Reduction in syllabus

 The Government have announced the National Education Policy (NEP), 2020, which,inter-alia, in para4.5 provides that curriculum content will be reduced in each subject to its core essentials, to make space for critical thinking and more holistic, inquiry-based, discovery-based, discussion-based, and analysis-based learning. The mandated content will focus on key concepts, ideas, applications, and problem-solving. Teaching and learning will be conducted in a more interactive manner; questions will be encouraged, and classroom sessions will regularly contain more fun, creative, collaborative, and exploratory activities for students for deeper and more experiential learning. Para 4.31 provides that the reduction in content and increased flexibility of school curriculum - and the renewed emphasis on constructive rather than rote learning – must be accompanied by parallel changes in school textbooks. All textbooks shall aim to contain the essential core material (together with discussion, analysis, examples, and applications) deemed important on a national level, but at the same time contain any desired nuances and supplementary material as per local contexts and needs. Where possible, schools and teachers will also have choices in the textbooks they employ - from among a set of textbooks that contain the requisite national and local material - so that they may teach in a manner that is best suited to their own pedagogical styles as well as to their students and communities’ needs. Further, para 4.33 provides that concerted efforts, through suitable changes in curriculum and pedagogy, will be made by NCERT, SCERTs, schools, and educators to significantly reduce the weight of school bags and textbooks.On the basis of these provisions, funding under SamagraShiksha for school improvement, teacher training, development of new curriculum framework, focus on foundational learning & numeracy are ongoing.