Special handbook developed for early stage English teaching in UP schools

Experts of Prayagraj-based English Language Teaching Institute (ELTI) functioning under State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT), UP have developed a handbook to teach English texts at the foundational stage classes in government-run pre-primary and primary schools of Uttar Pradesh. The handbook is expected to be available to teachers from the next academic session of 2024-25, said officials of the state basic education department.

The foundational stage, according to the new national education policy (NEP)-2020, includes the first five years of schooling ie the three years of pre-primary stage or the Bal Vatika and classes 1 and 2, said the officials.

“The handbook is essential as the new books are quite different from the earlier ones that were being taught for many years now,” said principal of Prayagraj-based ELTI-Prayagraj Skand Shukla while confirming the development.

These new books have the special features like attractive illustrations for facilitating the development of English-speaking skills in children. The focus of these books is on the development of oral skills (ie listening and speaking) first followed by reading and writing skills. The various units and chapters have sections like ‘let us sing’, ‘let us speak’, ‘let us read’, ‘let us do’, ‘let us write’ etc— to develop a particular skill, he explained.

Likewise, the various contents- illustrations, words, sentences and units have been selected and placed in an ordered manner to provide children a planned exposure to English as a second language, he added.

The ELTI handbook addresses the handling of the pre-primary English study material in ‘Pahal’ in brief, and the class 1 and 2 textbooks content both extensively and intensively, Shukla said.

The handbbook deals with each and every page and uses bullet points as far as possible to facilitate the teachers without overwhelming them with directions and suggestions. It also provides bridge course material for 8-weeks teaching at class 1 level so that the children from the Hindi background have a smooth switching from their pre-primary learning to that of class 1 textbook content, he explained.

The handbook has been developed by the ELTI in a workshop mode involving expert teachers besides Dr Ganga Mahto from the Regional Institute of Education, Bhopal— a constituent unit of NCERT—who was part of the book writing team at NCERT.

The state had around 1.25 lakh government-run primary schools functioning in the 75 districts under the UP Basic Education Council. The state government in 2020, started converting anganwadis to pre-primary schools with 75,000 being targeted in the first phase for this purpose. Children in the age group of 3 years were to be admitted in pre-primary schools while 5-year-old and above kids were admitted in class 1 of government-run primary schools, the officials said.

From session 2024-25, customised NCERT (National Council of Educational Research and Training) textbooks would be taught to students of classes 1 and 2.

The directorate of child development and nutrition (Bal Vikas Seva aur Pushtahar) has also developed an activity book ‘Pahal’ for the pre-primary classes, officials said.