NATION building, *APPLIED sciences, *EDUCATION policy, *POSTCOLONIALISM, *EDUCATIONAL evaluation, *SOCIAL structure, *ABILITY testing
Geographic Terms: INDIA
Abstract: The discourse on the identification and nurture of talented schoolchildren in post-colonial India is deeply intertwined with the history of the National Talent Search Examination (NTSE), conducted by National Council of Education Research and Training (NCERT) from 1963 to 2021. Drawing on the work of Carson, the study situates the inception of the NTSE within the broader nationalist self-conceptions of the 1960s, when science and technology were seen as central to India’s development. The initial design of the scheme – as a science talent search – framed “talented students” as a population category “at risk” without state support, positioning talent as a national resource crucial to advancing the country’s developmental goals. The redesign of the scheme into a general talent search in 1977, prompted by concerns over its effectiveness, marks a shift in emphasis from the developmentalist aspirations of early post-colonial India to a more procedural, administrative model of nation-building. In the process, the NTSE also becomes a vehicle for the articulation of two visions of nationhood. One was futuristic, imagining selected students as future scientists whose contributions would ensure material progress. The other was institutional and immediate, framing NCERT as the steward of democratic, inclusive, and meritocratic ideals through its bureaucratic administration of the programme. In its co-construction of the discourses of “talent” and the “nation”, the paper explores how the talent search scheme serves as an example of how the NCERT fashions itself as a key post-colonial institution enacting the modern state’s pedagogical and ideological commitments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Database: Academic Search Index
Description
Abstract:The discourse on the identification and nurture of talented schoolchildren in post-colonial India is deeply intertwined with the history of the National Talent Search Examination (NTSE), conducted by National Council of Education Research and Training (NCERT) from 1963 to 2021. Drawing on the work of Carson, the study situates the inception of the NTSE within the broader nationalist self-conceptions of the 1960s, when science and technology were seen as central to India’s development. The initial design of the scheme – as a science talent search – framed “talented students” as a population category “at risk” without state support, positioning talent as a national resource crucial to advancing the country’s developmental goals. The redesign of the scheme into a general talent search in 1977, prompted by concerns over its effectiveness, marks a shift in emphasis from the developmentalist aspirations of early post-colonial India to a more procedural, administrative model of nation-building. In the process, the NTSE also becomes a vehicle for the articulation of two visions of nationhood. One was futuristic, imagining selected students as future scientists whose contributions would ensure material progress. The other was institutional and immediate, framing NCERT as the steward of democratic, inclusive, and meritocratic ideals through its bureaucratic administration of the programme. In its co-construction of the discourses of “talent” and the “nation”, the paper explores how the talent search scheme serves as an example of how the NCERT fashions itself as a key post-colonial institution enacting the modern state’s pedagogical and ideological commitments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
ISSN:00309230
DOI:10.1080/00309230.2025.2554901