CHENNAI: The school education department has introduced Life Skills and Values Education textbooks for students of Classes 1 to 12. It has also strictly instructed that for students in Classes 10 to 12, no other subject should be taught during the Moral Education period.
The move comes amid growing concerns over issues such as drug abuse among students and repeated complaints from teachers that indiscipline among schoolchildren has been increasing in recent years, especially after the Covid-19 lockdown.
In a circular issued to all chief educational officers (CEOs), the department said the textbooks, developed by the State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT), should be taught during the Moral Education period prescribed in the academic calendar by linking the lessons with current events. Headmasters have also been asked to encourage interested teachers to handle the classes using the new textbooks.
It also directed the schools to integrate the books into various co-curricular activities, including literary club events, essay, speech, and quiz competitions, as well as awareness programmes conducted by anti-drug, road safety, cyber safety, child protection and environmental clubs.
“Earlier, there were moral education periods, but teachers did not have prescribed textbooks to guide the classes. We have now distributed the books to all students, and the sessions will be conducted based on them,” a CEO said.
