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Education
Student-friendly textbooks?
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The quality of a book is not measured by the number of pages, but by its content and presentation.The important thing is not what a textbook tells us but how it tells us.
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THE NATIONAL Education Policy introduced in 1986 envisaged two important changes among other things in college and secondary education. One was to convert universities and college into centres of higher education and research so that they can attain academic excellence. The other was to make two years course after standard X, as a part of school (now known as higher secondary or popularly as plus two), so that their standard can be increased. We are not very sure whether these two aims have been achieved. The probable reasons for this are: the loaded syllabus for the plus two courses and textbooks written without considering the real difficulties of Indian students arriving at this stage.
Students belonging to the genius or super genius category form a small percentage of the total. An average Indian student, after completing schooling or tenth standard, does not have the kind of exposure needed for this course nor are they fully ready for the type of syllabus and textbooks prescribed for higher secondary stage especially in science subjects like physics. There is the necessity of a bridge course. The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) prepares the syllabus for plus-two course and the National Council for Educational Training and Research (NCERT) prepares the textbooks for the course.
If we compare the syllabus of physics course with their counterparts such as freshman's course in the U.S. or higher secondary course in the U.K., one will find the syllabus for the course here is more. However, the NCERT seems to believe that the students here are learning less than their counterparts in other countries, so they say in one of the prefaces to textbooks. They should also consider the fact that school education and its standard in India is not the same as elsewhere.
It is not clear whether syllabus makers have thought about this too. Is it possible to complete the vast syllabus during ordinary school conditions? Is it necessary to teach anything and everything before the student leaves the higher secondary stage? Is it necessary to cram the syllabus with quantity and yet leave some important topics? If we scan the electronics part of physics syllabus, we find that it includes the latest theory on the origin of universe, but excludes special theory of relativity, considered as one of the revolutions in physics. The textbook omits special theory of relativity but still presents more advanced `general theory of relativity' as a starred portion. The syllabus has left some thing for the students to study in engineering colleges! Many topics are in `touch and go' modes. Both students and teachers are left with the confusion as to how deep such a topic has to be learnt or taught. Unfortunately, the NCERT textbooks do not help much either in this direction.
For State Board examinations, questions are made easy and straightforward. But in the CBSE examination, for example in physics, 20 per cent of the questions are supposed to be of tough variety. It is the pattern of this examination, which makes it tougher than the questions themselves. Students, more often than not, are short of time. The true difficulties in lack of depth in topics surface when students appear for the standard entrance examinations like IIT-JEE. Instead of studying a lot of topics without clarity, why not we make it a point to study less but deeper? Is it not time for the syllabus makers of physics (and for that matter probably in other subjects too) to come down to earth and have a look around?
We often hear that teaching sessions should not be monologues, but should be dialogues. To make this true, apart from teaching a topic in physics, there should be question-discussion sessions and problem-solving sessions as well. One cannot dump whole problems upon the students in the refined and stylish name of `home assignments' and get away with it too, as is very often done nowadays in some schools at least.
The first NCERT physics textbooks published in 1988 were of high standard. An average student could not read or understand some of the topics, let alone study and prepare for the examinations. In 1995, NCERT modified the standard XII physics textbook based on the feedback they received. In the preface, it is said that the mathematical portions or level of mathematics included in the earlier (1988) version of the book was far above the level of this class. It is good that they realised it then. Well, better late than never. This new edition has a lot of improvements to make it easier and student-friendly. In the problem section, ordinary and starred problems have been separated. The solutions to starred problems are also given. These are certainly welcome changes. But the presentation of some topics leaves a lot to be desired. It may be an expert's style. But it is not in a teacher's style. The presentation should be in an expert teacher's style.
However, no modification has been done in the Standard XI physics textbooks. There are some flaws here too. To study these portions a student needs strong background of calculus. But where is calculus taught in the first year? How do they expect the teachers and the taught to handle these portions? The NCERT Standard XI book does give a starred section in calculus. With due respects to those who wrote it, it is exactly the way calculus should not be presented. In physics and engineering, calculus is more application-oriented. But unfortunately the above presentation tries to derive equations much more than telling how to apply them. There are only two ways out. One is to get rid off these portions from the syllabus. The other is to include calculus along with the physics syllabus as a section of preliminary mathematics. A fixed number of teaching sessions should be allotted in physics syllabus for this. To accommodate this, the present syllabus will have to be cut down. This can be treated something like a bridge course between schooling and higher secondary. At present physics teachers cannot spend much time in teaching calculus, as already they are short of time. But if it is included in the syllabus and a fixed number of teaching sessions is allotted, it may work. A bridge course is a warm up session for learning physics. It should introduce physical and mathematical tables to the students and their important usages. A course in vectors, which now is included in physics chapters and a preliminary course in calculus should go along with this. During the first two to three week sessions, the bridge course should be completed. A preliminary test can also be held on the contents of the course. Such a course will make life a lot easier for both students and teachers.
The problems included in the physics should be conceptually difficult, but calculation wise it should be easy. The students should be more tested in the physical contents than arithmetic calculations. This is the type of problems that come for competitive examinations.
In spite of all their shortcomings, for physics, NCERT books are to be followed for these courses. They are precise, brief and authoritative. The teachers will have to find some `originality' in presentation. At times they may have to deviate from the style of the book. But then teaching is innovation. However, some schools that recommend and teach other textbooks may have their own reasons. The textbooks of private publishers (many of them) have at least hundred pages more than the NCERT physics books. The quality of a book is not measured by the number of pages, but by its content and presentation. The important thing is not what a textbook tells us but how it tells us.
In some schools answers to the questions are expected to be written or presented only in the same way as is given in the textbooks they teach. Any other mode of presentation, even if it is correct and is from an authority of international standard, will not be accepted! Those who evaluate the answers seem to forget a simple principle that an answer is always correct, unless it is proved otherwise. Some teacher's do not give marks for the outside answer, as they do not have the patience to check the authenticity of the answers, even if students present them from authorities. This kind of textbooks mania may prevent the students from reading extra material. If extra reading habit disappears, preparation for competitive examinations will become difficult. So the evaluators should encourage presentation of answers from international standard books.
V. MAHADEVA IYER
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