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Source– The post is based on the article “What the burden of the heavy school bag reveals
” published in The Indian Express on 17th November 2022.
Syllabus: GS2- Issues related to development and management of education
Relevance: Reforms educational system
News- The article explains the issue related to the educational system.
What is the situation of schools after the pandemic?
Things have changed a lot in schools after the pandemic. Sanitisers and masks have become a part of a child’s life.
They also carry heavy bags which causes mental and physical burden.
It puts unnecessary pressure on a child’s health.
What are the concerns associated with this issue?
The thinking of all the schools and teachers continues to remain that maximum education can be obtained only by carrying more books.
Instead of finding new ways of teaching and learning, schools and teachers are paying more attention to technical and materialistic things like apps, books and bags.
The National Council for Teacher Training (NCTE), under the central government, has the task of setting the minimum qualifications for teachers, preparing curriculum and facilitating the opening of new colleges for teacher training. But, the work of selecting and recruiting the teachers lies with the state government.
The reason why our education system is not improving even after many efforts is because education falls on the concurrent list.
What is the way forward?
People need to understand that the teaching method is more important than books or other tools.
If the classroom environment is to be made interesting, then children should be taught in small groups.
The Right to Education Bill had called for reducing the classroom size. But it implies that the number of classes will have to be increased which will require more teachers.
We also require more qualified teachers who can not only understand the child’s state of mind but who can also implement the curriculum accordingly.
“Learning without burden” under the chairmanship of Yashpal in1993 suggested changes in the syllabus to reduce the weight of bags.It also suggested how to make learning joyful and give less emphasis on books and bags for children.
The new National Curriculum Framework (foundational stage) talks beyond the classrooms. It focuses more on pedagogy than content and encourages activities. It acknowledges the importance of the teacher, students and other stakeholders.
