GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT
DEPARTMENT OF SCHOOL EDUCATION & LITERACY
LOK SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.4776
TO BE ANSWERED ON 23.03.2020
Curriculum Activities for Students
4776. SHRI ANANTKUMAR HEGDE:
Will the Minister of HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT be pleased to state:
(a) whether the Government has directed Government schools to develop some extra curriculum activities based on interest of the students for their skill development and if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor; and
(b) whether the Government has shifted or is planning to shift school’s educational curriculum from theory based to practical based and if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor?
ANSWER
MINISTER OF HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT
(SHRI RAMESH POKHRIYAL ‘NISHANK’)
(a) The National Curriculum Framework (NCF) 2005, developed by the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT), which sets the guidelines and direction for the development of syllabi and textbooks at all the school stages, clearly states that all the activities conducted in schools need to be seen as curricular activities. It also recommends bringing art education, work and education, health and physical education in the domain of curricular activities. However, education, being a subject in the Concurrent List of the Constitution and majority of schools are under the jurisdiction of the State Governments, it is for the respective State Government to take appropriate action in this regard. So far as the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) affiliated schools are concerned, the Board has made Art Education, Work Education and Health and Physical Education as compulsory part of curriculum. These areas involve Crafts, Social Empowerment through Work and Action (SEWA), Health and Sports which have practical intelligence and rich potential for the development of skill, aesthetics, creativity, resourcefulness and team work.
(b) The National Curriculum Framework (NCF) 2005 in its one of the Guiding Principles clearly recommends linking of school knowledge with life outside the schools. This principle leads towards experiential learning in which children learn through their own experiences with school knowledge. NCERT has also been promoting pre-vocational education skills in students studying Classes VI to VIII integrating practical and activities with the subject areas such as science, social science, mathematics and languages. NCERT textbooks across classes provide children opportunities to practice theory through simple activities in the classroom situation.