Newspaper reading now must in Atal schools in UP, ETEducation
Lucknow: Taking a cue from the state education department, the labour and employment department has made newspaper reading compulsory for students of Atal residential schools (ARS) to cultivate reading habits and develop critical and logical thinking skills.
Principal secretary, labour and employment department, Shanmuga Sundaram MK, issued a govt order on Thursday. It said that to strengthen general awareness, command over language, and critical thinking among students, newspapers, both English and Hindi, would be made an integral part of the daily reading habit in all Atal residential schools. The order highlighted that students should be encouraged to read newspapers regularly for their all-round development. In his directive to principals of Atal residential schools, Sundaram said: “A 10-minute slot should be allocated for ‘news reading’ from newspapers after the morning assembly and before the commencement of classes.”
Schools have been asked to select five new/difficult words from the newspaper daily, and their meanings should be displayed on the board daily. Along with this, the ‘Thought of the Day’ should be mandatorily displayed on the school’s main display board.
The order said that students from class 9-12 should be encouraged to write their original thoughts on an important editorial topic or participate in a group discussion in class once a week. As an activity, students in junior classes (grades 6-8) should be encouraged to prepare a ‘scrapbook’ by cutting out interesting news clippings (such as those related to science, environment and sports), Sundaram said.
Sudoku, crosswords and word puzzles published in newspapers are not just for entertainment; they train students’ brains for logical challenges and problem-solving, the order said.
Drawing inspiration from the structure and presentation of newspapers, students would be encouraged to prepare a monthly or quarterly ‘school newspaper’ or ‘magazine’ for their institution. “It should be edited by a team of students, presenting school activities and achievements in the form of news,” Sundaram said.
In addition, students would be encouraged to discuss scientific facts and processes in small groups. The initiative, Sundaram said, will help prepare students at ARS for competitive examinations and also contribute to making them responsible and aware citizens.
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