News Analysis India

Tag: textbooks

  • ‘What a disgrace’: Tharoor on removal of Maulana Azad references from NCERT textbook

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: Senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Friday slammed the government over the removal of references to India’s first education minister Maulana Abul Kalam Azad in the new NCERT class 11 political science textbook, calling it a “disgrace”.

    References to freedom fighter and India’s first education minister Azad have been removed from the new class 11 political science textbook by the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT).

    Tagging a media report on it, Tharoor, a former minister of state for human resource development, tweeted, “What a disgrace. I have no objection to adding neglected figures to the historical narrative, but deleting people, especially for the wrong reasons, is unworthy of our diverse democracy and its storied history.”

    As part of its “syllabus rationalisation” exercise last year, the NCERT, citing “overlapping” and “irrelevant” as reasons, dropped certain portions from the course including lessons on Gujarat riots, Mughal courts, Emergency, Cold War, Naxalite movement, among others from its textbooks.

    The rationalisation note had no mention of any changes in class 11 political science textbook.

    READ MORE | NCERT’s revision of textbooks part of ‘saffronisation’ agenda, says Kerala CM

    The NCERT has, however, claimed that no curriculum trimming has taken place this year and the syllabus was rationalised in June last year.

    “Certain changes not finding mention of in the rationalised content book could be an ‘oversight’,” NCERT Director Dinesh Saklani reiterated. In the class 11 political science textbook’s first chapter, titled ‘Constitution – Why and How’, a line has been revised to omit Azad’s name from the constituent assembly committee meetings. The revised line now reads, “Usually, Jawaharlal Nehru, Rajendra Prasad, Sardar Patel or BR Ambedkar chaired these Committees.”

    ALSO READ | Historians, political leaders call out NCERT’s move to remove references to Gandhi, RSS, Godse

    NEW DELHI: Senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Friday slammed the government over the removal of references to India’s first education minister Maulana Abul Kalam Azad in the new NCERT class 11 political science textbook, calling it a “disgrace”.

    References to freedom fighter and India’s first education minister Azad have been removed from the new class 11 political science textbook by the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT).

    Tagging a media report on it, Tharoor, a former minister of state for human resource development, tweeted, “What a disgrace. I have no objection to adding neglected figures to the historical narrative, but deleting people, especially for the wrong reasons, is unworthy of our diverse democracy and its storied history.”googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });

    As part of its “syllabus rationalisation” exercise last year, the NCERT, citing “overlapping” and “irrelevant” as reasons, dropped certain portions from the course including lessons on Gujarat riots, Mughal courts, Emergency, Cold War, Naxalite movement, among others from its textbooks.

    The rationalisation note had no mention of any changes in class 11 political science textbook.

    READ MORE | NCERT’s revision of textbooks part of ‘saffronisation’ agenda, says Kerala CM

    The NCERT has, however, claimed that no curriculum trimming has taken place this year and the syllabus was rationalised in June last year.

    “Certain changes not finding mention of in the rationalised content book could be an ‘oversight’,” NCERT Director Dinesh Saklani reiterated. In the class 11 political science textbook’s first chapter, titled ‘Constitution – Why and How’, a line has been revised to omit Azad’s name from the constituent assembly committee meetings. The revised line now reads, “Usually, Jawaharlal Nehru, Rajendra Prasad, Sardar Patel or BR Ambedkar chaired these Committees.”

    ALSO READ | Historians, political leaders call out NCERT’s move to remove references to Gandhi, RSS, Godse

  • NCERT to bring balanced perspective of all genders in new curriculum, textbooks: Parliamentary panel

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: The NCERT will work towards bringing a balanced perspective of all genders in the new National Curriculum Framework (NCF) and in its textbooks, according to a parliamentary committee.

    The panel had earlier recommended that to address the under-representation of women and girls in school textbooks or them being depicted only in traditional roles, a thorough analysis from the viewpoint of gender bias and stereotypes should be undertaken by the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT).

    It also said efforts should be made to make content portrayal and visual depiction gender inclusive.

    On Monday, the report of the Reforms in Content and Design of School Text Books Committee on the action taken by the government on its recommendations and observations was tabled in Parliament.

    “The committee has been informed that the NCERT has taken note of all the issues raised by the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Education, Women, Children, Youth and Sports and will contribute adequately to bringing in a balanced perspective of all the gender in the NCF, syllabus and all the textbooks which will be developed as a follow-up of NCFs. The process of development of NCFs has already been initiated by the NCERT,” it said.

    Earlier, the panel had also recommended that textbooks should have a greater portrayal of women in new and emerging professions as role models with a focus on their contributions and pathway of achieving the same.

    This will help in instilling self-esteem and self-confidence among all, particularly girls, it had said.

    “While examining the textbooks, other issues like environment sensitivity, human values, issues of children with special needs etc. can also be looked up for adequate inclusion in the School textbooks,” the panel had said.

    NEW DELHI: The NCERT will work towards bringing a balanced perspective of all genders in the new National Curriculum Framework (NCF) and in its textbooks, according to a parliamentary committee.

    The panel had earlier recommended that to address the under-representation of women and girls in school textbooks or them being depicted only in traditional roles, a thorough analysis from the viewpoint of gender bias and stereotypes should be undertaken by the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT).

    It also said efforts should be made to make content portrayal and visual depiction gender inclusive.

    On Monday, the report of the Reforms in Content and Design of School Text Books Committee on the action taken by the government on its recommendations and observations was tabled in Parliament.

    “The committee has been informed that the NCERT has taken note of all the issues raised by the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Education, Women, Children, Youth and Sports and will contribute adequately to bringing in a balanced perspective of all the gender in the NCF, syllabus and all the textbooks which will be developed as a follow-up of NCFs. The process of development of NCFs has already been initiated by the NCERT,” it said.

    Earlier, the panel had also recommended that textbooks should have a greater portrayal of women in new and emerging professions as role models with a focus on their contributions and pathway of achieving the same.

    This will help in instilling self-esteem and self-confidence among all, particularly girls, it had said.

    “While examining the textbooks, other issues like environment sensitivity, human values, issues of children with special needs etc. can also be looked up for adequate inclusion in the School textbooks,” the panel had said.