APPENDIX J (c)-
REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE ON
 CURRICULUM OF BASIC SCHOOLS
 

The second meeting of the Committee on Curriculum of Basic Schools was held on the 10th and 11th October, 1949. The following were present :-

1. Prof. Humayun Kabir, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Education, (Chairman).

2. Mr. Syed Ansari, Principal, Basic Training Institute Jamia Millia.

3. Miss Durga Deulkar, Lecturer, Lady Irwin College, New Delhi.

4. Mr. E. W. Franklin, Director of Public Instruction, C. P. & Berar, (represented Dr. Jha).

5. Shri Ram Saran Upadhyaya, Secretary, Basic Education Board, Bihar.

6. Shri L. R. Sethi, Deputy Secretary, Ministry of Education (Secretary, Central Advisory Board).

Dr. Pin Malakul and Mr. Soebroto also attended the meeting on 11- 10-49 by invitation.

Dr. Zakir Hussain, Dr. Jha and Mr. Saiyidain were unable to attend the meeting.

Dr. Bina Chatterjee acted as Secretary to the Committee.

2. The agenda and other relevant papers circulated to the members of the Committee are attached.

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3. After welcoming the members, the Chairman stated that the main task before the Committee was to finalise the, syllabii for Basic Schools. He thanked members for the trouble they had taken in preparing these and added that the necessity for publishing at least a general outline of the course of studies to be followed in Basic

Schools and a handbook for the guidance of Basic Teachers could not be overemphasised. These publications would not and could not be the last word on Basic Education. As in all systems of education, there would always be room for further improvements in light of new experience gained every day.

Item No. I.

The Committee then scrutinised the different syllabii.

The following alterations were recommended in the syllabus on Home Craft :-

(i) Substitute "Simple Cane Work, for example, making of mats" for "Cane Work, simple cane weaving, making of mats, baskets and boxes".

(ii) Add "Making of Baskets and Boxes" after "Cane Work continue".

(iii) For "Kurtas" substitute "Stitching Kurtas" and delete Gandhi Caps ".

(iv) Substitute "Stitching Tea-cosies" for "Tea Cosies".

(v) Delete "Simple Kameez".

The following alterations were recommended in the syllabus on Paper work, Card Board Work, Wood Work and Metal Work:-

(i) Substitute "Names of tools" for "Tools".

(ii) Time required for Grade III should be 2 hours and not 2 1/2 hours.

(iii) Time required for grades IV and V should be 2 1/2 hours and not 3 hours.

(iv) The portion "Grade VI, VII and VIII-12 the different kinds of bellows and Anvils" should come after "Evaluation of models according to the local market rate". Then should follow "an optional course in Card Board etc.".

The following alterations were made in the syllabus on Spinning and Weaving Craft :-

(i) Substitute "a total of one hour's spinning during the day" for "1 hour spinning".

(ii) Substitute "Two hours" for " 2 1/2 hours

(iii) Substitute "Charkha and Takli" instead of "Charkha" under "Time for Craft" and delete "Takli and 1/2 hour."

(iv) Substitute "2 1/2 hours" for "Three hours" under the

same heading.

(v) Substitute "Charkha and Takli" for "Charkha" under Time and delete "Takli and 1/2 hour".

(vi) Substitute "2 1/2 hours" for "3 hours" under the same heading.

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The following alterations were recommended in regard to the syllabus on Social Studies:-

(i) For Grade II under the heading "Life of man in ancient times", the stories of Christ and Mohammed and some Persian stories may be included and the "Stories of Alexandar and a Greek Slave" may be omitted.

(ii) For Grades IV and V it was suggested that the whole history of India-ancient and modern-may be given in story form.

(iii) It was also suggested that the history syllabus for grades VI to VIII may be reframed so as to make the work lighter yet informative for children. The recommendation was that the history of India should be covered in grades VI and VII and grade VIII should deal with the story of the Modern World.

As regards the syllabus on Fisheries it was suggested that an 8- year syllabus may be prepared.

The following general observations were made in regard to the syllabii :-

(i) In general, children of grades I to III should devote about 2 hours a day on the Basic Craft, children of grades IV and V 2 1/2 hours and children of grades VI to VIII about 3 hours a day. The time assigned for the craft does not mean only the time spent on the actual craft, but also includes planning of the craft by the teachers and pupils, a certain amount of time spent on correlation and other diversionary elements brought in the craft for educational purposes.

The times indicated for the crafts are only norms to which the teacher should try to conform, but in every case he must be guided by the actual situation in which he finds himself. The object of the teacher should be to exploit to the fullest extent the educational possibilities of a craft.

(ii) Craft Work should not generally be taken up at one stretch but the minimum time devoted at one stretch should not be less than 30 minutes.

(iii) Children will, generally, be taught through one main craft, but they will be introduced to other crafts by way of diversions and subsidiaries.

(iv) The syllabus on Agriculture and Gardening has been prepared on the assumption that this will be used as a subsidiary craft upto Grade V. This perhaps is inevitable from the nature of the course as Agriculture involves operations which the children of 6 to 11 cannot be expected to perform to the extent or in the manner required if Agriculture were to be the Basic Craft.

(v) The Foreword to the Syllabii should make it clear that all of them are drawn according to the information and experience now available. In view of the fact that much of the work in connexion with Basic Education is experimental and till now experiments on a large scale have not been carried out, it must be made clear to the teacher that he should not follow every single item of the syllabus literally but accept the ideal of Basic Education as teaching for life and adapt the syllabus accordingly.

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(vi) It also must be made clear in the Foreword that in the case of Leather Work, Pottery, Fishery and Home Craft only certain general syllabii have been prescribed but, as no schools have till now carried out actual education through these crafts, the standard of attainment in the different grades could not be indicated. As experience is gained, standards of attainment in the different grades will be gradually defined.

Item No. II.

The Committee then considered the second item on the Agenda.

The Committee recommended to request the Government of India to publish immediately the syllabus* for Basic Schools and Hand-Book for the guidance of Basic teachers. Steps should also be taken for the publication of text books on Social Studies and General Science in Basic Schools.

The Committee recommended that the Governments of Bihar, Bombay and Central Provinces & Berar may be requested to send to the Government of India their experience on correlation. The Government

of India should then publish the material.

The Committee also recommended that the Provincial Governments may be requested to give accounts to useful experiments carried by them in the field of Basic Education and the Government of India may take steps to publish such material when available.

The Committee further recommended that the Government of India should take immediate steps to publish Bibliography of useful books of reference in various languages pertaining to Basic Education.

The meeting then adjourned.

Agenda of the Committee on the Curriculum in Basic Schools which met at New Delhi, on 10th & 11th Oct., 1949.

1. To examine and finalise the syllabii for Basic Schools prepared by different members of the Committee and also to consider the question of preparing a Handbook for teachers.

2. To consider the action to be taken on the following resolution of the Standing Committee of the Central Advisory Board of Education or, Basic Education whose report was approved by the Board at its 15th Meeting held in January, 1949 :-

Immediate steps may be taken for the publication of literature of the following types :-

(a) Booklets on the teaching of Basic Crafts.

(b) Booklet for students on subjects taught in Basic Schools.

(c) Handbooks for the guidance of teachers in Basic Schools.

(d) Booklets on correlation actually practised in Schools.

(e) Accounts of useful experiments in the field of Basic Education.

(f) Bibliographies of useful books of reference in various languages pertaining to Basic Education,

and

that in order to carry out the above objectives, the Government of India should establish a small unit which should act in close co- operation with the Provinces and leading Institutions of Basic Education.

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