Andhra Pradesh joins the juggernaut of states reducing syllabus to help students cope with the burdens of the pandemic

The Andhra Pradesh state government on Wednesday decided to slash the syllabus of classes III to X for the academic year 2021-22. The move comes after the academic calendar, which is prepared by the The State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT) for this year has been condensed to just 27 weeks given the pandemic and the delayed reopening of schools. For the academic year 2021-22, the syllabus of Class X has been reduced by 20 per cent and that of Class III to IX by 15 per cent.

The Commissioner of School Education V Chinna Veerabhadrudu said that the syllabus was reduced to give the students some relief from the stress they have faced after having lost almost two months of the academic year. Last year, the government had reduced syllabus by 30 per cent because of the pandemic.  

Other state too have been taking several measures to truncate syllabus and ease the load of the students during these tumultuous times. Odisha had reduced plus 2 syllabus by 30 per cent this year while the West Bengal government had reduced state class X board syllabus by 30 per cent.

The CBSE also reduced 30 per cent of the syllabus for the students studying from Class IX to Class XII. Telangana's Board of Intermediate Education reduced syllabus by 70 per cent this year, and the syllabus for the Engineering, Agricultural and Medical Common Entrance Test was also reduced. Tamil Nadu was considering reducing syllabus by 40-45 per cent and have introduced refresher courses in the curriculum to help students catch up on lost time and classes.