No more rote learning for tiny tots

Naina Mishra

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, January 23

With an intent to promote context-based learning opportunities for holistic development of children between three to six years, Chandigarh is all set to roll out a ‘Preschool Curriculum’ planned by National Council of Educational Research Training (NCERT) from the new academic session.

Under the Department of Elementary Education, NCERT has drafted guidelines for preschool education and curriculum. As per sources in the NCERT, the final draft has been readied after taking suggestions from stakeholders and SCERTs of different states. The sources confirmed that the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) is expected to officially release the draft on preschool curriculum soon.

In this regard, Chandigarh’s State Council of Education of Educational Research and Training (SCERT) has organised nursery teacher training (NTT) till January 30 wherein resource persons from the NCERT imparted training to teachers on the curriculum. On the last day, an exhibition will be held at the SCERT, Sector 32, related to the preschool curriculum.

“Elementary teachers are being given training by the SCERT for preschool curriculum that will be used from next session,” said Surender Dahiya, SCERT director.

Two years of preschool education — preschool I and preschool II — has been suggested before class I.

The draft curriculum has three broad goals to be addressed, including key skills/concepts to be transacted, the pedagogical processes to be followed by teachers and early learning outcomes to be achieved by children by the year end.

The curriculum integrates all domains of development by focusing on maintaining good health and well being of a child to ensure that he/she becomes effective communicators and involved learners with their immediate environment.

Mother tongue as medium of instruction

The mother tongue or home language of a child will preferably be the medium of instruction in the class. In case there is more than one language as mother tongue, teachers may allow as many languages as there are in classrooms to be used for expression while gradually exposing children to the school language.

Activity areas for children in classrooms

The curriculum lays emphasis to setting up of child friendly indoor and outdoor physical environment with activity areas such as art, block building, doll and dramatic play, maths/manipulative, science/discovery, music and movement, sand and water plot, besides book areas.

Observing children while they are playing will be essential as it will reveal a lot about a child’s contexts like family, interactions, pent up feelings and bottled up emotions.

Five domains for play material, equipment

There are five domains – physical and motor development, social and emotional development, cognitive development, creative development and language and literacy development – based on which play material and equipment have been suggested.

These materials can be concept books, magic slates, rhyming sound cards, water play toys, hanging bars, balance scales and other material.

One teacher for every 20 students

The curriculum also talks about guidelines for preschool education related to infrastructure, preschool staff, admission process and safety precautions.

Among essential staff for preschool, there should be one teacher for every 20 children with a helper for three to four years old. For children between four to six years, there should be one teacher with helper for every 25 students. Police verification is mandated for all preschool staff.

Guidelines by NCERT

• Playground and materials should be adapted for children with disabilities (CWDs)
• Arrangements should be made for taking nap or rest for all children in case of more than four hours of preschool.
• Bathroom fixtures and sinks should be according to height of children.
• Doors should not have self- locking systems or latches
• Play materials should not have small/loose parts which children will swallow by mistake.
• A helper or ayah should accompany at least 3 to 4 years old to the washroom.
• Integration of all domains of development with focus on maintaining good health and well-being of a child to ensure that he/she becomes effective communicators and involved learner.