New Delhi: The Ministry of Human Resource Development is working on a plan to reduce the school syllabus for the academic year 2020-21, as well as the hours of instruction, according to minister Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’.
In view of the Covid-19 pandemic, many parents and teachers have sent their requests to the ministry, through email and Twitter, to reduce the syllabus, so that students can cope. The ministry has taken cognisance of the requests and started working on a plan, and also requested suggestions from teachers and academicians.
“In view of the current circumstances and after receiving a lot of requests from parents and teachers, we are contemplating the option of reduction in the syllabus and instructional hours for the coming academic year,” Pokhriyal tweeted Tuesday.
In view of the current circumstances and after receiving a lot of requests from parents and teachers, we are contemplating the option of reduction in the syllabus and instructional hours for the coming academic year.@SanjayDhotreMP @HRDMinistry @PIB_India @MIB_India
— Dr. Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank (@DrRPNishank) June 9, 2020
“I would like to appeal to all teachers, academicians, and educationists to share their points of view on this matter using #SyllabusForStudents2020 on MHRD’s or my Twitter and Facebook page, so that we can take them into consideration while making a decision,” he added.
Also read: Schools re-opening during crisis not a return to normal, we must do things differently: UN
Other plans
Meanwhile, the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has already started working on reducing the syllabus, its chairman Manoj Ahuja said at a two-day virtual conference organised by Ashoka University last week.
“We are rationalising the curriculum. We plan to retain the core elements,” Ahuja had said, adding that the board will do away with a concept which is being duplicated in some way or the other, or something that can be done in a more practical way.
Syllabus reduction is one of the many ways in which the ministry is trying to make up for loss of study hours that students have had to face because of the lockdown. It is also working on a new pedagogy of learning for school children, which will include a blended-learning approach, keeping some lessons through online classes and others through classroom teaching.
The HRD ministry is also working on school re-opening guidelines and guidelines for schools to follow while imparting online teaching.
Also read: Over 70% parents want schools to reopen only after 21 days of zero Covid cases: Survey