Every parent is concerned about their child’s education and wants to provide the best education to them. Nowadays a child’s education is beyond learning, how to write and read. Child’s education means grooming a child, enhancing his knowledge, exposing him to different ideas and introducing him to the environment around him.
When we think of our child’s education, the few questions that strike our mind are:
· At what age should a child start going to school?
· What is the age limit to get admission in pre-primary or primary school?
· When do school admissions start?
This article describes various stages of school education in India.
Stages
1: Pre- Primary
The education system in India is not much different from other countries. The pre-primary stage is considered the foundation of developing a child’s knowledge, skills, and behaviour. The completion of pre-primary education sends the child to the primary stage. Primary
Education is the first stage of compulsory education. It enables the children to get prepared for future higher classes.
The pre-primary stage of school education in India consists of Preparatory class (pre-nursery), nursery, LKG and UKG. The LKG/UKG stage is also called the Kindergarten (KG) stage. At playschools, children are exposed to many basic preschool learning activities that help them get independent faster. These preschool activities help children develop many self-help qualities like eating food, dressing up, maintaining hygiene, and other basic good habits. Pre-primary education plays an essential part in every school system, though primary education in India is not a fundamental right. The age limit for admission in the nursery is 2 years 6 months to 3 years 6 months. The age limit for LKG (Junior KG) is 3 years 6 months to 4 years 6 months and for UKG (senior KG) is 4 years 6 months to 5 years 6 months.
Stage 2: Primary Stage
The primary stage consists of Classes I to V., i.e. of five years duration, in 20 States/UTs, namely Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Bihar, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Madhya Pradesh, Manipur, Orissa, Punjab, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Chandigarh, Delhi and Karaikal and Yaman regions of Pondicherry. The primary stage consists of classes I-IV in Assam, Goa, Gujarat, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Dadra & Nagar Haveli, Daman & Diu, Lakshadweep and Mahe region of Pondicherry.
The age limit for class I is 5 yrs. 6 months to 6 yrs. 6 months, for class II is 6 yrs. 6 months to 7 yrs. 6 months and so on. The enrollment in primary school starts from the age group of 6 years and continues until age 14. Elementary education mission in India looks after the facilities of the primary mode of education. The structure of the primary school is preceded by pre-primary education and followed by secondary education. The subjects taught at the primary school include science, geography, history, math and other social sciences.
Stage 3: Middle Stage
The middle stage of education comprises of classes VI to VIII in as many as 18 States and Union Territories viz., Arunachal Pradesh, Bihar, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Madhya Pradesh, Manipur, Punjab, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Chandigarh, Delhi and Karaikal region of Pondicherry; Classes V-VII in Assam, Goa, Gujarat, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Dadra & Nagar Haveli, Daman & Diu, Lakshadweep and Mahe region of Pondicherry and Classes VI-VII in Andhra Pradesh, Orissa and Yanam region of Pondicherry. In Nagaland Classes, V-VIII constitute the upper primary stage.
Stage 4: Secondary Stage
The Secondary Stage/High school consists of Classes IX-X in 19 States/UTs. Viz., Arunachal Pradesh, Bihar, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Madhya Pradesh, Manipur, Nagaland, Punjab, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Chandigarh, Delhi and Karaikal region of Pondicherry. The High School stage comprises classes VIII to X in 13 States/UTs viz Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Goa, Gujarat, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Orissa, Dadra & Nagar Haveli, Daman & Diu, Lakshadweep and Mahe & Yanam regions of Pondicherry. Subjects in the Secondary stage are Mathematics, Science, Social Science, English, Hindi or the regional language of a particular state. The Secondary stage is the phase where students have to appear in the exams for all the subjects mentioned. They don’t have the option to choose according to their wish.
Stage 5: Senior Secondary Stage
The Higher Secondary/Senior Secondary stage of a school comprising classes XI-XII (10+2 pattern) is available in all the States/UTs, though in some States/UTs these classes are attached to Universities/Colleges. In the senior secondary stage, students have to opt for their subjects depending on their interests. Different streams are Medical, Non-medical, Commerce and Arts.
Even though there have been few changes, the overall Education system in India has not gone through any drastic modification. School education in India comprises smart classes and modern teaching aids. All these are helping the students to get a better and clear understanding of their curriculum.
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