NEP critical creative thinking goal – UGC NET Question

NEP 2020 underlines that all students, regardless of discipline, should cultivate critical and creative thinking. Arts and humanities are seen as powerful avenues to question assumptions, imagine alternatives and reflect on human experience. The stem refers to this intended outcome of broad-based education. Thus, “critical and creative” thinking is the correct phrase.

Option A:
Narrow thinking implies limited perspectives and resistance to new ideas, which is precisely what NEP aims to overcome. This option contradicts the spirit of the policy and so is not correct.

Option B:
Mechanical thinking suggests routine, unreflective responses without imagination. NEP 2020 explicitly seeks to move away from such rote or mechanical learning, making this option inappropriate.

Option C:
Critical and creative thinking captures both analytical rigor and imaginative problem solving. It is central to the NEP vision of holistic and multidisciplinary education, which is why this option matches the stem.

Option D:
Purely rote thinking relies mainly on memorisation without understanding or originality. The policy criticises rote learning, so this option cannot correctly complete the statement.