The National Council of Educational Research and Training has dropped chapters on evolution, the periodic table of elements and sources of energy from Class 10 science textbooks.
The education body responsible for formulating school curriculum in the country has also removed chapters – Democracy and Diversity, Popular Struggles and Movements, Political Parties and Challenges to Democracy – from Class 10 political science textbooks.
The NCERT said the chapters have been deleted as a part of a syllabus “rationalization” exercise. “In view of the Covid-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students,” it said.
The NCERT had made the decision to remove these chapters from the textbooks last year based on recommendations of experts, PTI reported. The changes have been implemented after the NCERT released textbooks for the new academic year that started in May.
The education body has said that the changes will remain in place for the next two academic years, in line with the National Education Policy that was approved by the Centre in 2020, reported Nature.
The decision to remove the chapter on evolution, including the Darwinian theory on natural selection, was opposed by more than 4,500 scientists, teachers and science communicators in an appeal organized by Kolkata-based Breakthrough Science Society last month.
“The scientific community feels that students will remain seriously handicapped in science & history.”
