On Day 1 in schools, teachers begin with basics

CHENNAI: With little clarity on what syllabus to follow for most classes, schools in the city kickstarted  academic year 2011-12 on Wednesday with a course content that they were confident would be part of any syllabus: the fundamentals. Grammar, mathematical tables and basic formulae were what most city schools stuck to on Day One of the new academic year.The decision to start classes with basic lessons in every subject follows the Supreme Court order, according to which schools need to wait for the syllabus to be followed in each board of study — Matriculation, Anglo-Indian, Oriental and State — for two more weeks. Only Class I and VI have already been prescribed the Uniform Education System by the court. Confusion persists over what will be taught in other classes even as the state school education department on Tuesday announced the introduction of additional practical sessions for all classes as an interim measure.So, on Wednesday, when schools reopened after an extended summer vacation, most students spent the day learning fundamental mathematics and parts of speech.