ICSE board makes Sanskrit, yoga and performing arts compulsory subjects

The Indian Certificate of Secondary Education council (ICSE) has decided to introduce three compulsory subjects -- Sanskrit, yoga and performing arts. Yoga and performing arts will be compulsory between classes 1 and 8. Sanskrit will be taught in classes 5 to 8, council CEO Gerry Arathoon said in Kolkata.

In another important decision, Class 5 and 8 students of the ICSE will have to face board examinations from 2018, Arathoon said in Kolkata on Wednesday. However, there will be no pass-fail tags.

“It will be just a periodical evaluation exercise to have an idea on the progress of the students’ learning after a particular level,” the CEO said.

“In the Class 5 and 8 board examinations, the answer papers of the students of one school will be evaluated by teachers of another school, as it happens in case of the final class 10 level examination,’ he added.

The board will provide the questions for both the board examinations at Class 5 and Class 8.

All the ICSE-affiliated schools will have to follow uniform syllabus from nursery till class 10. So far, the schools had the freedom to decide the syllabi from nursery to Class 10.

“The new uniform syllabi will be effective from 2018,” Arathoon said.