MADURAI: The Madras High Court Bench here on Wednesday allowed a suo motu public interest litigation petition taken up by it last month and directed the State Government to improve the quality of uniform syllabus being implemented in the State since 2010.
A Division Bench of Justices A. Selvam and P. Kalaiyarasan made it clear that if School Education Department had already taken steps for improving the quality of the syllabus, then it should continue the same. The order was passed after perusing a counter affidavit filed by Director of School Education S. Kannappan, listing the steps taken so far.
Mr. Kannappan denied as baseless a newspaper report, based on which the the court had taken up the suo motu PIL, on the quality of uniform syllabus and its effect on students. He said the government had introduced Continuous and Comprehensive Education (CCE) and trimester pattern for Classes I to VIII from 2012-13 and for Class IX from 2013-14.
“The purpose is to reduce book load, learning stress and academic burden on students. Tamil Nadu is a pioneer in implementation of the CCE with trimester. This has not only brought positive changes in learning style but also enabled teachers to assess learning levels of students,” he said.
Further stating that the uniform syllabus prescribed for Class I to X was learner-friendly, the DSE said it was prepared through involvement of all types of schools and eminent educationists. Experts who contributed in the development of National Curriculum Framework 2005 were also involved in the preparation of the uniform syllabus in the State.
“The allegation that there is lack of syllabus revision, as found in the newspaper report, is not correct and the same is denied. The textbooks prepared by the State were reviewed by experts from National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT). Revision does not happen once in four years, as reported, but it happens every term,” Mr. Kannapan claimed.
