CHENNAI: The school education department has started teaching career guidance as a subject in Classes 11 and 12 for 80 minutes per month. As part of the initiative, which was introduced about a month ago, students will carry out self-assessments to learn their strengths and weaknesses and the courses they can pursue.
For this, the State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT) has trained 152 DIET (District Institute of Education and Training) faculty and postgraduate teachers, who acted as key resource persons, and trained 3,600 teachers across 38 districts so far. Officials from the school education department said they hope this will improve the gross enrolment ratio (GER).
“Tamil Nadu’s GER is one of the highest in India 51.4 per cent in 2019-20. But the GER of government schools is lower. This initiative will ensure more government school students are made aware of their potential and the opportunities available,” said a school education official.
Besides providing guidance to students on which institutions are the best to pursue a specific stream, teachers will tell them about the courses and colleges nearby and help them if their parents are hesitant to send them to other districts to study.
Through these classes, students will be made aware of various scholarships and quotas, including the 7.5 per cent reservation for government school students. The department has released a book for career guidance, and there will be no exams on the subject.
The department is also planning to include similar classes for students in Classes 9 and 10 to help them pick groups for higher secondary education. The hi-tech labs in schools will also be used to help students apply for college from next year, said an official.