The Maharashtra School Education and Sports Department has drafted a new curriculum framework for Std III to X. A new syllabus for subjects like Vocational Learning and optional subjects like Traffic Safety & Civil Defence has been added to the curriculum in line with the National Education Policy (NEP).

According to the policy document released by the State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT) this week, students are to learn skills such as first aid and bandaging, the basics of firefighting, and the ‘language’ of road signs, along with types of disasters and team drills to manage them. “These subjects help students focus on individual responsibility,” said Mahendra Ganpule, a member of the drafting committee.

“So far, we’ve looked at schooling as a means to finish our educational pursuits and to get a job. The new curriculum aims to alter this perspective. Now, the students will also learn basic life skills at school, from how to handle a medical patient to learning simple practical skills — be it changing light bulbs or gas cylinders as a part of the civil defence course,” he added.