Latest news with #Sivankutty
New Indian Express
2 days ago
- General
- New Indian Express
Kerala CM Pinarayi to inaugurate Praveshanotsavam today
'The academic master plan will be published by June 10. The academic year 2025-26 will be considered as the Comprehensive Quality Year. Various activities and projects are being implemented as part of making Comprehensive Quality Education efficient, ensuring that the knowledge and skills to be acquired by children in each class are acquired in the respective classes itself. The learning processes will be developed in such a way that the values envisaged in the Constitution, such as democracy, secularism, and equality along with the social values and civic consciousness put forward by the Curriculum Framework 2023, are instilled in children,' said minister Sivankutty. 'NCERT has prepared a school readiness package for children who enter Class 1 without any preschool learning experience and with different preschool experiences. Samagra Shiksha Kerala has been tasked with developing the module,' he added. In the context of the revision of the Class I curriculum and textbook, Samagra Shiksha Kerala has prepared a readiness package for the implementation of the first two weeks of the academic year under the name 'Onnorukkam' for the year 2025-26.
Time of India
3 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
Kerala govt finalises new school academic calendar; working hours extended by 30 minutes
T'puram: Following pressure from the Kerala high court, the govt on Saturday finalised a new school academic calendar. Accordingly, the working hours of govt and aided schools in the state will be extended by 30 minutes, except on Fridays. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now The office of the general education minister V Sivankutty stated that the daily additional hours would be equally split into two. The morning session will start 15 minutes earlier than the previous schedule, and the afternoon session will conclude 15 minutes after the schedule. Two Saturdays in an academic year will be working days for upper primary (UP) classes while there will be regular classes on six selected Saturdays for high school classes. However, there will be no classes on Saturdays for lower primary (LP) classes. The high court had recently criticised the state govt for not finalising the school academic calendar on time and asked it to finalise the calendar at the earliest to avoid the general education principal secretary being summoned to the court. Following the court's strong observations, minister Sivankutty revealed the govt's plans at a hastily called Quality Assurance Programme (QAP) meeting on Friday. However, only pro-CPM and CPI teachers' organisation representatives attended that meeting, as invitations were sent to them at the last minute. The new academic calendar has been finalised as per the recommendations of a committee appointed by the govt for this purpose. According to the new academic calendar, there will be 198 teaching days and 800 study hours in LP schools. With the inclusion of two Saturdays, the teaching days in the UP section will be 200, and the learning hours will be 1,000. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now As per Kerala Education rules, there should be a minimum of 1,100 learning hours in high schools. With the new arrangements, there will be 204 working days for the high school section. The govt earlier tried to overcome the minimum working days issue by declaring 25 Saturdays as working days. However, the order was challenged by stakeholders, and the high court struck down the govt's decision to declare Saturdays as working days in the 2024-25 academic year. The HC then urged the govt to ensure the minimum working days and teaching hours in schools after taking all stakeholders into confidence.
Time of India
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Time of India
In Kerala, student poem selected as theme song for school reopening celebrations
T'puram: For the first time, a poem penned by a school student has been chosen as the theme song for Praveshanotsavam (school reopening-day celebrations) to be organised on Monday. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now General education minister V Sivankutty said the poet, Bhadra Hari, is a student of Kottarakkara Thamarakudy SVVHS. Musician Alphons Joseph composed and sang the song. Bhadra will be the chief guest at the state-level school reopening event to be inaugurated by chief minister at Kalavur govt higher secondary school in Alappuzha, Sivankutty said. The minister said the general education department's major non-academic focus in the 2025-26 academic year would be campaigns and awareness programmes against drug abuse. He said a five-hour induction programme was being prepared for higher secondary students. As part of the anti-drug activities, the department organized a workshop in the higher secondary section, involving various departments and experts working in related fields and developed necessary modules. Subsequently, discussions were held again on these modules on May 22, 23 and 24. Selected teachers will undergo training before the school reopening. Over 4 lakh students in the higher secondary section would benefit from this training, Sivankutty said.
The Hindu
5 days ago
- General
- The Hindu
Arrangements in full swing for Pravesanotsavam: Minister
Stage and pandal arrangements for the State-level school Pravesanotsavam (school opening day fete) at Government Higher Secondary School, Kalavoor, Alappuzha, are expected to be completed by Friday, Minister for General Education V. Sivankutty has said. Minister for Culture Saji Cherian will flag off a proclamation rally in Alappuzha town on Saturday in connection with the Pravesanotsavam. Nearly 5,000 people will take part in the rally, he said. Addressing a press meet here on Thursday on the Pravesanotsavam arrangements, the General Education Minister said Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan would inaugurate the Pravesanotsavam at 9.30 a.m. on Monday. Mr. Sivankutty would preside over the event, in which students would present cultural programmes from 8.30 a.m. Committee formed Elaborating on the arrangements, Mr. Sivankutty said an organising committee with Alappuzha MLA P.P. Chitharanjan as chairperson and Mr. Cherian and Minister for Agriculture P. Prasad as patrons had been formed. The Minister said the Kalavoor school's teachers, parent-teacher association, school management committee, and the people's representatives were visiting houses of all students to invite them and their parents to the event. Street art The school compound wall and premises had been beautified through street art under the leadership of the organising committee and the district panchayat art academy. Provisions were being collected from the people and shopkeepers of Kalavoor for a sadya intended for 3,000 people. Posters and reels related to the Pravesanotsavam had been provided to schools. Arrangements were being made to telecast the function in all schools, Mr. Sivankutty said.
The Hindu
26-05-2025
- The Hindu
Kerala govt. to crack down on teachers, staff involved in Pocso cases: Minister
General Education Minister V. Sivankutty on Monday warned of stringent action against teachers and other employees of the education department involved in Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (Pocso) cases. Seventy-seven Pocso cases have been reported so far against those working in secondary schools under the General Education department, he said. Of them, 65 are teachers and 12 are non-teaching staff, the Minister said after inaugurating a programme organised by the Police Officers Association here. He sought strong support from the police to ensure punishment for the culprits in such cases. Of the 65 employees facing Pocso cases in secondary schools, stringent disciplinary measures have been taken against 45 persons, and steps are being taken in the remaining cases, he said. Three Pocso cases have been reported in the vocational higher secondary division, Mr. Sivankutty said. The government has suspended and taken legal action against 14 teachers from higher secondary schools and seven teachers from the aided sector in connection with Pocso cases, the Minister said. The files of cases that have not been completed on time, along with information about the officials handling them, are being made available to the office of the Director of Public Education for further action, he said.
