In a bid to reach out to stakeholders at the ground level, the Tamil Nadu Curriculum Framework Committee met with teachers, parents and representatives of local NGOs from eight districts including Chennai, Kancheepuram, Villupuram, Dharmapuri, Krishnagiri and Thiruvallur in the city, on Tuesday, as a part of developing the new curriculum.
The day-long session, had teachers from various districts interact with the committee and share feedback on aspects that they would like included in the revamped curriculum. B. Karunakaran, Headmaster of the Porur Boys Higher Secondary School said that he had told the committee about the importance of providing adequate training to the teachers once the new system was in place.
“With the new curriculum in place that may herald changes with regard to an increase in the use of technology in classrooms, the government should ensure that the teachers are equipped to tackle and implement the changes effectively,” he said. While similar zonal sessions have already taken place in Madurai and Coimbatore, the committee headed by M. Anandakrishnan, former Vice Chancellor of Anna University, is scheduled to meet representatives from Thanjavur and surrounding districts during this week after the session in Chennai. Artist Trotsky Marudhu, who is a part of the committee said that they were also looking at ways to integrate arts into the syllabus and ensure that students have more exposure to it at the school level.
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Apart from sharing their views with the committee, the participants were also asked to mail and send in their feedback to add to the curriculum revamp process.
“While many teachers stressed the need to develop students’ ability to perform in competitive exams, others told us about the need to strengthen their fundamentals,” Mr.Anandakrishnan said.