The Hindu : Kerala / Thiruvananthapuram News : No response yet to SCERT adolescent education programme

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Wednesday, Jan 23, 2008
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Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram

No response yet to SCERT adolescent education programme

Sangeeth Kurian

Posted on the Internet for feedback from the public, stakeholders

Contents watered down following criticism
Revised content was put online a month ago

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The revised adolescent education programme for school students posted on the website of the State Council for Educational Research and Training (SCERT) nearly a month ago, anticipating feedback from the public and various stakeholders, is yet to receive any feed back.

The module aimed at imparting sex education to school students, under the ‘Adolescent Education Programme,’ had generated much heat and dust in the State and across the country last year. Certain student organisations and church leaders had even stated that the module would lead to ‘moral decadence’ and ‘sexual anarchy.’

Shelved

Following the controversy, the project, a joint initiative of the Ministry of Human Resource Development, United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the National AIDS Control Organisation, had to be shelved and its contents watered down.

The module was proposed to be implemented in classes IX and XI covering over 4,0000 high schools and higher secondary schools in the State last year.

“It was the first time the government had launched a comprehensive adolescent education programme for the entire nation, but now we can hope to deal with the issue only on a superficial level,” points out P.M. Alphonsa, who is in charge of the programme at SCERT.

“Though we had submitted a modified version before the curriculum sub committee for clearance, last July, deleting all the contentious portions relating to the process of growing up, we are yet to receive any response from them (sub committee),” she said.

“The idea of posting the module on the SCERT website was to enable the public to gain an insight into the project,” said Ms. Alphonsa. Following the controversy, the focus of the programme has now been shifted from sex education to life skill development.

The module written in Malayalam and posted on the website in four chapters is listed under the category ‘Adolescent Education -Teacher Training module.’ Interested persons can communicate their views through scertkerala@asianetindia.com

Meanwhile, the Catholic Church in the State has decided to develop its own textbook series on sex education for high school students dealing with the psychological, spiritual and moral dimensions of human sexuality.

The books are being brought out by an expert panel headed by Jose Kottayil, secretary of Family Commission — a unit under the Kerala Catholic Bishops’ Council.

The panel comprises theologians, doctors, lawyer and teachers.

The books are aimed at high school and higher secondary students and will be ready by the next academic year in June 2008.

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