CTET (Social Studies) Official Paper-II Sep, 2014 (English-Hindi-Sanskrit) (Previous Year Paper)

A developmental perspective of teaching advocates that designing materials, making assignments, evaluating students' performance, counselling students (sometimes parents too), and maintaining discipline. 

As a teacher, you have to constantly make decisions about teaching materials and methods. These decisions should be based on several factors which include the subject matter to be covered, the needs of the students, and the overall goals to be achieved. 

Key Points

A developmental perspective of teaching-

• As an instructional expert, the teacher needs to devise practical and experiential methods for transacting the curriculum so that learners have a greater role and are more involved.
• Methods like debates, discussions, role play, simulation tasks, brainstorming are oriented towards discovery rather than passive learning and emphasize development and adaptation of instruction to learner needs.
• crate an open classroom where students experience the freedom to explore, experiment, share and express their needs, wishes, and desires
• The learning styles approach tries to develop profiles for individual students and attempts to match instructional methods, curriculum offerings, etc. to learners' personal styles, enhancing student input and making the class conducive to effective teaching and learning.
• have more elaborate systems of knowledge for analyzing problems in teaching
• arrange lessons to enable students to gain insight and a heightened sense of awareness, coupled with the creation of an encouraging learning atmosphere that helps to realize their potential.

Thus from the above-mentioned points, it is clear that the Developmental perspective of teaching demands teachers to adapt instructional strategies based on the knowledge of developmental factors.

Learning' means a relatively permanent change in behavior that occurs as a result of experience with the environment. Learning is a process of acquiring knowledge and remembering information so that it may be applied to life situations.

Learning is fostered when the learner has opportunities to practice the new information, receive feedback, and apply the knowledge or skill in familiar and unfamiliar situations, with less and less assistance from others. 

• Psychological needs exist in the form of certain wants or desires that are unique to us.
• They are important since they influence what we want to learn and how much time, energy, and effort we are willing to learn.
• The dominant needs at any given point of time will determine what the individual is likely to leam and do.
• Learners cannot learn unless he is not motivated or does not have any psychological need.
• It is also very important to know the pattern of interests which individuals have for, it is a rich source of knowing them and understanding the nature of their learning.

Key Points 

• What we learn, why we learn and how well we learn are influenced by a number of factors. These include learner-centered factors like motivation, needs, self-concept, interests etc.,
• teacher and task-related factors such as teaching style, classroom ethos, transactional skills, and methodology, etc., and environmental factors such as the physical and psychological structures in which learning occurs.

Important Points 

Principles of Learning-

• Children Learn by Doing
• Learning Proceeds from Simple to Complex
• Learning Proceeds from Known to Unknown
• Learning Proceeds from Concrete to Abstract
• Learning Proceeds from Whole to Part

Thus from the above-mentioned points, it is clear that Learners cannot Learn unless they are prepared to learn.

Bandura’s Social Learning Theory (also known as Social Cognitive theory) of Personality is based on the premise that human behaviour is largely acquired and that the principles of learning are sufficient to account for the development and maintenance of behaviour. 

• Bandura theory of social learning can be explained under the following three headings:

1. Reciprocal determinism
2. Self-system
3. Principles of observational learning

• Bandura’s stated that children and adults learned behaviour by observing and imitating others.
• Nurture defines a process in which the individual grows up in the environment and cultural context.
• His theory also explains that human behaviour is an interaction that is continuous and reciprocal with the influences through cognitive, behavioural, and environmental sources.
• Bandura's famous Bobo doll experiment's findings support the argument for nurture in that our environment influences our behaviour.

Key Points 

Principles of observational learning-

• Children learn most of the social behaviours by observing and emulating adults.
• The way to put on clothes, dress one’s hair, and conduct oneself in society are learned through observing others.
• It has also been shown that children learn and develop various personality characteristics through observational learning.
• Aggressiveness, prosocial behaviour, courtesy, politeness, diligence, and indolence are acquired by this method of learning.

These points reflect the factors like environment, culture, society, etc. nurture the development of a child. 

Thus from the above-mentioned points, it is clear that the Theory of social learning emphasizes nurture. 

Additional Information

Reciprocal Determinism- Reciprocal causation reflects the interaction between thought, affect, and action. Expectations, beliefs, self-perceptions, goals, and intentions give shape and direction to behaviour. What people think, believe, and feel, affects how they behave.

Self-System- Bandura found that an individual’s self-efficacy plays a major role in how goals, tasks, and challenges are approached.

Erik Erikson’s theory of psychosocial development is one of the best-known theories of personality in psychology. 

• Erikson’s theory describes the impact of social experience across the whole lifespan.
• He felt the course of development is determined by the interaction of the body (genetic biological programming), mind (psychological), and cultural (ethos) influences.
• the psychosocial theory basically asserts that people experience eight ‘psychosocial crisis stages’ which significantly affect each person’s development and personality.
• Each crisis stage relates to a corresponding life stage and its inherent challenges.
• Erikson used the words ‘syntonic’ for the first listed ‘positive’ disposition in each crisis (example trust) and ‘dystonic’ for the second listed ‘negative’ disposition (example, Mistrust)

Important Points

Industry vs. Inferiority ( Latency 6-12 yrs)

• At this stage, If the child is encouraged and praised by parents and teachers then he/she develops a feeling of competence and belief in their skills.
• Feelings of inferiority are likely to develop and this might lead the child to become an underachiever.

Key Points

Erikson’s Eight Stages of development-

Thus from the above-mentioned points, it is clear that Erik Erikson’s theory of psychosocial development emphasizes on Industry versus Inferiority stage. 

Additional Information

• Stimuli and Response and Operant Conditioning are theories related to learning.
• Ophallic and Latency stages are the stages related to Psychosexual Stages of Development proposed by Freud.

Vygotsky, a Russian psychologist, has argued that culture provides a social context in which people live, grow, and understand the world around them. This is an understanding which the socio-cultural perspective argues- 

• Vygotsky writes, every function in a child’s cultural development appears twice: first, on the social level, and then inside the child.
• Vygotsky believed that individuals have a life of their own; they grow and change, and in the process specify what will be the end-product of successful intellectual development.
• His works say that people live and are located in a culture. They develop from childhood to adulthood in that culture.
• They perform all activities and think within the framework of their socio-cultural environment.
• He understood learning and development as processes that happen during interactions of a child with adults and peers.
• Therefore, their developmental processes can be only understood by studying children’s (or people’s) interactions with their culture.

Thus from the above-mentioned points, it is clear that children require culturally relevant knowledge and skills.

Important Points

Some central-concepts of Vygotsky's theory is-

Lawrence Kohlberg, an American psychologist, has propounded the 'Theory of Moral Development'.

• He has made a systematic study of moral development in his theory that is categorized into 3 levels and 6 stages.
• He has studied moral development by posing moral dilemmas to groups of children as well as adolescents and adults.

Key Points

The three-level of Moral Development is-

• Pre-conventional Level:
• At this level, the child is not responsive to cultural rules and labels of good and bad, right or wrong but interprets these labels in terms of physical or hedonistic consequences of actions or in terms of physical powers of those who communicate the rules and labels.
• Conventional level:
• At this level maintaining the expectations of the individual, family, group, or nation is perceived of value in its own right regardless of the immediate and obvious consequences.
• Post-conventional Level:
• At this level, there is a clear effort to define moral values and principles that have validity and application apart from the authority of the groups or persons.
• If young adolescents who join their teacher with strong beliefs in saying no to ragging and bullying are at the post-conventional level. As he believes in morals and values.
• In this stage, the social rules and laws get in conflict with moral principles.
• They agree to obey laws and social rules of conduct that promote respect and acknowledges their moral value.
• They obey laws and social rules that fall in line with these universal principles.

Thus from the above-mentioned points, it is clear that the young adolescent is at a post-conventional level. 

Additional Information

All the levels with their stages are mentioned in the following table-

Progressive education advocates that young learners should be given the freedom to learn according to their preferences and likes. 

On this basis progress in education is represented by those activities or undertakings or changes that are harmonious with and lead to eternal verities and ultimate values and as a practical matter, preparation for living, the essential aspects of it.

• Based on the belief that education should primarily serve the needs of children and focus on understanding, direct action and experience rather than rote knowledge and memorization.
• A free and democratic atmosphere should be provided in the classroom for the proper development of an individual.
• Democratic climate provides the child gets maximum opportunities for interaction with other children (i.e, collaboration) in the class, with the teacher and with a variety of teaching-learning material.
• A democratic atmosphere in the class encourages the students to actively participate in the learning process.
• In the democratic approach, peer tutors require some orientation to provide positive feedback to other students.

Thus from above-mentioned points, it is clear that in progressive education, knowledge is generated through direct experience and collaboration.

Howard Gardner proposed the theory of multiple intelligences. According to him, intelligence is not a single entity; rather distinct types of intelligence exist.

• Each of these intelligence is independent of each other. This means that, if a person exhibits one type of intelligence, it does not necessarily indicate being high or low on other types of intelligence.
• Gardner also put forth that different types of intelligence interact and work together to find a solution to a problem.
• Gardner studied extremely talented persons, who had shown exceptional abilities in their respective areas, and described eight types of intelligence.

Key Points

Bodily-kinesthetic intelligence is one of the types of intelligence given by Gardner. 

Bodily-kinesthetic Intelligence- 

• It entails the potential of using one’s whole body or parts of the body to solve problems. It is the ability to use mental abilities to coordinate bodily movements.
• people who have bodily-kinesthetic intelligence should learn better by involving muscular movement and are generally good at physical activities.
• Careers that suit those with this intelligence include athletes, dancers, musicians, actors, surgeons, doctors, builders, police officers, and soldiers.

Thus from above-mentioned points, it is clear that Bodily-kinesthetic intelligence is required for an airforce pilot. 

Additional Information

Following are types of intelligence-

Charles Spearman’s theory of intelligence is known as the two-factor theory. Spearman noticed that children who perform well in one subject tend to have good marks in other subjects also. This observation led him to propose that there is a common factor that affects all of your activities.

• Using a statistical method called “factor analysis”, he proposed that all cognitive activity or mental activity consists of two factors namely, “general” or “g” factor and “specific” or “s” factor.
• So, intelligence is a sum of the “g” factor and the “s” factor.
• The g-factor theory or general factor theory states that intelligence is composed of general intelligence.
• The g factor refers to the broad spectrum of mental faculties that influences the performance on a wide variety of cognitive abilities.
• The s factor is the single or unique factor. It proposes that all cognitive abilities are related to one another.

Hence, general intelligence is responsible for acquiring knowledge, abstract reasoning, and adapting to novel situations.

Key Points

• This “g”, or general factor, was postulated to be important in every mental act, although some acts were thought to depend upon it more than others.
• The difference between people in intelligence was a matter of how much “g” they possessed.
• Spearman called this general factor “mental energy.”

Thus from the above-mentioned points, it is clear that the factor 'g' in the Spearman definition of intelligence stands for general intelligence.

Jean Piaget, a Swiss psychologist, has made a systematic study of cognitive development in his theory that is categorized into four stages.

Sensorimotor stage: By the end of the sensorimotor stage (birth-2 years), a child has developed what Piaget referred to as, 'object permanence'.

• Object permanence is the realization that objects continue to exist even though they are not presently seen.
• Thus even in the absence of the actual object, the child can form mental images of its presence.
• However, gradually, the child learns to focus her/his vision and also learns that the object that moves out of her/his vision in fact does exist.
• Achievement of object permanence marks the transition of a child to the next stage of cognitive development.

Key Points

Other characteristics of the sensorimotor stage-

• child's behavior appears to be determined by stimulus-response (sensor = S, motor = R) arrangements.
• smoother and more coordinated reflex activities,
• prominent self-investigative behavior,
• reaching out reactions and the emergence of more goal-directed behavior
• representational thought
• learns that the objects in the environment are permanent

Thus from the above-mentioned points, it is clear that retrieving hidden objects is evidence that infants have begun to master in Object-permanence. 

Additional Information

According to Piaget, there are four stages of cognitive development-

• Stage I - The Sensory-Motor Stage (birth to 2 years)
• Stage II - The Pre-Operational Stage (2 to 7 years)
• Stage III - The Concrete-Operational Stage (7 to 12 years) and
• Stage IV - The Formal Operational Stage

Gender is a social construct that impacts attitudes, roles, responsibilities, and behaviour patterns of boys and girls, men, and women in all societies. 

Key Points

Gender Parity refers-

• to a statical representation of boy and girl data in a group.
• to assess the state of gender equality within a group or organization.
• when we divide the number of female students at a given level of education by the number of male students at the same level, the resulting value is called a gender parity score.

Thus from the above-mentioned points, it is clear that a comparison of the number of boys and girls who survive in Class 12 shows the criteria of gender parity in society. 

Additional Information 

Let us learn about some of the major interventions done in the Constitution for the rights of women for gender equality.

• Article 14: Equality before Law
• Article 15: Prohibition of discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex, or place of birth
• Article 16: Equality of opportunity in matters of public employment
• Article 17: Abolition of untouchability
• Article 19: Protection of certain rights regarding freedom of speech, etc
• Article 21: Protection of life and personal liberty

Individual differences, as the term suggests, refer to how individuals differ from each other.

• Different people have different interests; and their behavior is influenced by these interests, likings, dislikings, values and beliefs, etc.

Key Points

• Understanding of individual differences helps in planning course material and training programmes.
• Understanding of individual differences of the teachers and the taught can help in matching teaching and learning styles for better- academic results.
• To take care of individual differences you should design your instructional activities to suit the mental level of each student.

Important Points 

Some of the instructional strategies are discussed below-

• Organize instruction for the development of the cognitive process
• Use an existing cognitive level as a base
• Strengthen memory
• Formulate a level-specific instructional strategy
• Use individual meeting
• Provide instructions to overcome a learning disability

By giving different activities, observing the way the student answers in each, you will gain insights into the student's difficulties and will be able to help him/her overcome the difficulties. 

Thus from the above-mentioned points, it is clear that the knowledge of individual differences helps teachers in assessing the individual needs of all students and teaching them accordingly.

Assessment plays a significant role in the teaching-learning process. Assessment of learning helps a teacher to design his/her teaching in a better way and to know the attainment level of learners in the subject content. 

• From the assessment, it is revealed that if the desired level of mastery has not been attained by learners, the teaching-learning process may be repeated and certain remediation may be provided to them.
• It helps students to know their progress in learning and learning difficulties in different subject areas.
• The quality in assessment decides the quality of learning.
• If you carry out the assessment effectively, learning will be enhanced otherwise learning will not match the expectation of assessment.

Key Points

• Assessment of performance of learners helps a teacher to make academic decisions but also provides feedback on the teaching strategies and motivate them for learning.
• The goal is to increase student’s motivation and learning which requires productive feedback that will tell what they are doing right, pinpointing their strengths and helping them to develop their strength even further.
• Constant motivation and encouragement help children form a balanced personality

Thus from above-mentioned points, it is clear that assessment for learning fosters motivation. 

Hint

Assessment can be classified into four types on the basis of their purposes-

The term School-Based Assessment (SBA) may be defined as:

• Assessment that facilitates the attainment of competencies specified in terms of learning outcomes in a holistic manner during the teaching-learning process
• Assessment embedded in the teaching and learning process within the broader educational philosophy of ‘assessment for learning’
• Assessment of school students by school teachers in the schools

Important Points

Salient features of SBA-

• Integrate teaching-learning and assessment
• No-load on teachers of documentation- recording, reporting
• Child-centred and activity-based pedagogy
• Focus on (learning-outcome based) competency development rather than content memorisation
• Broadening the scope of assessment by way of including selfassessment, peer-assessment besides teacher assessment
• Non-threatening, stress-free and enhanced participation/ interaction
• Focus on an assessment of/and/as learning rather than an evaluation of achievement
• Reposing faith in the teacher and the system
• Enhancing self confidence in children

Thus from above-mentioned points, it is clear that School-Based Assessments improve learning by providing constructive (i.e, to provide child-centred and active instruction environment) feedback.

Portfolio assessment is a systematic and organized collection of evidence used by the teacher and student to monitor the growth of the student's knowledge, skills, and attitudes in a specific subject area. 

• It requires students to collect and reflect on examples of their work providing both instructional components to the curriculum and offering the opportunity for authentic assessment.
• The portfolio is a collection of students' work representing a selection of performances.
• It often documents a student's best work.

Key Points

• Portfolios are systematic, purposeful, and meaningful collections of students' work in one or more subject areas.
• In all cases, portfolios should reflect the actual day-to-day learning activities of students.
• Portfolios should be ongoing so that they show the students' efforts, progress, and achievements over a period of time.
• Portfolios are useful as a support to the new instructional approaches that emphasize the student's role in' constructing understanding and the teacher's role in promoting understanding.

Thus from the above-mentioned points, it is clear that if students in a class are asked to assemble various artifacts of their work in a notebook, to demonstrate what they can do for their society it is a portfolio assessment. 

Additional Information

The least restricted school environment is a type of arrangement in which disabled children learn in the regular classroom along with peers. 

• A special school is less restrictive than a residential institution, the child still misses out on normal school life.
• The special school limits the child's opportunities to participate in regular activities with non-disabled children.
• Integrated education in a regular school provides more freedom and opportunity for the child to interact with others compared to the special school. It is less restrictive than the special school.
• Full inclusion is the least restrictive setting for the child.

Important Points

• All disabled children (as well as disabled adults) should have the opportunity to live as normally as possible, in conditions that are as close as possible to the rest of society.
• In other words, they should have the opportunity to live in the least restrictive environment.
• Apart from the disabled child, a non-disabled child also gets sensitized to not bully the disadvantaged children. They also play a supportive role for disabled students.

Thus from the above-mentioned points, it is clear that by placing students in the least restricted school environment, the school sensitizes other children not to bully or to put the disadvantaged children down. 

Additional Information

Two principles can guide you in selecting the educational setting for the disabled child. These are-

1. All disabled children (as well as disabled adults) should have the opportunity to live as normally as possible, in conditions that are as close as possible to the rest of society. In other words, they should have the opportunity to live in the least restrictive environment.
2. All children should get the facility for education in keeping with their abilities.

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is one of the most common childhood disorders and can continue through adolescence and adulthood.

• symptoms include difficulty staying focused and paying attention,
• difficulty controlling behavior, and hyperactivity (over-activity). Inattention,
• hyperactivity, and impulsivity are the key behaviors of ADHD
• tend to fall down more, tip over more things accidentally, and have worse fine motor skills than other children
• ADHD have difficulty getting along with peers and establishing a friendship, perhaps because their behavior is often aggressive and generally annoying and intrusive to others.

Important Points

Treatment of ADHD-

• the most promising treatments of ADHD children involve parent training and changes in classroom management based on operant conditioning principles.
• In this treatment, children’s behavior is monitored at home and in school, and they are reinforced for behaving appropriately, for example, for remaining in their seats and working on assignments.
• Reducing the time allotted to complete an assignment.
• These programs have demonstrated at least short-term success in improving both social and academic behavior.

Thus from the above-mentioned points, it is clear that the best-suited strategy to deal with Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is reducing the time allotted to complete an assignment to make it coincide with a time of attention and increasing this time in a phased manner.

Child behaviour problems or behaviour disorders are when children show a permanent pattern of hostile, destructive or disruptive behaviour towards self or towards the society. 

• Disruptive behavioural disorders are complicated and may include many different factors working in combination.
• For example, a child who exhibits delinquent behaviours of CD may also have ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder), anxiety, depression, a drug use problem and difficult home life.

Key Points

• Ecology emphasizes the totality of relationship among organisms and between them and their physical environment.
• From an ecological perspective, we can see one’s health as a dynamic function of one’s heredity and the current and accumulated effects of one’s material and non-material environment i.e, the interaction with people around him.
• This is what has been described as a type of ecological balance that mental health provides an individual to cope with the surroundings.
• In most cases, the family members create the behavioural ecology or a setting for the behaviour problems to occur and also to sustain it over a long time.

Thus from above-mentioned points, it is clear that Ecological approach suggests the interaction of the child with the people around him and with social institutions to deal with a disruptive behaviour disorder.

Hint

Renzulli’s Three-ring (circle) conception of giftedness has been widely used in schools and educational institutions around the world since its inception. It is based on the interaction between three basic clusters of three human traits, being above average ability, a high level of task commitment, and a high level of creativity. 

Key Points

• While various compositions of these traits can usually be applied to one or two performance areas, there is no ‘ideal’ combination.
• ‘General’ performance areas include mathematics, music, languages, and so on,
• whereas ‘specific’ performance areas may include film making, electronics, sculpture, and so on.
• Ultimately, Renzulli views giftedness as a behaviour, rather than an attribute

Additional Information

• This model has found support amongst teachers whose ‘gut instinct’ leads them to believe that a particular student is gifted, despite them not necessarily scoring well on formal tests and assessments.
• Children who appear to be intrinsically motivated and with highly developed special interests and ability in particular areas typify those gifted students encompassed by Renzulli’s model.
• It is also particularly applicable to cultural models of giftedness as it acknowledges the integral and interwoven roles that creativity and task commitment play in addition to above-average ability in culturally valued activities.

Thus from above-mentioned points, it is clear that Renzulli is known for his three-circle definition of giftedness.

Giftedness is an exceptional general ability shown in superior performance in a wide variety of areas, that is why gifted students do not excel in the single domain but in multiple-domain. These individuals have special learning needs in areas requiring the functional use of intelligence and artistic ability and creativity.  

Key Points

Gifted students can be guided through-

• the teacher should identify the gifted children on the basis of observation of their characteristics, interaction styles, quality of assignment and participation project work
• The teacher has to adapt teaching to the needs of all his/her students. This flexibility makes a smooth connection between teacher and child as the teacher will understand easily what the child demands.
• Administer intelligence test
• Segregation of gifted children and arranging classes exclusively for them.
• Acceleration through which the gifted children may be allowed to complete the prescribed course of study in a shorter period
• Enrichment programme through prescribing enriched content and suggesting additional books and journals for their study.

Thus from the above-mentioned points, it is clear that for gifted students, the teacher should adapt as the student changes. 

Additional Information

Some important characteristics of gifted children are-

• Advanced logical thinking, questioning and problem-solving behaviour.
• High speed in processing information
• Superior generalisation and discrimination ability
• Advanced level of original and creative thinking
• High level of intrinsic motivation and self-esteem

Learning disability can be defined as an imperfect ability to listen, think, speak, read, write, spell, or do mathematical calculations. Learning disability is believed to be present if there is a substantial difference between expected and actual performance based on intelligence. 

Key Points

For monitoring the progress of learning disabled child we use Structured behavioural observation in which-

• The information of disabled child must be recorded,
• Selection of data and standardization of conditions of observation of their learning process
• The teacher is supposed to be knowing the situation and therefore need to prepare a specific plan for collection and recording the data of a disabled child
• In this type, the categories of observation have to be developed. It is subjected to high levels of control and differentiation.
• Other ways are-
• Task description
• Formulation of strategy
• Modeling
• Guided practice
• Verbalisation
• Self-monitoring

Thus from the above-mentioned points, it is clear that Structured behavioral observation is the most appropriate method to monitor the progress of children with learning disabilities. 

Hint

Advantages of the Structured Behavioural Observation Method-

• It provides direct information about the behavior of individuals and groups.
• It helps to gather data when the situation is real and not artificially set up.
• It helps to develop a holistic perspective

Additional Information

Children with learning disability experience difficulty in learning and using certain skills namely reading, writing, listening, reasoning and mathematics. Learning disability is an invisible disability. The child usually appears normal in every aspect except that his learning difficulties limit his progress in school. 

Key Points

Ways to increase the chances of learning-disabled students are-

• Students with specific learning difficulties may require resource support for meeting their individual needs.
• This support can be provided in their classroom after school hours or if possible, in another small room during school hours.
• The support can be provided on a one-to-one basis or in a small group.
• providing adequate space in the classroom for keeping learning aids etc
• promoting success by making use of appropriate tasks and strategies
• resource support in language, mathematics and for teaching them learning strategies on weekly basis. The skills of these children can improve significantly with appropriate interventions.
• giving extra time for tests, taking shorter tests learning spellings of different words than their peers

Thus from above-mentioned points, it is clear that the best way to increase the chances of learning disabled students is by teaching a variety of skills and strategies that can be applied across a range of contexts. 

Important Points 

Some learning disabilities are-

Vygotsky, a Russian psychologist, has argued that culture and language provides a social context in which people live, grow, and understand the world around them. 

Key Points

This is an understanding which the socio-cultural perspective argues- 

• Vygotsky writes, every function in a child’s cultural development appears twice: first, on the social level and then inside the child.
• Vygotsky believed that cultures, like individuals, have a life of their own; they grow and change, and in the process specify what will be the end-product of successful intellectual development.
• His works say that people live and are located in a culture. They develop from childhood to adulthood in that culture.
• They perform all activities and think within the framework of their socio-cultural environment.
• a language that people around us speak, it also becomes the language of a child's thinking
• He understood learning and development as processes that happen during interactions of a child with adults and peers.
• Therefore, their developmental processes can be only understood by studying children’s (or people’s) interactions with their culture.

Thus from above-mentioned points, it is clear that According to Socio-cultural theory of Vygotsky culture and language play a crucial role in development. 

Important Points

Some central-concepts of Vygotsky's theory is-

The scientific method is defined by the Random House Dictionary as a method in which a problem is identified, relevant data is gathered, a hypothesis is formulated, which is empirically tested. 

The scientific method is an empirical method of acquiring knowledge that has characterized the development of science since at least the 17^th century.

• It involves careful observation, explain, predict, and/or control phenomena.
• It involves formulating hypotheses, via induction, based on such observations; experimental and measurement-based testing of deductions drawn from the hypotheses; and refinement (or elimination) of the hypotheses based on the experimental findings.

Key Points

Some steps in this logical procedure are-

• Observation and description (explanation) of a phenomenon
• Formulation of a hypothesis to explain the phenomenon.
• In the classical scientific method of which physics is the paradigmatic example, it takes the form of a causal mechanism or mathematical relation.
• Using the hypothesis to predict the existence of other phenomenon or the results of new observations
• Performance of experiments to test the hypothesis (see Glossary) by several impendent researchers. If all the researchers come to the same results, then the hypothesis will become a theory or law.
• Experimental verification is the key to the success of the scientific method.
• Dissemination for peer review.

Thus from the above-mentioned points, it is clear that to explain, predict, and/or control phenomena are the goals of the scientific method. 

Important Points

An error can be understood as the difference between the computed and correct answers. Errors may be due to mistakes, false negatives, lack of knowledge, and misconceptions among students.  

Key Points

As a teacher, you should do- 

• The process of discussing in the class which gives the students an opportunity to discover their sources of error and then proceed to correct misunderstandings of facts, concepts, mathematical principles as well as errors in computations, etc.
• Ask students to use an alternative method or redo it to find out errors on his/her own.
• A common practice is that students will justify the answer only when the teachers ask them to do so due to mistake or error.
• What is required is to build the process of justification as a habitual one in our students. The process of justification will help them to explain why their answer is correct and convince peers and teachers.
• always teach alternatives so that student can follow divergently thinking

Thus from the above-mentioned points, it is clear that if a student makes errors in Mathematics. As a teacher, you would ask the student to use an alternative method or redo it to find out errors on his/her own. 

Additional Information

Innovative Remedial Measures are adopted according to the type of errors committed by the students in their Formative Assessments. For example- 

• For computational errors:- drill work is practiced.
• For careless errors:- common misconceptions are listed out from the past experience so that students recall them while solving questions.
• For incorrect formulae error: handouts with correct formulae & figures are provided and wherever possible explained through activities
• Suitable innovative and interesting activities are carried out in the classroom

Emotional intelligence: The notion of emotional intelligence broadens the concept of intelligence beyond the intellectual sphere/domain and considers that intelligence includes emotions. Emotional intelligence is a set of skills that underlie accurate appraisal, expression, and regulation of emotions. It is the feeling side of intelligence. Emotional intelligence is often described as the capacity to be aware of, control, and express one’s emotions, and to handle Intrapersonal​ and interpersonal relationships empathetically.

Howard Gardner proposed the theory of multiple intelligences. According to him, intelligence is not a single entity; rather distinct types of intelligence exist.

• Each of this intelligence is independent of each other. This means that, if a person exhibits one type of intelligence, it does not necessarily indicate being high or low on other types of intelligence. That is why different intelligence demands different methods for different students.
• Gardner also put forth that different types of intelligence interact and work together to find a solution to a problem.
• Gardner studied extremely talented persons, who had shown exceptional abilities in their respective areas, and described eight types of intelligence.

​

Important Points

• Interpersonal Intelligence- 
• This intelligence is concerned with the capacity to understand the intentions, motivations, and desires of other people.
• It allows people to work effectively with others
• This area has to do with interaction with others.
• In theory, people who have a high interpersonal intelligence tend to be extrovert, characterized by their sensitivity to others’ moods, feelings, temperaments, and motivations, and their ability to cooperate to work as part of a group
• Intrapersonal Intelligence- 
• This entails the capacity to understand oneself, to appreciate one’s feelings, fears, and motivations.
• People with intrapersonal intelligence are intuitive and typically introverted.
• They are skillful at deciphering their own feelings and motivations.
• This refers to having a deep understanding of the self; what are your strengths/ weaknesses, what makes you unique, you can predict your own reactions/ emotions

Thus from the above-mentioned points, it is clear that Emotional intelligence may be associated with Intrapersonal and interpersonal intelligence.

Hint

Following are types of intelligence-

The emotion is defined as a strong mental or instinctive feeling such as love or fear' involving many bodily processes, and mental states. 

Key Points

Emotion can be defined as the-

• a subjective feeling and the experience of emotions varies from person to person
• “feeling” aspect of consciousness, characterized by certain physical arousal, certain behavior that reveals the feeling to the outside world, and an inner awareness of feelings.
• Emotion is a complex pattern associated with mood, temperament, personality and disposition, and motivation.
• Interest, enthusiasm, boredom, laughter, empathy, action, curiosity are examples of positive emotions.
• Apathy, grief, fear, hatred, shame, blame, regret, resentment, anger, hostility are examples of negative emotions.
• Emotions, as we experience them, move us internally, and this process involves physiological as well as psychological reactions.

Thus from the above-mentioned points, it is clear that 'emotions may not only occur within individual students but also the entire class' has been least discussed in the psychology of emotion. 

Additional Information

• Physiological emotions- increase in heart rate, throbbing temples, increased perspiration, and trembling in your limbs when you are angry or excited about something
• Psychological emotion- the need for achievement, affiliation, power, curiosity and exploration, and self-actualization motives.

Motives are a hypothetical state that activates behaviour and propels one towards goals. Meaning of motive is the reason for doing something or behaving in a specific way. 

Basically, there are two types of motives: biological and psychosocial.

• Biological motives are also known as physiological motives as they are guided mostly by the physiological mechanisms of the body.
• Psychosocial motives, on the other hand, are primarily learned from the individual’s interactions with the various environmental factors.

Key Points 

Psychosocial Motives- These are complex forms of motives mainly resulting from the individual’s interaction with her/his social environment. Need for Affiliation, Need for Power, Need for Achievement etc are its type.

• Need for Achievement-
• Some students work very hard and compete with others for good marks/grades in the examination, as good marks/grades will create opportunities for higher studies and better job prospects.
• It is the achievement motivation, which refers to the desire of a person to meet standards of excellence.
• Need for achievement, also known as n-Ach, energises and directs behaviour as well as influences the perception of situations.

Thus from above-mentioned points, it is clear that if Rajesh is struggling to solve the problem of Mathematics completely. The inner force compelling him to search for a way to solve it completely is known as a motive.

Motivation refers to how urges, drives, desires, aspirations, strivings, or needs, direct, control or explain the behavior of human beings. Motivation is something that makes the person to action and continues him in the course of action already initiated. 

There is a motivational cycle that helps us to understand behavior.

• This motivational cycle starts with a need, a state of lack or deficit of some necessity
• The state of need leads to a driving state. Drives can be stimulated due to internal factors or external factors. Internal factors could be thoughts and memories while external factors could be environmental factors.
• This driving state arouses you and pushes you to perform some goal-directed behaviour. For example, if we are thirsty there is a need for water, this need will drive us towards attaining water and once we have consumed water, the need is satisfied and the drive is reduced or diminished.
• once the performed behaviour leads to the achievement of the desired goal, it reduces the drive and the organism returns to a balanced state. the motivational cycle ends here.

Refer to the image:

Thus from the above-mentioned points, it is clear that properly sequenced in the context of motivation-cycle is Need, Drive, Arousal, Goal-directed behaviour, Achievement, Reduction of arousal.

Albert Bandura’s Social Learning Theory states that people learn by observing, imitating, and modeling behavior. It premises that human behavior is largely acquired and that the principles of learning are sufficient to account for the development and maintenance of behavior. 

Bandura theory of social learning can be explained under the following three headings:

1. Reciprocal determinism
2. Self-system
3. Principles of observational learning

Key Points

Social Observational Learning- Observational learning refers -

• In this kind of learning, human beings learn social behaviors, therefore, it is sometimes called social learning.
• In many situations, individuals do not know how to behave. They observe others and emulate their behavior, called modeling.
• Modeling, according to Bandura, refers to the behavior of the observed person and not to the behavior of the person who follows.
• there were certain steps involved in the modeling process-
• Attentional Processes
• Retentional Processes
• Reproduction Processes
• Motivational Processes

Refers to the table:

Hint

• Retention is the ability to store information as an important part of the learning process.
• Self-System- Bandura found that an individual’s self-efficacy plays a major role in how goals, tasks, and challenges are approached.
• Reciprocal Determinism- Reciprocal causation reflects the interaction between thought, affect, and action. What people think, believe, and feel, affects how they behave.

Thus from the above-mentioned points, it is clear that Retentional is a process in the social observational learning theory of Bandura.

• During prehistoric times people lived at the following places in the Indian subcontinent.
• People have lived along the banks of this river for several hundred thousand years. Some of the earliest people who lived here were skilled gatherers, — that is, people who gathered their food. They knew about the vast wealth of plants in the surrounding forests, and collected roots, fruits and other forest produce for their food. They also hunted animals.
• Sulaiman and Kirthar hills of the areas where women and men first began to grow crops such as wheat and barley about 8000 years ago. People also began rearing animals like sheep, goat, and cattle, and lived in villages.

​

• ​Magadha was an ancient kingdom located on the Indo-Gangetic plains in eastern India and spread over what is today the modern state of Bihar. Hence, the correct option would be South of Ganga.
• At the height of its power, it claimed suzerainty over the entire eastern part of the country and ruled from its capital at Pataliputra (modern Patna, Bihar).
• In 326 BCE, when Alexander the Great was camped at the river Beas on the westernmost part on India, his army mutinied; they refused to march further east. They had heard about the great Magadha kingdom and were unnerved by stories of its might.
• Unwillingly, Alexander turned back. But this was not the first time that the might of Magadha had forced kings westwards.
• One of the earliest references to Magadha is in the epic Mahabharata, where we see the entire Yadava clan abandoning their homeland on the Gangetic plains to migrate south-westwards towards the desert-ocean land to avoid constant battles with their eastern neighbour, Magadha.

Bharatas were the Vedic tribe mentioned in Rigveda. The name Bharata was used for a group of people who lived in the northwest, and who are mentioned in the Rigveda, the earliest composition in Sanskrit. Later it was used for the country.

Vedic Period

• It is the period in the late Bronze age and early Iron Age of the History of India when the Vedas were composed in the northern Indian subcontinent.
• The associated culture was referred to as Vedic Civilization.
• The entire Earth was called the Bharatvarsha but in particular, the area that lied south to the Himalayan Mountain was called the Bharatvarsha.
• The Bharatvarsha was also known as Aryavarta meaning the land of Aryans.
• Aryavarta and Bharat are mentioned in Vedas, many scriptures, and Mahabharata.
• Bharatas were the Vedic tribe mentioned in Rigveda.

Additional Information

Rig Veda:  

• The oldest Veda is the Rigveda. It has 1028 hymns called ‘Suktas’ and is a collection of 10 books called ‘Mandalas.’
• The meaning of the word ‘Rigveda’ is Praise Knowledge.
• Rigvedic books 2-9 deal with cosmology and deities. Rigvedic books 1 and 10 deal with philosophical questions and also talk about various virtues including charity in society.
• The meters used to form hymns are Gayatri, Anushtubh, Trishtubh, and Jagati (Trishtubh and Gayatri are most important).

Sama Veda:

• Known as the Veda of melodies and chants, Samaveda dates back to 1200-800 BCE.
• This Veda is related to public worship. There are 1549 verses (except 75 verses, all have been taken from Rigveda).
• There are two Upanishads embedded in Samaveda – Chandogya Upanishad and Kena Upanishad.
• Samaveda Samhita is not meant to be read as a text, it is like a musical score sheet that must be heard.

​Yajur Veda:

• Stands to mean ‘Worship Knowledge’.
• Yajurveda dates back to 1100-800 BCE.
• It compiles ritual-offering mantras/chants. These chants were offered by the priest alongside a person who used to perform a ritual (in most cases yajna fire.)
• It has two types – Krishna (Black/Dark) & Shukla (White/Bright). Krishna Yajurveda has an un-arranged, unclear, motley collection of verses and Shukla Yajurveda has arranged and clear verses.

​Atharva Veda:

• Stands to mean a tatpurusha compound of Atharvan, an ancient sage, and knowledge.
• It dates back to 1000-800 BCE.
• It has 730 hymns/suktas, 6000 mantras, and 20 books.

Rig Veda is an ancient Indian collection of Vedic Sanskrit hymns. It is one of the four sacred canonical texts of Hinduism known as the Vedas. ​The Aryans prepared a collection of hymns known as Rigveda. 

• Archaeologists find out about the past in Rigveda.
• Some of the hymns in the Rigveda are in the form of dialogues.
• It is the main source of information about Vedic culture, which gives us information about the religious, social, and economic life of the people.
• The Rigveda is composed in Vedic Sanskrit, and hence it is not composed in Prakrit.
• It was written down several -centuries after it was first composed and printed less than 200 years ago.​​
• The oldest Veda is the Rigveda, composed about 3500 years ago. Its composition year is not correctly known and hence, it was calculated approximately.
• The Rigveda Samhita is the core text and is a collection of 10 books (mandalas) with 1,028 hymns (suktas) in about 10,600 verses.
• These hymns were composed by sages (rishis). Priests taught students to recite and memorize each syllable, word, and sentence, bit by bit, with great care.
• Most of the hymns were composed, taught, and learnt by men. A few were composed by women.
• Some of the hymns in the Rigveda are in the form of dialogues. This is part of one such hymn, a dialogue between a sage named Vishvamitra, and two rivers, (Beas and Sutlej) that were worshipped as goddesses.

• Hunter-gatherers moved from place to place. There are many reasons for this.
• First, if they had stayed at one place for a long time, they would have eaten up all the available plant and animal resources. Therefore, they would have had to go elsewhere in search of food.
• Second, animals move from place to place — either in search of smaller prey, or, in the case of deer and wild cattle, in search of grass and leaves. That is why those who hunted them had to follow their movements.
• Third, plants and trees bear fruit in different seasons. So, people may have moved from season to season in search of different kinds of plants.
• Fourth, people, plants and animals need water to survive. Water is found in lakes, streams and rivers. While many rivers and lakes are perennial (with water throughout the year) others are seasonal. People living on their banks would have had to go in search of water during the dry seasons (winter and summer)
• Hence, from the above reasons, it is clear that the first option- To fight for resources with another group of hunter-gatherers is an incorrect one.

The earliest and longest period of the Stone Age is called the Paleolithic Age. This comes from the Greek word Palaios, meaning "long ago" or "old," and lithos, meaning "stone" — put together, Paleolithic Age means Old Stone Age.

The Old Stone Age began approximately 4.5 million years ago. It lasted until about 25 thousand years ago — relatively recently in terms of the overall age of the earth. It was at the beginning of the Old Stone Age, approximately 4.4 million years ago, that the first human ancestors made their appearance on earth.

Key Points

The earliest age in history is called Old Stone Age or Palaeolithic.

This period is divided into-

1. Lower Palaeolithic culture
2. Middle Palaeolithic culture
3. Upper Palaeolithic culture

The period after the Old Stone Age (Palaeolithic) is called the Mesolithic Age. 

• The period that followed the Mesolithic is called the Neolithic Age.
• This is the age in which animal and plant domestication developed, leading to food production.
• The classification of these cultures is done on the basis of stratigraphic, chronological and lithic (stone tool) evidence.

Lower Palaeolithic Culture

• The first Palaeolithic tools were identified at the site of Pallavaram near Chennai by Robert Bruce Foote in 1863.
• Robert found many prehistoric sites when he extensively surveyed different parts of South India.

Middle Palaeolithic culture

• In India, the Middle Palaeolithic phase was first identified by H.D. Sankalia on the Pravara River at Nevasa.
• Indian Middle Palaeolithic probably maybe as old as the African Middle Palaeolithic culture.

Upper Palaeolithic culture 

This period is marked by innovation in tool technology and increased cognitive capability of humans.

• Prehistoric rock paintings, rock-cut architectures of caves & temples and sculptures carved out of the rock are some examples of rock art in India.
• Almost all early painting in India survives in caves, as very few buildings from Ancient India survive. The history of cave paintings in India or rock art range from drawings and paintings from prehistoric times, beginning around 30,000 BCE in the caves of Central India, typified by those at the Bhimbetka rock shelters to elaborate frescoes at sites such as the rock-cut artificial caves at Ajanta and Ellora (M. P.), extending as late as the 8^th - 10^th century CE.
• In India, remnants of rock paintings have been found on the walls of caves situated in several districts of Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Kerala, Bihar and Uttarakhand.
• However, the best option among the given options would be Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh.

Rakhigarhi

• One of the five biggest townships of Harappan Civilization is located in Rakhighari, Hisar and Dholavira in Gujarat. The other four are Harappa, Mohenjo-daro and Ganveriwal in Pakistan. Five interconnected mounds spread in a huge area to form the Rakhigarhi's unique site. Two mounds, out of five, were thickly populated.
• This site was excavated by the Archeological Survey of India. The archaeological excavations revealed the mature Harappan phase represented by planned townships having mud-brick as well as burnt-brick houses with a proper drainage system. The ceramic industry represented by red ware, which included dish-on-stand, vase, jar, bowl, beaker, perforated jar, goblet and 'handis' (pans). Other antiquities included blades; terracotta and shell bangles; beads of semiprecious stones, terracotta, shell and copper objects; animal figurines, toy cart frame and wheel of terracotta; bone points; inscribed steatite seals and sealings.

Sokhta Koh (also known as Sotka Koh; lit. "burnt hill")

• It is a Harappan site on the Makran coast in the province of Pakistan. The site is located about 15 miles north of Pasni. Based on pottery styles, it is estimated that the settlement belongs to the Mature Harappan (Integration) Era (2600–1900 BC).

Ganweriwala

• It is an Indus Valley Civilization site in Punjab, Pakistan. It is situated near the Indian border on the dry river bed of the Ghaggar-Hakra, now part of a vast desert. It is spread over 80 hectares and comparable in size with the largest sites of the Indus Valley Civilization, such as Mohenjo-daro. But it has not been excavated, only identified. It may turn out to be among the top five largest towns of the Indus Valley Civilisation.[7]

Therefore Chirand is not a Harappan site. Chirand has the second most number of artefacts related to the Neolithic period after Burzahom (Jammu & Kashmir) in India. The excavation done in this area is not just stratified in the Neolithic age but also touches upon the Chalcolithic and Iron Age settlements.

MAP REFERENCE- NCERT

• There are several ways of describing people — in terms of the work they do, the language they speak, the place they belong to, their family, their communities and cultural practices. Let us see some of the words used to describe people found in the Rigveda. There are two groups who are described in terms of their work — the priests, sometimes called brahmins, who performed various rituals and the rajas. These rajas were not like the ones you will be learning about later. They did not have capital cities, palaces or armies, nor did they collect taxes.
• Two words were used to describe the people or the community as a whole. One was the word jana, which we still use in Hindi and other languages. The other was vish. The word vaishya comes from vish. Several vish or jana are mentioned by name. So we find reference to the Puru jana or vish, the Bharata jana or vish, the Yadu jana or vish, and so on. Hence, from the above it is clear that the correct option is 1.

Key Points

• Sometimes, the people who composed the hymns described themselves as Aryas and called their opponents Dasas or Dasyus. These were people who did not perform sacrifices and probably spoke different languages. Later, the term dasa (and the feminine dasi) came to mean slave. Slaves were women and men who were often captured in war. They were treated as the property of their owners, who could make them do whatever work they wanted. While the Rigveda was being composed in the north-west of the subcontinent, there were other developments elsewhere.

• Merchants and migrants first brought the teachings of the holy Quran to India in the seventh century. New religions appeared in the subcontinent.
• Muslims regard the Quran as their holy book and accept the sovereignty of the one God, Allah, whose love, mercy and bounty embrace all those who believe in Him, without regard to social background. Many rulers were patrons of Islam and the ulama – learned theologians and jurists. And like Hinduism, Islam was interpreted in a variety of ways by its followers.
• There were the Shia Muslims who believed that the Prophet Muhammad’s son-in-law, Ali, was the legitimate leader of the Muslim community, and the Sunni Muslims who accepted the authority of the early leaders (Khalifas) of the community, and the succeeding Khalifas.
• There were other important differences between the various schools of law (Hanafi and Shafi’i mainly in India), and in theology and mystic traditions.

Hence, it is clear that Shafi's and Hanafi are Islamic schools of law.

Key Points

Shafi

• The Shafi are the followers of Imam Shafi and give emphasis on ijma (consensus). The Shafi are widely spread and form around 15% of Muslims globally.

Hanafi 

• They are followers of Imam Abu Hanafis, the Hanafis see Quran, the Sunnah, the ijma (consensus) and qiyas (deduction from analogy) as the sources of law. Hanafis are based mostly in the Indian subcontinent, Iraq, Turkey and the Western world.

• By the seventh century there were big landlords or warrior chiefs in different regions of the subcontinent.
• Existing kings often acknowledged them as their subordinates or samantas. They were expected to bring gifts for their kings or overlords, be present at their courts and provide them with military support.
• As samantas gained power and wealth, they declared themselves to be maha-samanta, maha-mandaleshvara (the great lord of a “circle” or region) and so on.
• Sometimes they asserted their independence from their overlords. One such instance was that of the Rashtrakutas in the Deccan. Initially, they were subordinate to the Chalukyas of Karnataka.
• In the mid-eighth century, Dantidurga, a Rashtrakuta chief, overthrew his Chalukya overlord and performed a ritual called hiranya-garbha (literally, the golden womb). When this ritual was performed with the help of Brahmanas, it was thought to lead to the “rebirth” of the sacrificer as a Kshatriya, even if he was not one by birth.

The Delhi Sultanate refers to the five Muslim kingdoms of Turkic and Pashtun (Afghan) origin that ruled the territory of Delhi between 1206 and 1526 CE. In the 16^th century, the last of their line was overthrown by the Mughals, who established the Mughal Empire in India.

Razia Sultan ​

• Razia Sultan, the fourth emperor of the Slave Dynasty, who reigned from 1236 to 1240, has the unique distinction of being the only woman to occupy the throne of Delhi.
• As a ruler, she refused to be addressed as sultana, because it meant “wife or consort of a sultan”, and insisted on being addressed as sultan.
• Razia was born to Iltumish (1210-1236) — a doting father, who ordered grand celebrations to welcome the birth of his first daughter after many sons.
• He took a personal interest in her education and training and by the time she turned 13, Razia was acknowledged as an accomplished archer and horse rider who would frequently accompany her father in his military expeditions.
• Iltumish would often say, “This daughter of mine is better than many sons.” Once when he was busy with the siege of the Gwalior fort, he had entrusted the government in Delhi to Razia, and on his return was so impressed with her performance that he decided to appoint her as his successor. While the decree naming Razia as heir apparent was being prepared, many nobles expressed their reservations.
• Iltumish ruled out all objections, saying, “My sons are engrossed in the pleasure of youth and none of them possesses the capability to administer the affairs of the country. After my death, people will realise that none among my children is more worthy to succeed me than my daughter Razia.”
• After the death of Iltumish, the nobles and grandees of the kingdom ignored his will and installed his son Ruknuddin Firuz Shah on the throne of Delhi. However, after assuming the reins of power the young king abandoned himself to the pursuit of sensual pleasures and profligate inclinations.
• The citizenry was outraged when they saw him riding an elephant through the bazaars scattering gold coins that bystanders clamoured to pick up.
• Minjhaj-i-Siraj, in his book, Tabqate Nasiri, writes, “The king was entirely enslaved by dissipation and debauchery that Raziya was more able and qualified than her brothers".
• This situation opened the way for intervention by Turkan Shah, the mother of the king. She was an extremely jealous and domineering person, who started working on a scheme to eliminate all potential rivals to the throne. The first victim was a young prince, Kutbuddin, who was brutally murdered. This was followed by a failed attempt on the life of Razia.
• Then Razia decided to strike back.  After crushing the rebellion in Delhi, Razia began to address issues of governance that had taken a backseat during the six-month rule by her brother. However, like her father, most of her time was spent fighting the rebels. She personally led the army to Punjab and Multan to suppress the rebels but lost to Altunia at Bathinda. While in his prison, she married him and a few days later the two made a failed attempt to recapture Delhi and lost their lives.
• The brief rule of Razia has earned rich encomiums from historians like Minhaj, Barani and Ferishta. After describing her great qualities they agree that “the men of discernment could find no defect in her except that she was created in the form of a woman”. It is true that Razia was a victim of the prejudices of the age but she proved convincingly that as a ruler she was far more capable than the men who succeeded her.

• Muslim Sultans and Padshahs did not claim to be incarnations of god but Persian court chronicles described the Sultan as the “Shadow of God”.
• An inscription in the Quwwat al-Islam mosque explained that God chose Alauddin as a king because he had the qualities of Moses and Solomon, the great lawgivers of the past. The greatest lawgiver and architect was God Himself. He created the world out of chaos and introduced order and symmetry.

Key Points

Mahalwari Settlement

• In 1822, the British introduced the Mahalwari Settlement in the North Western Provinces, Punjab, the Ganga Valley and parts of Central India.
• Here the basis of assessment was the product of a mahal or estate, which may be a village or a group of villages. Here all the proprietors of mahal were jointly responsible for paying the sum of revenue assessed by the government.
• The estimated revenue of each plot within a village was added up to calculate the revenue that each village (mahal) had to pay.
• This demand was to be revised periodically, not permanently fixed.
• The charge of collecting the revenue and paying it to the Company was given to the village headman, rather than the zamindar.

Under the Mahalwari system, the land revenue was collected from the farmers by the village headmen on behalf of the whole village (and not the zamindar). The entire village was converted into one bigger unit called 'Mahal' and was treated as one unit for the payment of land revenue.

Additional Information

Permanent Settlement

• According to the terms of the settlement, under the Permanent Settlement in 1793, the Rajas and Taluqdars were recognised as zamindars.
• They were asked to collect rent from the peasants and pay revenue to the Company.
• The amount to be paid was fixed permanently, that is, it was not to be increased ever in future.

Ryotwari system 

• In 1820, the then Governor of Madras, Tomas Munro, introduced the 'Ryotwari system' for revenue collection.
• This system was implemented in Madras, Bombay, and some parts of Assam.
• In this, the raiyats or peasants were given ownership of the land.
• In the Ryotwari system, land revenue was determined not on the basis of the crop but on the measurement of land.

World War I, was a global war originating in Europe that lasted from 28 July 1914 to 11 November 1918.

Key Points

India witnessed increased industrial production during the First World War due to the following reasons:

• British industries became busy producing and supplying war needs.
• The increased demands for a variety of products led to the setting up of new factories and old ones increased their production.
• British industries became busy producing and supplying war needs.
• Hence, they stopped exporting British goods or clothes for colonial markets, for instance in India.
• It was a good opportunity for Indian industries to fill in empty Indian markets with their products.
• Therefore, industrial production in India increased.
• Also, the British colonial government asked Indian factories to supply the war needs like - jute bags, cloth or army uniforms, tents and leather boots, horse and mule saddle, etc.
• The increased demands for a variety of products led to the setting up of new factories and old ones increased their production.
• Many new workers were employed and everyone was made to work longer hours.

Hence, the correct answer is Indian industries expanded as war created a demand for industrial goods.

Additional Information

The First World War created a different situation in India.

• It led to a huge increase in defense expenditure which was Financed by war loans and increasing taxes custom duties were raised and income tax was introduced.
• Prices increased doubling between 1913-18. This hit the common people.
• During 1918-19 crops failed in many parts of India which created a shortage of food.
• After the First World War, the political parties became more active.
• The Indian National Congress associated with Gandhi, who remained its unofficial spiritual leader and icon.

The cold desert of Ladakh :

• Ladakh is a cold desert lying in the Great Himalayas, on the eastern side of Jammu and Kashmir.
• The Karakoram Range in the north and the Zanskar mountains in the south enclose it.
• Several rivers flow through Ladakh, Indus being the most important among them.
• Several glaciers are found in Ladakh, for example, the Gangotri glacier.
• The altitude in Ladakh varies from about 3000m in Kargil to more than 8,000m in the Karakoram. Due to its high altitude, the climate is extremely cold and dry.
• The air at this altitude is so thin that the heat of the sun can be felt intensely.
• The day temperatures in summer are just above zero degrees and the night temperatures well below –30°C.
• It is freezing cold in the winters when the temperatures may remain below –40°C for most of the time.
• As it lies in the rain shadow of the Himalayas, there is little rainfall, as low as 10 cm every year.
• The area experiences freezing winds and burning hot sunlight.
• The expanse of deserts appears to be growing because of the deglaciation or progressive melting of glaciers due to climate change.​​

The axis of the Earth, which is an imaginary line, makes an angel of $66 \frac{1^o}{2}$ with its orbital plane.

The axis of the earth tilted at a 23.5º angle over the elliptical surface. It is called obliquity by scientists.

• The axis (which is an imaginary line) made by Earth during this revolution makes an angle of $66 \frac{1^o}{2}$ with its orbital plane.
• This inclination of the axis is the major force to the seasons on the Earth.
• Because of the gyroscopic effect not only the axis is inclined by $66 \frac{1^o}{2}$ the axis always points to the same exact direction in space throughout its revolution on its orbit.
• Earth's axis is tilted 23.5 degrees from the plane of its orbit around the sun
• During a cycle that averages about 40,000 years, the tilt of the axis varies between 22.1 and 24.5 degrees
• Earth's orbital plane is known as the ecliptic plane, and Earth's tilt is known to astronomers' obliquity.
• The angle varies a little over time, but the gravitational pull of the moon prevents it from shifting by more than a degree or so.
• This tilt gives us the variation in the season from time to time.

Hence, option 3 is the correct answer.

Circle of illumination

• The circle that divides the day from night on the globe is called the circle of illumination.
• One will find that there are days and nights and changes in the seasons because of the rotation and revolution of the earth respectively.
• As we can see in this picture, there is a line of illustration that is longitude, the circle of illumination will not match with longitudinal lines.
• The portion of the earth facing the sun would always experience day, thus bringing continuous warmth to the region. The other half would remain in darkness and be freezing cold all the time. Life would not have been possible in such extreme conditions.
• Notice that throughout its orbit, the earth is inclined in the same direction. A year is usually divided into summer, winter, spring, and autumn seasons. Seasons change due to the change in the position of the earth around the sun

Let's see the figure

Hence, we can conclude that the circle of illumination is the circle that divides the day from night on the globe.

A map is a selective, symbolized, and generalized representation of the whole or part of the earth at a reduced scale. Geographers, planners, and other resource scientists use maps. In doing so, they make various types of measurements to determine distances, directions, and areas. 

Direction on map:

• Direction is defined as an imaginary straight line on the map showing the angular position to a common base direction.
• The line pointing to the north is zero direction or the base direction line.
• Generally, the direction can be determined by the given coordinate, but sometimes it could not found.
• A map always shows the north direction by using a north line or by the title of the map.
• All other directions are determined into this relation.
• The north direction enables the map user to locate different features with respect to each other.
• The four commonly known directions are North, South, East, and West.
• These are also called cardinal points.
• In between the cardinal points, one may have several intermediate directions

Hence, option 4 is the correct answer.

Lakshadweep is the smallest union territory in India.

• The word meaning of Lakshadweep is 'one hundred thousand islands'.
• It is located in the Arabian sea.
• The old name of Lakshadweep was Laccadive.
• Formed on 1^st November 1956.
• Adopted the name Lakshadweep on 1^st November 1973.
• Capital: Kavaratti.
• Former capital: Kozhikode.
• Official Languages: Malayalam, English
• The union territory comes under the jurisdiction of the Kerala High Court at Kochi.
• Maldives is the country nearest to Lakshadweep.
• Agatti Airport is the only airport located in Lakshadweep.

The correct answer is tropical grassland.

Key Points

• GRASSLANDS - 
• Tropical grasslands: These occur on either side of the equator and extend to the tropics.
• This vegetation grows in areas of moderate to low amount of rainfall.
• The grass can grow very tall, about 3 to 4 meters in height. Savannah grasslands of Africa are of this type.
• Elephants, zebras, giraffes, deer, leopards are common in tropical grasslands.
• Grasslands are known by different names in different regions.
• Tropical Grasslands
• East Africa- Savanna
• Brazil- Campos
• Venezuela- Llanos
• Temperate Grasslands
• Argentina- Pampas
• N. America- Prairie
• S. Africa- Veld
• C. Asia- Steppe
• Australia- Down

• The Kolkata port is the only riverine port in the country, situated 203 km from the sea.
• It has arguably the longest navigational channel amongst Major Ports of India and its navigational channel is one of the longest in the world.
• The Kolkata Port, located on the left bank of the Hugli River is the first major as well as the only riverine port in India.
• The Haldia Dock Complex is located on the right bank of the river at the confluence of Haldi and Hugli rivers. It has the longest approach Channel of 145 km.
• The Bhagirathi – Hugli river system is a major distributary of River Ganga in West Bengal. The entire stretch of 280 km of river is influenced by the tides extending from Saugor downstream to Nabadwip upstream.

News

• The Kolkata Port has been renamed to Shyama Prasad Mukherjee port.
• PM Narendra Modi on January 12^th renamed the Kolkata port after Bharatiya Jana Sangh founder Shyama Prasad Mukherjee.
• The event marked the 150^th anniversary of the historic Kolkata Port Trust.
• Shyama Prasad Mukherjee founded the Bharatiya Jana Sangh in 1951 which later went on to become today's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Key PointsPopulation Pattern of the World:

• Patterns of population distribution and density help us to understand the demographic characteristics of any area.
• The term population distribution refers to the way people are spaced over the earth’s surface.
• Broadly, 90 percent of the world's population lives in about 10 percent of its land area.
• The 10 most populous countries of the world contribute about 60 percent of the world’s population.
• Of these 10 countries, 6 are located in Asia.
• The highest total population and highest population density are found in Asia.
• The lowest population and population density found in Oceania (Australia) is only 0.5% of the total population of the world.

Hence, option 2 is the correct answer.

• Gompas are Buddhist temples or monasteries common in the historical region of Tibet including parts of China, Nepal, India, Bhutan, and Ladakh.
• A monastery is a spiritual center where Buddhist ideas and beliefs are taught and where one leans to renounce their materialistic and sensual desires and cultivate the right attitude.
• Therefore, a gompa is a room where a Buddhist meditates and listens to the teachings. Although the designs and interior details of gompas vary from region to region, they all have a central prayer hall furnished with a Buddha statue and benches that nuns or monks use to engage in prayers.
• They also have living accommodations and some may be accompanied by any number of stupas (a mound-like structure used as a place of meditation).

Precipitation: Evaporation causes the formation of water vapor and condensation causes the formation of droplets of water. Condensation occurs when the water vapor cools on reaching a higher altitude. Clouds are masses of such water droplets. When these droplets become too heavy to float in the air, they come down as precipitation. Precipitation can be in the form of Rain, Snow, Sleet, or Hail.

On the basis of the mechanism, there are three types of rainfall, as shown below.

1. Convectional Rainfall
2. Cyclonic Rainfall
3. Orographic Rainfall

Hence, option 3 is the correct answer.

• Iron and Steel Industry is often called the backbone of modern industry. Almost everything we use is either made of iron or steel or has been made with tools and machinery of these metals.
• Ships, trains, trucks, and autos are made largely of steel. Even the safety pins and the needles we use are made from steel.
• Oil wells are drilled with steel machinery. Steel pipelines transport oil. Minerals are mined with steel equipment. Farm machines are mostly steel. Large buildings have steel framework.
• Hence the Iron and Steel Industry is referred to as the backbone of modern industry.

Organic farming 

• Organic farming is about using non-chemical, biodegradable, non-toxic inputs such as seeds, fertilizers and pest control stuff.
• Traditional farming was organic in nature while modern farming is mechanical and depends on chemical fertilizers and pesticides.
• Organic farming depends on the natural decomposition and the fertility of soil continues for a longer period of time.
• It is a method of a farming system that primarily aimed at cultivating and raising crops by using organic waste (crop, animal and farm watse) and other biological material along with microbes(biofertilizers) to release nutrients to crops.

Technique Used in Organic farming

• Crop rotation
• Green Manure
• Biological pest control
• Compost

Advantages of Organic Farming

• Improves soil fertility and maintain biological diversity.
• Good for the environment and yields are healthy for human and animal consumption.
• Prevents soil erosion, degradation, and crop failure.
• Decrease pollution and the whole farming can easily rely on renewable energy sources.
• It improves soil fertility and enhances its chemical and physical properties.

Food security means availability, accessibility and affordability of food to all people at all times.

• Poor households are more vulnerable to food insecurity whenever there is a problem with the production or distribution of food crops.
• Food security depends on the Public Distribution System (PDS) and government vigilance and action at times, when this security is threatened.

Important Points

Food is as essential for living as air is for breathing.

• But food security means something more than getting two square meals.
• Food security has the following dimensions
• availability of food means food production within the country, food imports and the previous years stock stored in government granaries.
• accessibility means food is within reach of every person.
• affordability implies that an individual has enough money to buy sufficient, safe and nutritious food to meet one's dietary needs.
• Thus, food security is ensured in a country only if
• enough food is available for all the persons
• all persons have the capacity to buy food of acceptable quality
• there is no barrier to access to food.

From the above, we can conclude that statement 4 is true regarding food security.

Compressed Natural Gas (CNG):

• As CNG is available in India, so its usage is better for our National Economy.
• Some fleet owners have reported reduction in operating costs of up to 60% as compared to Petrol Engines and 40% as compared to Diesel Engines.
• It makes the car Bi-Fuel, so it can be driven on Petrol/Diesel as well as CNG.
• CNG offers better ignition reduced emissions and thus becomes environment friendly.

The Advantages Of Compressed Natural Gas

• Compressed natural gas is the cleanest burning fuel operating today.

• This means less vehicle maintenance and longer engine life.

• CNG vehicles produce the fewest emissions of any motor fuel.

• Dedicated Natural Gas Vehicles (NGV) have little or no emissions during fuelling.

• In gasoline vehicles, fuelling emissions account for at least 50% of a vehicle's total hydrocarbon emissions.

• CNG produces significantly less pollutants than gasoline.

• LPG is a fossil fuel and can be refined from oil and natural gas.

• CNG is an Eco-Friendly Fuel and Wallet Friendly Fuel.

• The main Component of CNG fuel is Methane (CH₄), the finest fuel that comes out from the Gasoline Tanks even before LPG (Liquid Petroleum Gas-C₂H₆).

Hence, option 1 is the correct answer.

• Barometer:  A barometer is an instrument that is used to measure atmospheric pressure in a particular environment.
• Atmospheric pressure: It is the pressure exerted by a column of air of a unit surface area on the surface of the Earth.
• The correct answer is Used to measure atmospheric pressure.

​

• The formula to calculate the atmospheric pressure is, Pa = ρ g h
• The reading in the barometer can be calculated by the formula
• $h = \frac{P_a}{\rho g}$​

Where, ρ = density of mercury, g = acceleration due to gravity, and h = vertical distance.

Kerala is a state in the southwest corner of India.

• It is surrounded by the sea on one side and hills on the other.
• A number of spices like pepper, cloves and cardamoms are grown on the hills.
• It is spices that made this region an attractive place for traders.
• Jewish and Arab traders were the first to come here.

Important Points

• The Apostle of Christ, St. Thomas is believed to have come to Kerala nearly 2000 years ago and he is credited with bringing Christianity to India.
• According to traditional accounts of the Saint Thomas Christians of modern-day Kerala in India, Thomas is believed to have travelled outside the Roman Empire to preach the Gospel, travelling as far as the Malabar Coast which is in modern-day Kerala State, India.
• According to their tradition, Thomas reached Muziris (modern-day North Paravur and Kodungalloor in Kerala State, India) in AD 52.

Thus, the apostle of Christ, St. Thomas is believed to have come to Kerala.

• The Zulu is a tribal community mostly found in South Africa. Hence, 1^st option is the correct answer.
• Zulu, a nation of Nguni-speaking people in KwaZulu-Natal province, South Africa. They are a branch of the southern Bantu and have close ethnic, linguistic, and cultural ties with the Swazi and Xhosa. The Zulu are the single largest ethnic group in South Africa and numbered about nine million in the late 20^th century.
• Traditionally grain farmers, they also kept large herds of cattle on the lightly wooded grasslands, replenishing their herds mainly by raiding their neighbours. European settlers wrested grazing and water resources from the Zulu in prolonged warfare during the 19^th century, and, with much of their wealth lost, modern Zulu depend largely on wage labour on farms owned by individuals of European descent or work in the cities of South Africa

The Constitution distinguishes three organs of the State – the legislative, executive and judiciary with specific powers and responsibilities assigned to each of these organs.

• The Legislative consists of the Parliament and the State Legislatures.
• The Executive consists of the Council of Ministers and the officials of the ministries, both at the Union and State levels.
• The Judiciary consists of the Supreme Court, High Courts and subordinate courts in different States.
• The enclave displays original chairs of the Speaker of the Parliament, the Prime minister of India, and the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, with an interactive computer multi-media for the study of the three organs of the State.

Thus, it is clear that according to the constitution, the State has 3 organs.

Additional Information

• Together, they perform the functions of the government, maintain law and order and look after the welfare of the people.
• The Constitution ensures that they work in coordination with each other and maintain a balance among themselves.
• In a parliamentary system, executive and the legislature are interdependent: the legislature controls the executive, and, in turn, is controlled by the executive.

Federalism- 

• Federalism is a system of government in which the power is divided between a central authority and various constituent units of the country.
• Usually, a federation has two levels of government.
• One is the government for the entire country that is usually responsible for a few subjects of common national interest.
• The others are governments at the level of provinces or states that look after much of the day-to-day administering of their state.
• Both these levels of governments enjoy their power independent of the other.
• The exact balance of power between the central and the state government varies from one federation to another.
• This balance depends mainly on the historical context in which the federation was formed.
• There are two kinds of routes through which federations have been formed.
• The first route involves independent States coming together on their own to form a bigger unit so that by pooling sovereignty and retaining identity they can increase their security.
• This type of ‘coming together’ federations include the USA, Switzerland and Australia.
• In this first category of federations, all the constituent States usually have equal power and are strong vis-à-vis the federal government.
• The second route is where a large country decides to divide its power between the constituent States and the national government.
• India, Spain and Belgium are examples of this kind of ‘holding together’ federations. Hence statement 3 is incorrect.
• In this second category, the central government tends to be more powerful vis-à-vis the States.
• Very often different constituent units of the federation have unequal powers. Some units are granted special powers.

Key Points

 Some of the key features of federalism:

• There are two or more levels (or tiers) of government. Hence option 1 is correct.
• Indian federalism resembles the “CANADIAN MODEL”.
• Article 1 describes India as a UNION of states.
• It is not a result of an agreement between states and states have no right to secede from the federation.
• It’s an Indestructible union of destructible states.

A constitution is not only about the composition of the various organs of government and the relations among them.  

• Part three of the Constitution of India lists the Fundamental Rights and also mentions the limits on these rights.
• In the past fifty years, the scope of rights has changed and in some respects, expanded.

Important Points

Right to Freedom

• Protection of Right to
• freedom of speech and expression
• assemble peacefully
• form associations/unions
• move freely throughout the territory of India
• reside and settle in any part of India
• practise any profession, or to carry on any occupation, trade or business.
• Protection in respect of conviction for offences
• Right to life and personal liberty
• Right to education
• Protection against arrest and detention in certain cases

If a politician in one state decides to not allow labourers from other states to work in his state, then the Right to Freedom fundamental right is been violated. It is because the right to freedom allows an individual to move freely throughout the territory of India.

In our country, Parliament consists of two Houses. The two Houses are known as the Council of States (Rajya Sabha) and the House of the People (Lok Sabha). 

Important Points

Rajya Sabha:

• The Rajya Sabha functions primarily as the representative of the states of India in the Parliament.
• The Rajya Sabha can also initiate legislation and a bill is required to pass through the Rajya Sabha in order to become a law.
• It, therefore, has an important role of reviewing and altering (if alterations are needed) the laws initiated by the Lok Sabha.
• The members of the Rajya Sabha are elected by the elected members of the Legislative Assemblies of various states.
• There are 233 elected members plus 12 members nominated by the President.

Thus, we can conclude that the Rajya Sabha can have at most 245 members.

The Parliament of India (Sansad) is the supreme law-making institution. It has two Houses, the Rajya Sabha and the Lok Sabha.

Important Points

Created after 1947, the Indian Parliament is an expression of the faith that the people of India have in principles of democracy.

• These are participation by people in the decision-making process and government by consent.
• The Parliament in our system has immense powers because it is the representative of the people.
• Elections to the Parliament are held in a similar manner as they are for the state legislature.

Thus, option 3 is the correct answer.

Additional Information

• The Lok Sabha is usually elected once every five years.
• The country is divided into numerous constituencies.
• Each of these constituencies elects one person to the Parliament.
• The candidates who contest elections usually belong to different political parties.
• Once elected, these candidates become Members of Parliament or MPs.
• These MPs together make up the Parliament.
• Once elections to the Parliament have taken place, the Parliament needs to perform the following functions:
• To Select the National Government
• To Control, Guide and Inform the Government
• Law-Making

• The three branches of the government are the executive, the legislature and the judiciary.
• The executive is the organ that implements the laws made by the Parliament and legislature.
• It is the administrative head of the government.
• The Union executive consists of the President, the Vice-President, and the Council of Ministers with the Prime Minister as the head to aid and advise the President.

Key Points

• Our Constitution distributes between the Union and the States not only the legislative power but also the executive power, more or less on the same lines.
• The result is that it is not competent for a State to exercise administrative power with respect to Union subjects, or for the Union to take up the administration of any State function unless authorised on that behalf by any provision in the Constitution.
• In administrative matters, a rigid division like this may lead to occasional deadlocks.
• To avoid such a situation, the Constitution has engrafted provisions enabling the Union as well as a State to make a mutual delegation of their respective administrative functions:

As to the delegation of Unlon functions, there are two methods:

• With the consent of the State Government, the President may, without any legislative sanction, entrust any executive function to that State
• Irrespective of any consent of the State concerned, Parliament may, while legislating with respect to Union subject, confer powers upon a State or its officers, relating to such subject. Such delegation has, in short, a statutory basis.
• Conversely, with the consent of the Government of India, the Governor of a State may entrust on the Union Government or its officers, functions relating to a State subject, so far as that State is concerned.

The Mid Day Meal Programme (MDM) is also called the school lunch or school meal programme.

• As the name indicates, the children attending elementary sections of schools are the chief beneficiaries.
• Supply of one supplementary meal is the main purpose of this programme.
• The reason why the MDM programme was started was that the home diets of these children are often inadequate from the nutritional viewpoint.
• Many, especially in rural areas, come to school partly hungry and some even on an empty stomach, trekking long distances.
• They will, therefore, hardly be able to concentrate on the studies and benefit from the education, which is being provided at great cost to the exchequer.

Key Points

Objectives

• To improve the nutritional status and the attentiveness of school children attending primary sections (I to V).
• To improve school enrolment and attendance on one hand and to reduce dropout rates on the other.
• Caste prejudices have been reduced as all the students eat and work together.

Thus from above-mentioned points, it is clear that poor children are getting high marks in examinations is not the positive effect of The Mid-day Meal Programme.

Indian society is primarily a rural society though urbanisation is growing.

• The majority of India’s people live in rural areas (67 per cent, according to the 2001 Census).
• They make their living from agriculture or related occupations.
• This means that agricultural land is the most important productive resource for a great many Indians.

Important Points

Wheel diagram gives the following information:

• Sapling Preparation is done in the June period.
• Transplanting is done in the months of July-August.
• Weeding is done in the period of September- October.
• Harvesting is done in the month of November-December.

Thus, we can conclude that from the month of January-May labourers are unable to get a regular job.

For evaluating the social relationships of students, the socio-metric technique is quite useful.

Key Points

• The sociometric technique gives an objective picture of social relationships in a classroom.
• Jacob Levy Moreno developed this technique to study the relationship between social structures and psychological well-being.
• The main purpose of a sociogram is to find out the basic network of friendship patterns. Another type of information that can be obtained from a sociogram is to know the relation of any one child to the group.
• Through a sociogram, you will get a greater understanding of group behavior.
• He could observe how many groups are formed in the class and on the whole whether members of the class have cooperation or not.
• This kind of information helps the social studies teacher to form groups for various curricular and co-curricular activities like project work, visits to a geographically or historically important place, etc.

Thus from above-mentioned points, it is clear that a method used in a Social Science classroom in which learner is asked to evaluate one another's likeability is called Sociometric techniques.

Additional Information

• The case study method refers to a research approach, commonly used in Social Science to investigate and analyze an individual, group, community, or phenomenon to explore the causes of basic principles.
• Self-assessment: This refers to assessing the own performance and progress of learners.
• Psychomotor techniques are characteristically apparatus tests, although several paper-and-pencil adaptations have been designed for group administration.

• Creative thinking involves the production of novel and original ideas or solutions to problems.
• Sometimes, creative thinking is understood just as a new way of thinking or thinking differently.
• However, it is important to know that, besides novelty, originality is also an important characteristic of creative thinking.
• Creative thinking thus refers to the originality and uniqueness of ideas or solutions that did not previously exist.

Key Points

• Creativity is of two types of thinking: convergent and divergent.
• Convergent thinking refers to thinking that is required to solve problems that have only one correct answer.
• The mind converges to the correct solution.
• Convergent thinking is important to identify the most useful or appropriate idea.
• Divergent thinking is open-ended thinking where the individual can think of different answers to the questions or problems in terms of her/his experiences. Such kind of thinking helps in producing novel and original ideas.

Thus from the above-mentioned points, it is clear that divergent thinking is an essential quality of creative thinking.

Elections are the most significant means of realizing the aspirations of the people in a democracy. This enables every adult citizen of the country to participate in the process of government formation. In India, those who have attained the age of 18 are eligible to vote and elect their representatives. 

Key Points

• Different political parties contest the election, though there is no ban on independent candidates for contesting the election.
• During election different political parties put up their candidates and people can cast one vote each for a candidate of their own choice, to elect their representatives.
• The candidate, who gets the maximum number of votes, wins the election and gets elected. So the election is how the people elect their representatives.
• Each party decides its issues and priorities before the election.

As a teacher, in order to understand the role of various issues during an election, you most likely ask your students to analyze each party's priorities and the types of policies it is most likely to support.

Peer learning also gets strengthened while working in groups. Given this, multi-grade teaching can be made more effective, if imparted in groups. Peer learning refers to learning where peers collaborate and support each other in learning processes. There are different forms of peer learning such as peer support groups, supplemental instruction, peer tutoring, peer teaching, and peer-assisted learning.

• Grouping of students is a very effective strategy for the management of multi-grade teaching. Students learn better and progress well when they work in a group.
• Apart from learning, group learning helps in developing social skills such as working in cooperation with others, taking collective decisions, accepting and sharing others’ ideas and views, respecting and assuming leadership roles, etc.
• To use drama as a linguistic activity, two characteristics need to be included- freedom and enjoyment. No special preparation is needed by the teacher or children for conducting drama in the classroom. The teacher only needs to encourage the children to share their experiences naturally which facilitates peer learning in the classroom.
• For example, any incident, story, or cartoon that children see in their environment can be taken up for acting.

Hence, it can be concluded that 'drama' would be recommended for peer learning in the classroom.

The social sciences are academic disciplines concerned with the study of the social life of human groups and individuals including anthropology, economics, geography, history, political science, psychology, social studies, and sociology.

Key Points

• Social Studies is the study of relations and interrelations, historical, geographical, and social.
• It establishes the relationship between present and past, local and distant, and personal and national lives, and also with the lives and cultures of other men and women in different parts of the world.
• Social science helps to initiate the learner into a study of her/ his own region, state, and country in the global context.
• Social Science lays the foundation for an analytical and creative mindset.
• Social Science as a discipline has the unique capability of being able to look at both developmental and normative issues of the society.
• Social Science is concerned with the diverse concerns of society.
• Social science is concerned with both objective and subjective knowledge.
• Social Science is characterized by heterogeneity, mobility, and diversity in activities and values.

Hence, we can conclude that Social Science lays the foundation for an analytical and creative mindset is true about Social Science.

National Curriculum Framework (2005) recommends continuous and comprehensive assessment and suggests flexibility in the assessment procedures at the school stages; and emphasized the assessment tasks for the learners.

• The continuous assessment focuses on informal and a combination of both formative and summative. The continuous assessment facilitates mapping different dimensions of a child’s development holistically to provide a more authentic picture to help the child, teacher, and hence the system.
• RTE Act (2009) has made the use of CCE mandatory till the elementary stage of education. Section 29 (1) states that curriculum and evaluation procedure shall make the child free from fear, trauma, and anxiety by adopting CCE; and section 3 (1) highlights that no child shall be required to pass any Board examination till completion of elementary education.
• Hence, need to have a functional CCE scheme for schools.

Key Points

Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluation refers to a process of evaluation that is a school based and aims at the all-round development of the student. The term consists of three keywords: 

• The word “Continuous” refers to watching children’s learning and progress regularly at short intervals as frequently as possible, throughout the academic session to identify their current standing, strengths, and requirement of additional inputs and /or interventions to further expand their boundaries of learning, development, and progress.
• The word “Comprehensive” means evaluation has to cover curricular subjects, curricular activities, socio-personal qualities, and work and art education, etc. It involves both quantitative and qualitative information gathered from various sources such as school records, peers, parents, teachers, and self through the use of varieties of tools and techniques, e.g. observation, interviews, documentary analysis.
• The word “Evaluation” is the process that deals with the collection of information regarding the changes that occur in the child’s behavior; interpretation of this information; judgment regarding the progress of the child; and decision concerning his promotion to the next class.

Hence, it can be concluded that in Social Science, the recent NCF position paper on examination reforms emphasizes continuous assessment.

Primary Data: A source will be considered as a primary source in case it carries newly generated information, original work of research, or a new interpretation of already known facts. The document is the first and often the only published record of original research. The information contained in primary sources is generally scattered and unorganized.

Culture represents a tremendous spectrum of human expression that can be studied in a number of ways and a number of reasons. As the culture has grown through time within the group that share the same ethnic heritage, language, occupation, religion, or geographic area and these home-grown traditional activities serve to identify and symbolize the group.

• The collection of data is the first basic step towards the statistical analysis of any problem.
• The collected data are suitably transformed and analyzed to draw conclusions about the population. Thus, it becomes necessary for teachers to study the life-history of a village community to understand the education of the young ones. It is an example of primary data. This is collected by the investigator through a field survey. Such data are in raw form and must be refined before use.

Additional Information

• Secondary data are extracted from the existing published or unpublished sources.
• Narrative data rely on the written or spoken words or visual representation of individuals. These approaches typically focus on the lives of individuals as told through their own stories.
• A clinical study is a type of academic publication where medical practitioners share patient cases that are unusual or haven't been described before.

Hence, it can be concluded that Studying the life-history of a village community to understand the education of the young ones is an example of primary data.

If we want children to learn social sciences by developing different kinds of skills, conceptual knowledge, feelings, and sensitiveness. A teacher can draw a broad list of indicators for assessment which can help her to plan the learning tasks. Each indicator consists of abilities that need to be developed in children. Predicting, making hypotheses and inferences are abilities that indicate analysis.

The analysis is the stage when the student has gained enough knowledge. He can understand and apply it independently. At this time, the student can break down the communication into small elements & ideas can be conceptually sound good and confident.

Key Points

Let us review other abilities to develop the following indicators:

• Observation and Recording: Reporting, narrating, and drawing; picture-reading, making pictures, tables, and maps
• Discussion: Listening, talking, expressing opinions, finding out from others
• Expression: Drawing, body movements, creative writing, sculpting, etc.
• Explanation: Reasoning, making logical connections
• Classification: Categorizing, grouping, contrasting, and comparing
• Questioning: Expressing curiosity, critical thinking, developing questions
• Experimentation: Improvising, making things, and doing experiments
• Concerns for Justice and Equality: Sensitivity towards the disadvantaged or differently-abled, showing concern for the environment
• Cooperation: Taking responsibility and initiative, sharing and working together

Hence, it can be concluded that the process of deriving inferences from observable facts is called analysis.

Selecting the type of representation depends on the type of data. The most common forms of representation for categorical data are the bar-diagram, flow-chart, frequency polygon, Venn-diagram, pie graph, etc.

Frequency Polygon: A frequency polygon is a graph constructed by using lines to join the midpoints of each interval or bin. The heights of the points represent the frequencies. A frequency polygon can be created from the histogram or by calculating the midpoints of the bins from the frequency distribution table. A frequency polygon is a graph constructed by using lines to join the midpoints of each interval or bin. The heights of the points represent the frequencies. It can be used to show the change in rainfall in a particular region in a decade.

Additional Information

On the other hand, 

• A flowchart is simply a graphical representation of steps. It shows steps in sequential order and is widely used in presenting the flow of algorithms, workflow, or processes.
• A bar graph (also known as a bar chart or bar diagram) is a visual tool that uses bars to compare data among categories. Bar graphs consist of two axes.
• A Venn diagram is an illustration that uses circles to show the relationships among things or finite groups of things. It helps to visually represent the similarities and differences between two concepts.

Hence, it can be concluded that frequency polygon can be used to show the change in rainfall in a particular region in a decade.

The constructivist perspective is a movement away from learning to acquisition with new perspectives of looking at language, language acquisition, the learners, teacher, teaching materials, and so on. The output and success are measured by the discourse that the students can construct. The constructivist approach of language teaching gives primacy to collaborative learning by involving learners in discussions and projects.

"To understand the importance of knowledge and wisdom of peers' - is valued in the constructivist perspective. It states that learning by doing or through participation is considered an effective means for meaningful learning. Doing gives the real experience of solving real-life problems.

• It is a way of combining thinking and reasoning with the practical act of manipulating objects for solving a problem. Undoubtedly it promotes self-learning and self-assessment which are the ultimate goal of the learning process.
• But, in classroom situations, individual work cannot always be conducted. Therefore, encouraging students to participate in small group work always proves beneficial for learning.
• Research findings consistently show that the more pupils are involved as active participants in small group activities, the better they do. The more provisions for group activities are arranged in the classroom situation, the more participation is expected from the students.
• It promotes: active and meaningful learning in a contextual situation, sharing of experience among each other, pooling combined resources for successful completion of the task, searching, debating, and coming out with innovative and alternative ways of solving problems.

Hence, it can be concluded that "To understand the importance of knowledge and wisdom of peers' - is valued in the constructivist perspective.

Social sciences are the body of knowledge that is concerned with human affairs in the spectrum of broad socio-cultural systems. Social sciences constitute an important component of the high school/higher education curriculum. The different social science subjects like history, political science, anthropology, philosophy, economics, etc. have independent status in high school/university education.

Key Points

Social science teaching should aim at generating in students critical, moral, and mental energy, making them alert to social forces that threaten these values.

• The teaching of Social Sciences needs to be organized in an interactive environment so that it helps the learner acquire knowledge, requisite skills, and attitudes. While discussing approaches to pedagogy and resources to teaching social sciences, NCF (2005) emphasizes those methods that promote creativity, aesthetics, and critical perspectives. It recommends the use of teaching-learning methods like problem-solving, dramatization and role play, and optimum utilization of audiovisual materials, including photographs, charts and maps, and a replica of archeological and material cultures.
• The NCF( 2005) states that the content should be transacted through activities drawing on local resources. The teaching of Social Sciences creates in the learners a strong sense of human values, namely, freedom, trust, mutual respect, and respect for diversity.

Hence, it can be concluded that engaging learners in critical and thought-provoking activities would be most effective in Social Science, that teachers must use.

Social Sciences is one of the school subjects at the Upper Primary level and it encompasses diverse concerns of the society and includes a wide range of content drawn from the disciplines of History, Geography, Political science, Economics, Sociology, and Anthropology.

Important Points

In a pluralistic society like ours, all religions and social groups must be able to relate to the textbooks in social sciences.

• The NCF( 2005) states that the content should be transacted through activities drawing on local resources. The teaching of Social Sciences creates in the learners a strong sense of human values, namely, freedom, trust, mutual respect, and respect for diversity.
• Social science teaching should aim at generating in students critical, moral, and mental energy, making them alert to social forces that threaten these values.

Hence, it can be concluded that in the Indian pluralistic society, textbooks of Social Science should include and represent all religions and social groups.

Social sciences comprise a branch/field of knowledge which basically studies human society or human relationship. Social sciences study the social behaviour of human life. The different core-components of social behaviour of human life are- economic behaviour, political behaviour, cultural behaviour and tradition, customs and social institutions, religious faiths and ethics, value patterns followed in society, etc. Social sciences occupy a significant component of both university/ higher education as well as school curriculum. 

Key Points

Learning performance in Social sciences may include the dimensions like:

• Observation and recording,
• Discussion,
• Expression,
• The Results of Assessment for Improving
• Classification,
• Questioning,
• Analysis,
• Experimentation,
• Concern for justice and equality,
• Co-operation.

Important Points

Capitalism has also made poor people's lives far better by reducing infant and child mortality rates, not to mention maternal death rates during childbirth, and by extending life expectancies by decades. But it has adverse effects on establishing equality.

Assigning field-work around the ideas of poverty and capitalism would provide a platform where learners can understand the concept of equality and develop their critical thinking problem solving and decision-making skills. 

NOTE:

• On the other hand, the traditional method of teaching is when a teacher directs students to learn through memorization and recitation techniques thereby not developing their critical thinking problem solving and decision-making skills. It involves the lecture method.
• Highlighting the constitutional provisions to promote equity is also unidirectional in nature.

Hence, it can be concluded that assigning field-work around the ideas of poverty and capitalism to teach about equality would be the most suitable method.

Social learning is based on a theory developed by psychologist Albert Bandura that proposes learning is a cognitive process that takes place in a social context and occurs purely through observation or direct instruction, even in the absence of motor reproduction or direct reinforcement. Considering the social aspects of our everyday lives. Today, we learn by watching, listening, and doing; by blending visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learning styles to understand new concepts, retain that knowledge and apply them to everyday challenges, at work, and at home.

Important Points

In this way, group discussions will promote social learning of rules, regulations, and values.

• In traditional learning environments, most people recall only 10% of the information taught within 72 hours. It may include book reading, writing essays, etc. Consider the impact that lack of knowledge retention could have on your organization.
• For example, a salesperson may have trouble recalling the lessons they learned from an annual sales kickoff event by the next week. That could cost the sale and have a negative impact on your bottom line.
• Instead of relying on traditional models with low recollection rates, social learning encourages learning in working environments and allows learners to pull knowledge from experts within the organizations instead of having knowledge-pushed on them (like a formal learning system would).

Hence, it can be included that group discussions will promote social learning of rules, regulations, and values.

Assessment and evaluation are an important part of every teaching-learning process. The purpose of assessment is not only to carry out an assessment of learning but also to focus on ‘assessment for learning’. Assessment needs to be an integral part of the teaching-learning process and a tool for the continuous enhancement of student learning. There is a certain commonality concerning teaching-learning strategies and assessment used in different Social Science subjects-

Key Points

• Assessment needs to be integrated with teaching in forms of observation, peer and group discussion, narration and debates, unit end test, monthly or quarterly examinations.
• Social Science teacher should keep in mind is that the teaching of Social Science aims at the all-round development of the children, that is, cognitive, affective, psychomotor, social, and emotional.
• Comprehensive evaluation signifies the use of a variety of tools and techniques such as questionnaires, scales, checklists, schedules, debates and discussions, field visits, anecdotes, narrations, story-telling, writing in reflective diaries, use of portfolios, etc.
• Science begins by asking questions and then seeking answers. Young children understand this intuitively as they explore and try to make sense of their surroundings.
• Encouraging questioning helps to bring the true spirit of science into our educational system, and the art of asking good questions constitutes an important skill to foster for practicing scientists.

Thus from the above-mentioned points, it is clear that Feeling free to ask questions could be used to assess attitudes and values in a Social Science classroom.