The Cabinet's decision to constitute an experts' committee to look into the issue of improving the quality of school education, in the context of the implementation of Samacheer Kalvi (Equitable Standard School Education), has come as a surprise to many in academic circles.
Speaking to The Hindu here on Sunday, School Education Minister C. Ve. Shanmugham said that while implementing Samacheer Kalvi was very important, sections of parents, educationists and the media felt that the standard of the common syllabus evolved was not one that would improve the quality of education.
The experts' committee, he said, would analyse the reports brought out by committees involved in the exercise earlier. “The committee will analyse the syllabus in detail. It will consult all the stakeholders and reflect on enhancing the overall quality of education itself, while making it equitable,” Mr. Shanmugham said. He added that the new textbooks would be made available by June 15, the new date of reopening for schools.
Sources in the Directorate of Teacher Education, Research and Training (DTERT), the agency responsible for getting textbook content ready for print, said they were in the process of identifying printers who could bring out the textbooks for the current academic year on time.
Ever since the State government appointed a committee headed by S. Muthukumaran, former Vice-Chancellor of Bharathidasan University, in 2006, to look into the possibilities of introducing equitable standard education in schools, different sections have voiced their concerns and opinion on the matter.
Aspects such as whether the common syllabus was made heavier or was diluted, whether schools should have a choice on the medium of instruction and whether all the stakeholders were consulted adequately have periodically been in focus.
At one point, former Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi clarified that equitable standard school education did not mean imposition of the syllabus of one stream on others. A common syllabus would be prepared, incorporating the best of all the streams, he had said. After much deliberation and several debates, the State government in August 2009 announced that equitable standard school education would be implemented from the academic year commencing in June 2010.
It did so, introducing the common syllabus for class I and VI to start with. The plan was to extend the newly evolved common syllabus from II to V and from VII to X in the academic year beginning June 2011, thereby covering all the classes.
Implications
Now that the new government has spelt out its position on Samcheer Kalvi, schoolteachers, especially those handling class X, are in a fix.
Thanks to the prevailing culture of beginning the next academic year's syllabus during the current academic session for students about to go to the ‘board examination years', many teachers have covered certain concepts and chapters based on the Samacheer Kalvi proposals and draft syllabi shared earlier.
A total of nine crore books that were being printed as per the previous government's Samacheer Kalvi syllabus will not be used now.
An estimated Rs.200 crore was spent on the exercise.
Heads of some schools, who believed that the syllabus had been diluted, said they were relieved. N. Vijayan, general secretary, Federation of Matriculation Schools' Associations in Tamil Nadu, said: “Parents tell us that they admit their children to our schools expecting a certain quality. They were very upset seeing the syllabus given as per Samacheer Kalvi. Now, they are very happy.”
However, educationist V. Vasanthi Devi maintains that the State Board syllabus is on a par with, if not better, than the Matriculation syllabus. On Samacheer Kalvi, she said: “The previous government had only evolved a common syllabus. That does not amount to Samacheer Kalvi. In order to ensure equitable education, several aspects pertaining to quality – such as recruitment of teachers, a strong regulatory mechanism and infrastructure in schools have to be given attention.”
Emphasising that the new government should accord top priority to the implementation of the Right To Education Act, she said: “Children should not be made to pay the price. Education is too fundamental an issue for opposing political interests to use to make a point.”
Keywords: school textbook, school education, State syllabus, Samacheer Kalvi
As far as I am concerned, the school education is nothing but a
memory test. It never decides the way of life. Many private schools, torchure the student to swollow the entire book and vomit it during the examination. They are not reprints or photostat machine. In order to achieve 100 % results (irrespective of
no. of students) the stratagy they follow during 8th and 9th standard is very ugly and not tolerable. To be very honest, Many
Metric school pricipals never even know to speak proper english.
Their way of communication is very bad.
No other state other than Tamil Nadu has such confusing Boards of
syllabus. We find only state Board and Central sylabus ( such as
CBSE & ICSE) in other states.
When students go out of Tamil Nadu, they find very difficult to manage English. We from IT Industry have even tested people from
Metric System. They too are very weak in communication.
Somehow every politician ensures that private schools make business and they have their share.
When samacheer kalvi was introduced, we from IT industry belived that it is really a good platform to judge the students' talents in black and white. But now it is put into dustbin at a very enourmous cost of people.
The decision of postponement of Common syllabus system is complete atrocity of the Government. She (Ms. Jayalalitha) has not even bothered to consult the team of educationalist. She is not changed. I regret why at all we voted to her. She is making the way to all private schools to make business as usual. The Government of Tamilnadu in anyway not with the people, they are always against them. It is the game of rivelry between DMK & ADMK. No govt. of tamil nadu is for the people It is sickening, tired, upset and frustrating. what more to say
Many have thought Ms. Jayalalitha has changed a lot, but they have made a wrong assumption. One must always keep in mind that nature of person will never change even though if they try to pretend that they have changed. She has given seven orders for the people's welfare on her very first day at office. But these are the Side effects that people has to face 1) Rs.1000 Crore work secretariat into dustbin. More amount and labour spent to renovate the old one. 2) Banning of Boat service to Thiruvalluvar statue 3) Now taking off samachir kalvi(Rs. 200 crore loss). Don't worry folks there are much more to come. We'll all suffer together in coming years. There is nothing called standard in syllabus. Dr. A.P.J Abdul Kalam studied in a government school in rameshwaram.
Rs.200 crores is in the dustbin of J. Jayalalitha. She is simply making loss to the exchequer of the government and it is an offence against the well-being of the students and the interest of Tamil Nadu Government. Who will take action against this? CAG or CBI? Thinking of creating an equitable society is wrong. The syllabus was created after number of consultations with educationist and experts in education considering socio-economic factors of the children. Most correspondents of matriculation schools haven't even passed XII standard and are businessmen. They are happy now because, now they are able to grab more money from parents by saying that they are following different syllabus and the quality .... so on.
With the comming of new govt which has not left Education area also unturned to reverse the stand taken by earlier Govt. The loss of this is again to public tax payers money of which Rs.200 crores has been put in the dust bin and the parents who are very confused on which stream to put their children and putting the future of all these students in a bleak. God save us all from the glitches of Politicians.
The decision taken to reconsider the samacheer kalvi plan is nothing but a political vendetta.The syllabus for the new education plan has been formulated by educationists only in the best interests of the millions of children. The change has been informed atleast two years back and the teeming children and parents would eagerly wait for the new syllabus. Now that the elections have come and the resultant change in the Government. The new Govt. want a change in everything and these politicians play in the grounds of Tamilnadu's children. What do they lose if this syllabus is followed? If they would feel that any political material is found they could be removed. When all is set to take off for this new academic year, it is strange and unwarranted to withdraw the text books printed at a cost of Rs.200 crores and order a fresh committee to look into this whole episode once again. They have umpteen number of other schemes to find fault with, instead of interfering into this prime field of primary education and that too at the very beginning of the academic year. Who will take this to the benevolent C.M?
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