Orientation Programme
Curriculum: Components of the Orientation Course
The curriculum for the orientation course may have the following four components with minimum of 108 contact hours, that is, six hours daily for a three-week programme:
COMPONENT A: Awareness of linkages between society, environment, development and education
COMPONENT B: Philosophy of education, Indian education system and pedagogy
COMPONENT C: Resource awareness and knowledge generation.
COMPONENT D: Management and personality development.
COMPONENT A: Awareness of Linkages between Environment, Development and Education
This component should aim at helping the teacher realize the larger context of education and the role of a teacher in society. Some illustrative topics to be covered are:
- Secularism
- Egalitarian society
- National integration
- Multilingualism
- Multiple cultures
- Equality
- Status of women and children
- Casteism
- Environmental pollution and biopersity
- Poverty
- Unemployment
- Urbanisation
- Modernisation
- Rural development
- Youth
- Indiscipline
- Role and responsibility of a teacher
- Values-based education
- Indian tradition
- Creation of an Indian identity
- Human rights
- Sustainable development
- Globalisation and higher education
- Public interest movements (PIL, consumer protection, judicial activism, etc.)
The emphasis shall be more on Value Education focusing on some of the aspects of:
- Importance of understanding the details of mind and mental systems
- Emotional Intelligence
- Realizing the destructive nature of negative emotions
- Methods of mind training to encounter and regulate the destructive emotions
- Importance of realization of the positive emotions
- Methods of mind training in promoting the positive emotions
- Importance of mindfulness in maintaining peace of mind
- Social Emotional Learning necessary for educating children and adults to regulate their mind while encountering adverse situations
COMPONENT B: Philosophy of Education, Indian Educational System and Pedagogy
This component should aim at imparting basic skills and sensitivities that a teacher needs for effective classroom teaching. Some of the illustrative topics are:
- Philosophy of education: Aims at values-based education; role of social and educational institutions, comparative educational systems, internationalization of education.
- Indian education system, policies, programmes and planning; organizational structure, university autonomy.
- Economics of education and human resource development: Resource mobilization.
- Quality assurance in higher education: Indicators of quality assurance, assessment and accreditation, quality assurance agencies viz, UGC, AICTE, NCTE, NAAC, etc.
- Learner and the learning process: Understanding the adolescent learner, motivation, interests, human development, memory, aptitudes, intelligence, learning styles.
- Methods and materials of teaching: Prescribed texts, effective classroom teaching techniques, and assignments.
- Technology in teaching: Concept of teaching, levels of teaching and phases of teaching; audio, video, educational films, computers, outcome based learning, OERs and MOOCs.
- Curriculum design: Approaches, curriculum development, needs-based courses and remedial courses.
- Evaluation and feedback: Measurement and examination reforms, including setting question papers
- Alternate methods of learning: Distance and open learning, self-learning and informal learning
COMPONENT C: Resource Awareness and Knowledge Generation
This component should aim at helping the teachers to be self-sufficient, and continuously abreast of new knowledge and techniques, processes, methods and sources of knowledge. Some of the illustrative topics are:
- Information technology: New modes of information storage and retrieval, computer applications, communications, multimedia, computer-aided learning, Internet, etc
- Documentation centres: Information networks, information super highway, national and international databases
- Libraries: Reference material, bibliographies, encyclopedia, periodicals
- Institutions: Apex and specialized institutions, museums, laboratories, centres of excellence, etc.
- Research: Research projects, sponsoring agencies, academic writing and publication, Research Methodology etc.
- Industry-university linkages.
COMPONENT D: Personality Development and Management
Under this component, teachers should be familiarized with the organization and management of the college/university. They should be made aware of the ways
in which they may develop their own personalities. Illustrative topics may be:
- Communication skills: Verbal and non-verbal
- Thinking skills and scientific temper
- Creativity
- Leadership, team building and work culture
- Administrative skills: Decision-making, service rules, human relations and interpersonal effectiveness
- Educational management: Institutional management, management of committees, examinations, hobby clubs, sports and co-curricular activities
- Student guidance and counseling viii. Mental health: Attitudes and values
- Career planning and time management
- Teacher effectiveness: Qualities of an effective teacher, code of conduct, accountability and empowerment.
As indicated, the above topics are illustrative in nature. Depending upon the requirements of teachers and their academic background, the MMTTC will select the number of topics and methodologies of teaching.
Value to each component is to be kept flexible, and the MMTTC may decide the time allocation and modalities of the input depending upon needs of respective groups.
Every MMTTC should organize at least one three-week interdisciplinary RC in IT awareness. About one-third contact hours may be devoted to IT-orientation in other Refresher Courses / orientation programmes.
Every interdisciplinary Refresher Course will be equivalent to the Refresher Course in the subject / discipline of the participant.