National Curriculum Framework for ECCE to be a game changer

• The NCF document suggests that the first three years of the foundational stage, that is 3 to 6 years, there should not be any prescribed text books
• It further recommends that the mother tongue should be the primary medium of instruction for children till eight years of age

IndiGlobal Bureau

The release of the National Curriculum Framework (NCF) for Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) is being seen as a game changer as it is for the first time that National Education Policy 2020 with the 5+3+3+4 curricular structure integrates with ECCE for all children of ages 3 to 8 laying the foundation for lifelong learning and development.

It is now an established fact that 85% of an individual’s brain development occurs by the age of 6. A head start will guarantee life-long success and the first eight years of a child’s life are critical for the physical, cognitive, and socio-emotional development.

The NCF lays out pedagogy, standards, safety, holistic way of learning and totally interactive. Play is going to be the core of learning. At every level it will be play way method, interaction, conversation, question and answer sessions, storytelling, read-aloud and shared reading, riddles, rhymes, or other enjoyable activities involving games, toys, visual art, and music.

The Play-based Learning includes both child-led and Teacher-led activities. Children should get balanced opportunities for play in each year throughout the Foundational Stage including Grade 1 and 2. According to NEP 2020, every child in the age range of 3 to 8 years must have access to free, safe, high quality, developmentally appropriate ECCE by the year 2025.

The NCF document states children under the age of 8 tend not to follow linear, age-based educational trajectories. It is only about the age of eight that children begin to adapt to more structural learning.

It further recommends that the mother tongue should be the primary medium of instruction for children till eight years of age, in both public and private schools. English could be one of the second language options. It does not mention any time-frame for introducing the language.

Stories from the Panchatantra

To teach children stories from the Panchatantra in the age-group of 6-8 years. The focus is on Indian fables and stories.

The Panchakosha description in the Taittiriya Upanishad is one of the earliest articulations of the different domains of development of the human being. These descriptions remain relevant along with the more modern understanding that has emerged through Developmental Biology, Psychology and Cognitive Neurosciences.

Panchakosha includes physical development (sharirik vikas), development of life energy (pranik vikas), emotional and mental development (manasik vikas), intellectual development (bauddhik vikas) and spiritual development (chatsik vikas).