Meghalaya Cabinet has approved the State Curriculum Framework for the foundational stage, covering pre-school to Class I, in a major education reform that ensures it becomes mandatory for every child to learn both Khasi and Garo languages. Highlighting the state government’s focus on cultural integration and inclusive learning, the decision also approves new textbooks aimed at holistic development, value education and familiarising young learners with Meghalaya’s culture and history, Chief Minister Conrad Sangma said after the Cabinet meeting.
Explaining the rationale behind the move, Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma said, “the idea is that during those foundational stages, we trying to focus on aspects of personality Development, aspects of certain values to be instill in our citizens and young children, we are focusing on culture, history of the state and we are also ensuring that it becomes mandatory for every child to learn both khasi and Garo language.” He added, “So we are introducing text books where both Garo and khasi are there. So we want every child to learn both our languages and so this is also being introduced and we are also introducing and structuring the system and simplifying it.”
The Chief Minister said the framework has been structured to make learning easier and more effective at the foundational stage. “So that it’s easier for the children to grasp the basic aspects of the education which would like to have in them,” he said, adding that implementation will be phased to give schools adequate time to transition.
The Chief Minister said the revised curriculum framework and textbooks will remain optional this year, but from the next academic year onwards, their adoption will be made mandatory across schools.
Sangma noted that “of course some of the schools have already approve their framework, the syllabus for the next academic Year,” and clarified that the adoption of the new textbooks will not be compulsory immediately. “So this year we are not making it mandatory for them to take all the textbooks that we are proposing. But from next year onwards we will make it mandatory but this year, we’re making it optional,” he said.
