Kerala SET Paper 1: Held on 9th January 2022 (Previous Year Paper)

Thrombin is a naturally occurring enzyme that converts fibrinogen into fibrin.

Key Points

• Blood clotting or coagulation is a mechanism that prevents the loss of blood during injury.
• During injury, the damaged platelets release the enzyme, thrombokinase that converts the inactive prothrombin into active thrombin.
• The thrombin formed converts the soluble fibrinogen into insoluble fibrin.
• Conversion of fibrinogen into fibrin is an integral step in clot formation.
• Calcium ions are essential during blood clotting.

Hence Ca2+ is essential for both activation and action of thrombin.

Additional Information

• Sodium: The human body requires a small amount of sodium to conduct nerve impulses, contract and relax muscles, and maintain the proper balance of water and minerals. It is estimated that we need about 500 mg of sodium daily for these vital functions.
• Chloride is, after sodium, the most abundant electrolyte in serum, with a key role in the regulation of body fluids, electrolyte balance, the preservation of electrical neutrality, and acid-base status and it is an essential component for the assessment of many pathological conditions.
• Magnesium is an important mineral, playing a role in over 300 enzyme reactions in the human body. Its many functions include helping with muscle and nerve function, regulating blood pressure, and supporting the immune system.

A mixed heart means the heart in which the oxygenated and the deoxygenated blood are mixed.

Key Points

• Amphibians and most reptiles have a heart with three chambers—two atria and a single ventricle.
• These animals also have separate circuits of blood vessels for oxygenating blood and delivering it to the body.
• Deoxygenated blood returning from the body empties into the right atrium.

Important Points

• All reptiles, with the exception of crocodiles, have a three-chambered heart – two auricles and one ventricle.
• This type is more advanced than that of fish but not as advanced as that possessed by mammals.
• However, the ventricle has an incomplete partition that divides it into 2 sub-chambers.
• The right sub-chamber is called the right ventricle or calum pulmonale while the left subchamber is called the left ventricle or calum venosum.
• There is also a third subchamber called cavum arteriosum towards the top of the ventricle.
• It is connected by a valve to the left ventricle.
• Deoxygenated blood enters the right atrium and moves into the right sub-chamber of the ventricle.
• Due to incomplete separation though, it also leaks into and fills the left ventricle. The blood then moves up from the ventricle into the lungs for oxygenation. This comes back down and fills the third chamber – cavum arteriosum – temporarily shutting it off.  The blood then moves into the left ventricle and from there the rest of the body.

Hence reptiles have a mixed heart (oxygenated and deoxygenated blood mixed)

Additional Information

• Birds have 4-chambered hearts made of the right atrium, right ventricle, left atrium, and left ventricle. The division helps for the efficient flow of oxygenated and deoxygenated blood.
• fish have a two-chambered heart, which means that they have only two pumping chambers, the atrium, and the ventricle, but they also have a sinus venosus and a bulbous arteriosus.
• Nematodes don't have hearts, blood vessels, or blood. The fluid in the pseudocoel passively circulates nutrients and other substances throughout the body.

The correct answer is Toxic to human tissues

Key Points Radiotherapy to treat cancer:

• High doses of radiation are used in radiation therapy, also known as radiotherapy, as a cancer treatment to eradicate cancer cells and reduce tumour size.
• As with x-rays of your teeth or shattered bones, radiation is utilised at low doses in x-rays to see inside your body.
• Radiation therapy damages cancer cells' DNA, which either kills them or limits their growth at high dosages.
• Cancer cells that have DNA damage that cannot be repaired either cease proliferating or die.
• When the injured cells expire, the body degrades and eliminates them.
• But too much radiation can damage tissues by changing cell structure and damaging DNA. This can cause serious health problems.

Rocks are an aggregate of one or more minerals held together by chemical bonds. Feldspar and quartz are the most common minerals found in rocks.

Key Points

• Coal is a sedimentary deposit composed predominantly of carbon that is readily combustible. Coal is black or brownish-black, and has a composition that (including inherent moisture) consists of more than 50 percent by weight and more than 70 percent by volume of carbonaceous material.
• Sedimentary rocks are formed by lithification ― consolidation, and compaction of sediments. Hence, they are layered or stratified of varying thicknesses. Example: sandstone, shale, etc.
• Sediments are a result of denudation (weathering and erosion) of all types of rocks. These types of rocks cover 75 percent of the earth’s crust but volumetrically occupy only 5 percent (because they are available only in the upper part of the crust). Ice deposited sedimentary rocks are called till or tillite. Wind-deposited sediments are called loess.

Depending upon the mode of formation, sedimentary rocks are classified into:

1. mechanically formed — sandstone, conglomerate, limestone, shale, loess.
2. organically formed — geyserite, chalk, limestone, coal.
3. chemically formed — limestone, halite, potash.

Hence The rock harder than its original constituent is coal.

Additional Information

• Rocks formed out of the solidification of magma (molten rock below the surface) and lava (molten rock above the surface) and are known as igneous or primary rocks.
• Metamorphism is a process by which recrystallization and reorganization of minerals occur within a rock. This occurs due to pressure, volume, and temperature changes. Gneissoid, slate, schist, marble, quartzite, etc. are some examples of metamorphic rocks.

Many astronomers prefer to use parsecs (abbreviated pc) to measure the distance to stars. This is because its definition is closely related to a method of measuring the distances between stars.

Key Points

• Parsec or parallactic second is a unit of distance.
• It is defined as the distance at which one AU (astronomical unit) subtends an angle of one arc second, and is equal to 3.26 light-years.
• It is the unit of length that is used to measure the large distances of celestial bodies outside the solar system.
• It is obtained by using trigonometry and parallax.
• One parsec is equal to the length of an adjacent side of the imaginary right triangle in space.
• The two dimensions on which this triangle is based are the opposite side (defined as 1 AU-distance from the Earth to the Sun) and the angle (defined as 1 arc-second). Using these two measurements, along with trigonometry, the length of the adjacent side (the parsec) can be determined.

Hence the unit used to express distances to stars and galaxies, used by professional astronomers is parsec.

Additional InformationAstronomers use an effect called parallax to measure distances to nearby stars. Parallax is the apparent displacement of an object because of a change in the observer's point of view.

The Man Who Knew Infinity is a 2015 British biographical drama film about the Indian mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan, based on the 1991 book of the same name by Robert Kanigel.

Key Points

• Srinivasa Ramanujan was one of India's greatest mathematical geniuses.
• He made substantial contributions to the analytical theory of numbers and worked on elliptic functions, continued fractions, and infinite series.
• Indian mathematician whose contributions to the theory of numbers include pioneering discoveries of the properties of the partition function.

Additional Information

• C.V. Raman was awarded the 1930 Nobel Prize in Physics for his discovery of the Raman effect, in which light that passes through a material is scattered and the wavelength of the scattered light is changed because it has caused an energy state transition in the material's molecules.
• Sir Jagadish Chandra Bose was a biologist, physicist, botanist, and early writer of science fiction. He pioneered the investigation of radio and microwave optics, made significant contributions to plant science, and was a major force behind the expansion of experimental science on the Indian subcontinent.
• Meghnad Saha was an Indian astrophysicist who developed the Saha ionization equation, used to describe chemical and physical conditions in stars. His work allowed astronomers to accurately relate the spectral classes of stars to their actual temperatures.

The correct answer is International Labour Organization.

In 2019, the International Labour Organization – the oldest UN specialized agency had celebrated its 100th anniversary.

Key Points

ILO:

• Founded on 11 April 1919 under the League of Nations,
• it is the first and oldest specialised agency of the UN.
• it is a United Nations agency whose mandate is to advance social and economic justice through setting international labour standards.
• Headquarters- Geneva, Switzerland
• Director-General - Guy Ryder(United Kingdom)

Hence, International Labour Organization is the specialized agency of the United Nations which celebrated its centenary in 2019:

The correct answer is Sharankumar Limbale

 It was instituted by KK Birla Foundation in 1991, is recognized as the most prestigious and highest literary award in the country.

Key Points

Saraswati Samman 2020

• The Saraswati Samman is an annual award for outstanding prose or poetry literary works in any of the 22 languages of India listed in Schedule VIII of the Constitution of India
• Noted Marathi writer Dr. Sharankumar Limbale received Saraswati Samman, 2020 for his book Sanatan.
• Sanatan is an important social and historical document of the Dalit struggle.

Additional Information

• Noted Sindhi writer Vasdev Mohi was honored with 29th Saraswati Samman in 2019 for his short stories collection:- Chequebook
• Telugu poet K Siva Reddy was honored with the prestigious Saraswati Samman, in 2018 for his work Pakkaki Ottigilite(Turning Aside While Lying Down)’.
• The 27th Saraswati Samman 2017 was conferred upon eminent Gujarati poet Sitanshu Yashaschandra for "Vakhar" (Poetry collection)

The correct answer is (a) - (3), (b) - (4), (c) - (1), (d) - (2)

Key Points

Hence the correct matching code is  (a) - (3), (b) - (4), (c) - (1), (d) - (2)

The correct answer is 1, 3 & 4 only

Fundamental Rights are defined as the basic human rights of all citizens which are defined in Part III of the Constitution from Article 12-35.

Key Points

• Fundamental rights:
• These are protected and guaranteed by the constitution.
• These are NOT sacrosanct or absolute means that the parliament can curtail or put reasonable restrictions for a fixed period of time. However, the court has the power to review the reasonability of the restrictions.
• These are justiciable means The constitution allows the person to move directly to the Supreme Court for the reinforcement of his fundamental right as and when they are violated or restricted.
• The Constitution guarantees six fundamental rights to Indian citizens as follows:
• right to equality (Articles 14-18)
• right to freedom (Articles 19-22)
• right against exploitation (Articles 23-24)
• right to freedom of religion (Articles 25-28)
• cultural and educational rights (Articles 29-30),
• right to constitutional remedies (Article 32)

Additional Information

• Right to equal pay for equal work
• There is no fundamental right of Right to equal pay for equal work
• The“Equal pay for equal work” has been enforced by only Directive principles of state policy (DPSP).
• The principle of equal pay for equal work for men and women embodied in Article 39(d) of the Constitution was first considered in Kishori Mohanlal Bakshi vs Union of India in 1962.

​Hence the correct answer is 1, 3 & 4 only

The correct answer is 1, 3, 4, 2

Key Points

• Villuvandi Samaram (1893)
• Villuvandi Samaram' (Bullock cart strike) was the direct result of this social discrimination and this movement was led by Ayyankali
• Ayyankali in 1893 rode an ox-cart challenging the 'ban' on untouchables from accessing public roads by caste-Hindus.
• This is celebrated as one of the major achievements in the history of Dalit movements in Kerala.
• Formation of Sree Narayana Dharma Paripalana Yogam SNDP Yogam (1903):
• it is a social service organization representing the Ezhava community from the Indian state of Kerala since 1903.
• The S.N.D.P Yogam was founded by Dr.Padmanabhan Palpu
• The Sri Narayana Dharma Paripalana (SNDP) movement, among the Ezhavas of Kerala, is an example of conflict between the depressed classes and the upper non-Brahmana castes
• It was started by Sree Narayana Guru Swamy (1856- 1928) among the Ezhavas of Kerala, who were a backward caste of toddy-tappers and were considered to be untouchables, denied education and entry into temples.
• Misrabhojanam (Panthibhojanam) 1917:
• It was held on May 30, 1917, by social reformer Sahodaran Ayyappan
• Misrabhojanam was the first inter-caste feast of Kerala. Prior to this, each caste had their stricter caste codes in food consumption and hence food was seen as a symbol of caste.
• Guruvayur Satyagraha (1931–32)
• It took place in (1931–32) and was a Satyagraha (non-violent protest) in the present Thrissur district, which was then part of Ponnani Taluk of Malabar district, now part of Kerala, which was an effort to allow entry for untouchables into the Guruvayur Temple.
• It was led by K. Kelappan,

Hence we can conclude that the correct chronological sequence is 1, 3, 4, 2

The correct answer is Sikkim and Tibet

Key Points

• Nathu La Pass
• Nathu means 'listening ears', and La means 'pass'.
• Located on the Old Silk Route, Nathu La Pass connects Sikkim to China’s Tibet Autonomous Region:
• The Nathu La Pass was reopened in 2006 and since then, it has served as an official Border Personnel Meeting(BPM) Point between India and China​

Additional Information

• Bomdi-La pass:
• ​The Bomdi-La pass connects Arunachal Pradesh with Lhasa, the capital city of Tibet.
• Lipulekh pass:
• ​The Lipulekh pass is a far western point near Kalapani, a disputed border area between Nepal and Uttrakhand,india

The correct answer is Stockholm

Key Points

The United Nations Conference on the Human Environment (UNCHE):

• It is also known as the Stockholm Conference
• It was an international conference convened under United Nations auspices held in Stockholm, Sweden from June 5-16, 1972.
• It was the UN's first major conference on international environmental issues
• The United Nations Environment Programme, or UNEP, was created as a result of this conference
• The meeting agreed upon a Declaration containing 26 principles concerning the environment and development, an Action Plan with 109 recommendations, and a Resolution.

The first United Nations Conference on the Human Environment (UNCHE) was held in Stockholm.

The correct answer is Panspermia

The origin of life on Earth began more than 3 billion years ago, evolving from the most basic of microbes into a dazzling array of complexity over time.There are  Following of many different scientific theories on the origin of life on Earth.

Important Points

• Panspermia:
• ​Greek philosopher Anaxagora coined the term panspermia to describe the concept of life traveling between planets as seed.
• The panspermia hypothesis suggests life began on Earth when the "seeds" of life, already present in the universe, arrived here from space.
• It states that In this case the origin of life is not related to environments possible on the early Earth.
• As per this life exists throughout the Universe and is distributed by transport methods like space dust, meteoroids, asteroids, comets, and planetoids, as well as by spacecraft carrying unintended contamination by microorganisms.

Additional Information

• Cosmic evolution
• It is the study of change--the vast number of developmental and generative changes that have accumulated during all time and across all space, from the big bang to humankind.
• This theory was proposed byEric Chaisson
• The theory of chemical evolution
• ​theory of life's origin is known as chemical evolution.
• In this idea, pre-biological changes slowly transform simple atoms and molecules into the more complex chemicals needed to produce life
• Aleksandr Ivanovich Oparin and J.B.S Haldane proposed the theory of chemical evolution.
• Note that there is such theory called Microorganismic theory

The correct answer is Gupta period

The period of Gupta rule between 300 and 600 CE has been called the Golden Age of India for its advances in science and emphasis on classical Indian art and literature

 Important Points

• Gupta empire:
• Sri Gupta founded the Gupta Empire and was succeeded by his son, Ghatotkacha, followed by Ghatotkacha’s son, Chandragupta and his son, Samudragupta, assumed the throne in 335 CE, who was succeeded by his son, Chandragupta II,
• The period of Gupta rule, especially the reign of Chandragupta II, is still remembered as the Golden Age of India
• Why Gupta period is called a golden period?
• Production of extensive literature.  
• Chandragupta’s court was more influential than those that came before or after because it contained the Navaratnas, or the Nine Jewels, a group of nine scholars who produced advancements in many academic fields.
• For example, Kalidasa was the greatest poet of classical Sanskrit literature and wrote Abhijnanashakuntalam which is very highly regarded in world literature even today and he was from this period.
• Patronage was also given to the composition of religious literature. The two great epics the Ramayana and the Mahabharata were completed by the fourth century AD.
• Achievements of Indians in the fields of mathematics, astronomy, science:
• ​The decimal numeral system, including the concept of zero, was invented in India during this period.
• Varahamihira was an astronomer, astrologer, and mathematician, whose main work is a treatise on mathematical astronomy. Sushruta, a famed Indian physician of the Gupta period, wrote the Samhita,
• The cultural creativity of the Gupta empire:
• This period produced magnificent architecture, including palaces and temples, as well as sculptures and paintings of the highest quality.
• The Golden Age of India produced many temples, decorated with various sculptures and paintings,
• such as the Dashavatara Temple, also known as the Vishnu Temple, in central India.

Additional Information

• The Maurya Empire 
• The real founder of this empire was Chandragupta Maurya.
• It was a geographically extensive Iron Age historical power in South Asia based in Magadha,
• The Maurya Empire was centralized by the conquest of the Indo-Gangetic Plain, and its capital city was located at Pataliputra
• The Mughal Empire 
• It was founded by Babur (reigned 1526–1530)
• The empire stretched from the outer fringes of the Indus basin in the west, northern Afghanistan in the northwest, and Kashmir in the north Bangladesh in the east, and the uplands of the Deccan plateau in South India.
• The Vijayanagara Empire,
• It is also called the Karnata Kingdom,
• It was based in the Deccan Plateau region in South India.
• It was established in 1336 by the brothers Harihara I and Bukka Raya I of the Sangama dynasty
• The noted ruler of this period was King Krishnadevaraya

The correct answer is (a) - (3), ( b) - (4), (c) - (2), (d) - (1)

Key Points

Hence we conclude that the correct matching code is (a) - (3), ( b) - (4), (c) - (2), (d) - (1)

Important Points

• In order to implement GST, the Constitutional (122nd Amendment) Bill (CAB for short) was introduced in the Parliament and passed by Rajya Sabha on 03rd August 2016 and Lok Sabha on 08th August 2016.
• The CAB was passed by more than 15 states and thereafter Hon’ble President gave assent to “The Constitution 101st (One Hundred And First Amendment) Act, 2016” on the 8th of September, 2016.
• Since then the GST council and been notified bringing into existence the Constitutional body to decide issues relating to GST.

Key PointsGoods and services tax (GST)-

• It is a tax levied when a consumer buys a good or service.
• It is meant to be a single, comprehensive tax that will subsume all the other smaller indirect taxes on consumption like service tax, etc.
• It is a single tax on the supply of goods and services, right from the manufacturer to the end consumer.
• This is how it is done in most developed countries.
• More than 160 countries have implemented this system of taxation.
• GST does not tax or get into specific commodities.

Therefore the correct answer is 101.

Important Points

• The agricultural crop year in India is from July to June. The Indian cropping season is classified into two main seasons-(i) Kharif and (ii) Rabi based on the monsoon.
• The Kharif cropping season is from July-October during the southwest monsoon and the Rabi cropping season is from October-March (winter).
• The crops grown between March and June are summer crops.
• The terms ‘Kharif’ and ‘rabi’ originate from the Arabic language where Kharif means autumn and Rabi means spring.

Key Points Difference between Kharif and Rabi crops.

Therefore, the correct answer is Arabic.

Given:

A person X has four notes of 10, 20, 50 & 100 denomination.

Calculation:

A person X has four notes of 10, 20, 50 & 100 denomination.

The total number ways of different sums of money it can from = (taking one at a time) + (taking two at a time) + (taking three at a time) + (taking four at a time)

⇒ ⁴C₁ + ⁴C₂  + ⁴C₃ + ⁴C₄

⇒ 4 + 6 + 4 + 1 = 15 

∴ The number of different sums of money she can from them is 15.

∴ Option 2 is correct.

Important Points

Therefore, the correct answer is (a) - (3), (b) - (4), (c) - (1), (d) - (2)

Given:

Airplane covers distance in 12 minutes = 300 km

Calculation:

Airplane covers distance in 12 minutes = 300 km

Airplane covers distance in 1 minute = 300/12 = 25 km

Airplane covers distance in 75 minutes = 25 × 75 = 1875 km 

∴ Option 2 is correct.

Given:

A is more efficient than B. B takes 6 days more than A to complete a work alone.

Calculation:

A is more efficient than B.

B takes 6 days more than A to complete a work alone.

Let time taken by A to complete the work = x days

Let time taken by B to complete the work = (x + 6) days

Efficiency of A = 140

Efficiency of B = 100

⇒ 140x = 100 (x + 6) = 100x + 600

⇒ 40x = 600

x = 15 days

∴ A alone can complete the same work in 15 days.

∴ Option 3 is correct.

Given:

The missing number in the series 8, 24, 12, 36, 18, 54, ______

Calculation:

The missing number in the series 8, 24, 12, 36, 18, 54, ______

Here, 

Second term = first term × 3 

Third term = second term /2

⇒ 24 = 8 × 3 

⇒ 12 = 24/2

⇒ 36 = 12 × 3

⇒ 18 = 36/2

⇒ 54 = 18 × 3 

⇒ 27 =54/2

∴ Option 2 is correct.

Given:

The average of five consecutive odd numbers is 21.

Concept used:

Average = Sum of all observations/ total number of observations

Calculation:

Let the  first five consecutive odd numbers :- (x), (x + 2), (x + 4), (x + 6) and (x + 8)

⇒ 21 = [(x) + (x + 2) + (x + 4) + (x + 6) + (x + 8)]/5

⇒ 5x + 20 = 105

⇒ 5x = 85

x = 17

∴ The least odd  number is 17.

∴ Option 3 is correct.

Given:

Side of cube = 7 cm

Height of cylinder = 196 cm

radius of cylinder = 14 cm

Formula used:

Volume of cylinder = πr²h

Volume of cube = a³; where a be the side of cube.

Calculation:

Side of cube = 7 cm

Height of cylinder = 196 cm

radius of cylinder = 14 cm

Let the Number of cubes formed by cylinder = n

n ×  a3 = πr2h

n × 7³ = 22/7 × 14 × 14 × 196

n =  (22 × 14 × 14 × 196)/ 7 × 7 × 7 × 7

n = 352

∴ Option 1 is correct.

Important Points

 MUDRA, which stands for Micro Units Development & Refinance Agency Ltd., is a financial institution set up by the Government. It provides funding to the non-corporate small business sector through various last-mile financial institutions like Banks, Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs) and Micro Finance Institutions (MFIs).It was launched by the government in 2015 for providing loans up to Rs. 10 lakh to the non-corporate, non-farm small/micro-enterprises.

Key PointsMUDRA has created three products i.e. 'Shishu', 'Kishore', and ‘Tarun’ as per the stage of growth and funding needs of the beneficiary micro unit.

• Shishu: covering loans up to Rs. 50,000.
• Kishore: Covering loans above Rs. 50,000 and up to Rs. 5 lakh.
• Tarun: covering loans above Rs. 5 lakh and up to Rs. 10 lakh.

Additional Information

• Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana (PMMY) is a flagship scheme of the Government of India to “fund the unfunded” by bringing such enterprises to the formal financial system and extending affordable credit to them.
• It enables a small borrower to borrow from all Public Sector Banks such as PSU Banks, Regional Rural Banks, and Cooperative Banks, Private Sector Banks, Foreign Banks, Micro Finance Institutions (MFI), and Non-Banking Finance Companies (NBFC) for loans up to Rs 10 lakhs for non-farm income-generating activities.
• The scheme was launched on 8th April 2015 by the Hon'ble Prime Minister.

Therefore, the correct answer is Micro Units Development and Refinance Agency

Key Points

• A cryptocurrency is a data string that has been encrypted and represents a unit of currency.
• It is monitored and organized by a peer-to-peer network known as a blockchain, which also functions as a secure ledger of transactions such as buying, selling, and transferring.
• Cryptocurrencies, unlike physical money, are decentralized, which means they are not issued by governments or other financial institutions.
• Cryptocurrencies are created (and secured) through cryptographic algorithms that are maintained and confirmed in a process known as mining, in which transactions are processed and validated by a network of computers or specialized hardware such as application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs).
• The process rewards the miners who power the network with cryptocurrency.

Important Points FastCash is a convenient, paperless credit facility with no collateral required for your emergencies and urgent needs. It is not a cryptocurrency. 

Bitcoin, Ether, Litecoin, Z Cash, and Monero are popular cryptocurrencies. 

Therefore, the correct answer is Fastcash.

The United States rover which landed on Mars in February 2021 is Rover Perseverance under a mission Name Mars 2020.

Key Points 

• Its main job is to seek signs of ancient life and collect samples of rock and regolith (broken rock and soil) for a possible return to Earth.
• It was launched on July 30, 2020
• Landed on Feb. 18, 2021 at Jezero Crater, Mars.
• The Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover will search for signs of ancient microbial life, which will advance NASA's quest to explore the past habitability of Mars. The rover has a drill to collect core samples of Martian rock and soil, then store them in sealed tubes for pickup by a future mission that would ferry them back to Earth for detailed analysis.
• Perseverance will also test technologies to help pave the way for future human exploration of Mars.

Additional Information

• Curiosity is a car-sized Mars rover designed to explore the Gale crater on Mars as part of NASA's Mars Science Laboratory mission. Curiosity was launched from Cape Canaveral on 26 November 2011.
• The Mariner program was conducted by the American space agency NASA to explore other planets. Between 1962 and late 1973, NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) designed and built 10 robotic interplanetary probes named Mariner to explore the inner Solar System - visiting the planets Venus, Mars, and Mercury for the first time, and returning to Venus and Mars for additional close observations.
• The Hope orbiter was launched on 19 July 2020 and went into orbit around Mars on 9 February 2021.
• The mission design, development, and operations are led by the Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) under United Arab Emirates Space Agency's space exploration mission to Mars.

Important Points

• The 'Quadrilateral Security Dialogue' (QSD) is an informal strategic forum comprised of four countries: the United States of America (USA), India, Australia, and Japan.
• One of the Quad's primary goals is to promote a free, open, prosperous, and inclusive Indo-Pacific region.
• The first meeting of the group took place in 2007 on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
• It is regarded as an alliance of maritime democracies, and the forum is maintained through meetings, semi-annual summits, information exchanges, and military drills involving all member countries.

Key Points

• Principles of QUAD- The Quad's goal is to keep strategic sea routes in the Indo-Pacific free of military or political influence.
• It is primarily regarded as a strategic alliance aimed at reducing Chinese dominance.
• The Quad's primary goal is to ensure a rules-based global order, freedom of navigation, and a liberal trading system.
• The coalition also intends to provide alternative debt financing to Indo-Pacific nations.
• The Quad leaders discuss critical and emerging technologies, connectivity and infrastructure, cyber security, maritime security, humanitarian assistance, disaster relief, climate change, pandemic preparedness, and education.

Additional Information In March 2021, US President Joe Biden hosted the first-ever summit of the Quad leaders in a virtual format. It vowed to strive for an Indo-Pacific region that is free, open, inclusive, anchored by democratic values, and unconstrained by coercion, sending an apparent message to China.

Therefore the correct answer is India, Japan, Australia, United States.

Key PointsIndia's new National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 is set to replace the 10+2 schooling system in India with a new 5+3+3+4 system. 

As per the new school education system of 5+3+3+4 outlined in NEP 2020, children will spend 5 years in the Foundational stage, 3 years in the Preparatory stage, 3 years in the Middle stage, and 4 years in the Secondary stage. The division of stages has been made in line with the kind of cognitive development stages that a child goes through in early childhood, school years, and secondary stages.

Foundational years of 5 years

• This will consist of 3 years of pre-school/Anganwadi education and 2 years of primary education including classes 1 and 2. It will be for the age group from 3-8.

The preparatory stage for 3 years 

• This will cover school education from classes 3-5 with a focus on experimental learning. It will cover the age group from 8-11.

Secondary Stage for 3 years. 

• This will cover school education from classes 6-8 and will be for the age group from 11-14.

The secondary stage for 4 years.

• This will cover school education from classes 9-12 in two phases. The first phase will be from 9-10 and the second from 11-12.

​Hence, the correct answer is 5 + 3 + 3 + 4.

The correct answer is Bing.

Key Points

• Bing is the odd one among all. Because Bing is not a web browser like the option given above, Bing is a search engine like Google.
• This Bing has been created by Microsoft Corporation.
• Bing is a computer program created and operated by Microsoft, replacing its former Live Search, Windows Live Search, and MSN Search offerings.
• Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer revealed the search engine in May 2009. Bing was fully operational in June 2009.

Additional Information

Important Points

• The winner of the inaugural world test championship was New Zealand. New Zealand managed to beat India by eight wickets to be crowned as the winners of the inaugural ICC World Test Championship.
• It started on 1 August 2019 with the first Test of the 2019 Ashes series and finished with the Final at the Rose Bowl, Southampton in June 2021.
• New Zealand won the match by eight wickets to be crowned as the winners of the inaugural ICC World Test Championship.
• New Zealand won the ICC Test Championship mace for the first time and was also awarded the cash prize of US$1.6 million, while India won US$800,0.
• It was New Zealand's second major ICC trophy win after emerging victorious at the 2000 ICC KnockOut Trophy, and Kane Williamson became the second New Zealand captain after Stephen Fleming to win an ICC event.

Therefore, the correct answer is New Zealand.

 Important Points 

• The Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu (Merger of Union Territories) Bill, 2019 was introduced in Lok Sabha by the Minister of Home Affairs, Mr. Amit Shah, on November 26, 2019.
• The Bill provides for the merger of the Union Territories (UTs) of Dadra and Nagar Haveli, and Daman and Diu into a single UT.
• The Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu were merged in view of fruitful utilization of manpower, improved administrative efficiency, reduced administrative expenditure, and improve service delivery as well as facilitated better monitoring of schemes.
• As it would also ensure better cadre management of employees.
• The bill was earlier passed by Lok Sabha on November 27, 2019.

Additional Information

• Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh- The Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Bill, 2019 was introduced in Rajya Sabha on August 5, 2019, by the Minister of Home Affairs, Mr. Amit Shah.
• The Bill provides for the reorganization of the state of Jammu and Kashmir into the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir and Union Territory of Ladakh.
• Reorganization of Jammu and Kashmir: The Bill reorganises the state of Jammu and Kashmir into:
• the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir with a legislature, and
• the Union Territory of Ladakh without a legislature.
• The Union Territory of Ladakh will comprise Kargil and Leh districts, and the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir will comprise the remaining territories of the existing state of Jammu and Kashmir.
• Andaman & Nicobar Islands-The two sets of islands became a union territory of the Republic of India in 1956.

Hence, the correct answer is Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu.

Important Points

 The Gandhi Peace Prize for the year 2020 is being conferred on **Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.**Gandhi Peace Prize is an annual award instituted by Government of India since 1995, the 125th Birth Anniversary commemoration year of Mahatma Gandhi. The award is open to all persons regardless of nationality, race, language, caste, creed or sex.

Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, Bangladesh's founding father, was born in the modern-day Bangladesh district of Faridpur in 1920. He served as Bangladesh's first President and, later, Prime Minister. He is also known as Sheikh Mujib or simply Mujib, and his title is 'Bangabandhu,' which translates as 'Friend of Bengal.'

Additional Information The past awardees include luminaries like-

• Dr. Julius Nyerere, Former President of Tanzania;
• Dr. Gerhard Fischer, Federal Republic of Germany;
• Ramakrishna Mission;
• Baba Amte (Shri MurlidharDevidasAmte);
• Late Dr. Nelson Mandela, former President of South Africa;
• Grameen Bank of Bangladesh;
• Archbishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa;
• Shri Chandi Prasad Bhatt & Indian Space Research Organisation.

Recent awardees include-

1. Vivekananda Kendra, India(2015);
2. Akshaya Patra Foundation, India and Sulabh International (Jointly, for 2016);
3. Ekal Abhiyan Trust, India(2017)
4. and Shri Yohei Sasakawa, Japan(2018).

Therefore, the correct answer is Sheikh Mujibur Rahman

The phrase "Sixes and Sevens" mean confused.

Key Points

• "At sixes and sevens" is an English idiom used to describe a condition of confusion or disarray.
• Originally, the phrase was rendered on six and seven and referred to a dice game where throwing on a six or seven meant risking one's entire fortune. Until the 1600s, sixes, and sevens were meant to take a careless risk.

 Key PointsPacifist: a person whose personal belief in pacifism causes him or her to refuse to be drafted into military service.

Pessimist: a person who habitually sees or anticipates the worst or is disposed to be gloomy.

Critic: a person who tends too readily to make captious, trivial, or harsh judgments; faultfinder.

Positivist: the state or quality of being positive; definiteness; assurance.

Hence pessimist is a person who looks only at the darker side of life.

The correct answer is 'Alliteration.'

Key Points 

• Alliteration: The repetition of consonant sounds at the beginning of adjacent or closely connected words in a sentence or phrase. In this figure of speech the letter or alphabet is repeated.
• ​Example: Road is full of snakes and scorpions.
• Here, in the given question, the two sounds are repeating "s" and "sh". So, this is a type of alliteration.

Hence, option 1 is the correct answer.

Additional Information 

• Onomatopoeia is when a word’s pronunciation imitates the sound that it describes. It includes animal noises like meow, hiss, etc.
• Example: The best part about music class is that you can bang on the drum.
• Simile is a very common figure of speech that uses the words "like" and "as" to compare two unlike things that are not similar in definition. 
• ​Example: Shalini is as fast as a tiger.
• Irony is a contradiction between words and expressions. It confuses the other person about what you said and what you meant.
• ​Example: A pilot has a fear of heights.

Key Points

• Gahirmatha Marine Sanctuary is a marine wildlife sanctuary located in Odisha and is a very popular tourist attraction of Odisha in India.
• It is the world's largest nesting beach for Olive Ridley Turtles.
• It extends from the Dhamra River mouth in the north to the Brahmani river mouth in the south.
• It is very famous for its nesting beach for olive ridley sea turtles.
• It is one of the world's most important nesting beaches for turtles.

Hence, the Gahirmatha Marine Wildlife Sanctuary and the world’s largest nesting beach for the vulnerable Olive Ridley turtles is located in Odisha.**

Key Points

• The number of standardized hydrogen ions helps in knowing the acidity of a compound.
• The more the number of Hydrogen ions, the more will be the acidity of a solution.
• If a solution has a pH of 7 then it is considered to be a neutral solution, pH less than 7 is considered to be acidic and a pH more than 7 then solution is considered as basic.
• All the acids contain Hydrogen which dissolves in water to produce hydrogen ions.

Additional Information Acid is any substance that in water solution tastes sour, changes the color of certain indicators, reacts with some metals to liberate hydrogen, reacts with bases to form salts, and promotes certain chemical reactions.

Hence, t**he element which is present in all acids is Hydrogen.

Given:

⇒ (16)0.25 × (0.5)2

Concept used:

(a^m)ⁿ = a^mn

Calculation:

⇒ (16)0.25 × (0.5)2

Here, we can write it as,

⇒ [(2)⁴]^0.25 × (5/10)²

⇒ (2)¹ × (1/2)}²

⇒ 2 × 1/4 = 1/2 = 0.5

∴ Option 4 is correct.

Key Points 

• Puerto Rico Trench, submarine depression in the North Atlantic Ocean, roughly parallel to the northern coast of the island of Puerto Rico and lying about 75 miles to the north.
• The Puerto Rico Trench is about 1,090 miles long and 60 miles wide.
• The Puerto Rico Trench is located on the boundary between the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean.
• The oceanic trench, the deepest in the Atlantic, is associated with a complex transition between the Lesser Antilles subduction zone to the south and the major transform fault zone or plate boundary, which extends west between Cuba and Hispaniola through the Cayman Trough to the coast of Central America.

Hence, the Puerto Rico trench is situated in the Atlantic Ocean.

The correct answer is Land Revenue

Key Points Land Revenue Tax: 

• The land revenue tax is also known as land tax or property tax.​
• A fee paid on the acquisition of a built property is called a land revenue tax.
• Basically, it is the sum that you must pay to the government on a biannual or annual basis in order to maintain land ownership.
• The tax is assessed on a variety of land and plot assets, as well as any improvements made to those lands.
• The tax is levied and collected by the State government.
• The property owner pays it to the state's municipal organisations.
• One of the main sources of income for these bodies is this tax.
• Municipalities use the money they get from the land revenue tax for upkeep and facilities like lighting, sanitation, sewage systems, water and power supply, etc.

Additional Information Corporate Tax:

A corporate entity's net income or profit from its operations, whether domestic or international, is subject to a direct tax known as corporation tax or corporate tax. The Corporate Tax Rate is the amount of tax levied in accordance with the terms of the Income Tax Act of 1961. It is levied by the Government of India.

Integrated GST:

One of the four types of GSTs imposed by the Central Government on the interstate supply of goods and services is the integrated GST, or integrated goods and services tax. The Central and State Governments (of the state where the goods/services are consumed) split the IGST income collected equally. IGST is applicable when goods/service is transferred from one state to another.

Income Tax:

A government may impose an income tax as a direct tax on the earnings of its people. The central government is required to collect this tax under the Income Tax Act of 1961. Every year, the government can alter the tax rates and income brackets in the Union Budget.

Key Points

• Agnes Grey, A Novel is the debut novel of English author Anne Bronte, first published in December 1847, and republished in a second edition in 1850.
• The novel follows Agnes Grey, a governess, as she works within families of the English gentry.
• Scholarship and comments by Anne's sister Charlotte Brontë suggest the novel is largely based on Anne Brontë's own experiences as a governess for five years.
• Like her sister Charlotte's 1847 novel Jane Eyre, it addresses what the precarious position of governess entailed and how it affected a young woman.

Hence, the novel "Agnes Grey" was written by Anne Bronte.

Key Points

• The princely State of Travancore had its own struggles and agitations of a political character from the very beginning of the British period.
• The agitations which took place in the early period had for their aim the establishment of good government and those of the later period the achievement of political rights like the association of the people with the various levels of administration.
• Towards the closing decades of the 19th century, the educated middle class in Travancore asserted itself.
• There was widespread resentment among the educated classes against the government’s policy of importing persons from outside, particularly Tamil Brahmins to hold the most important posts in the public service even when persons with similar qualifications were available inside the State.
• It is known as the Nivarthana or Abstention in Travancore.

Hence, the movement which started in Travancore against the administrative reforms introduced in 1932 is Nivartana Agitation.

Key Points

 Subhodham:

• The Kerala government on Sunday launched a major campaign "Subodham" to help people in the state overcome alcohol, drug and other substance abuse.
• The project was launched by Chief Minister Oommen Chandy and Art of Living Foundation founder Sri Sri Ravishankar in the presence of religious leaders, representatives of student organizations, and NGOs working against drug abuse.
• The "Subodham" project, envisaged by the excise department, was implemented by a high-level committee comprising experts from various fields.
• "'Subodham' heralds the first step towards 'Punarjani 2030 Project', a state government initiative to completely eradicate the menace of substance abuse in Kerala."

Hence, t**he campaign by Kerala Government against drug and alcohol addiction and other substance abuse Subhodham.

The correct answer is 'Quarrel.'

Key Points 

• Fall out means 'disagree, to quarrel (सहमत न होना, झगड़ा करना)'.
• Example: Shalini doesn't like to fall out with her friends.
• The phrase refers to a person who argues with someone and stops being friendly with them.

Hence, option 4 is the correct answer.

Additional Information

• Decrease means making or becoming smaller or fewer in size, amount, intensity, or degree (घटाव, कमी).
• Collapse means suddenly falling down or giving way; failing suddenly and completely (पतन, टूटकर गिर जाना).
• Agree means having the same opinion about something; concur (सहमत होना).

The correct answer is 'Hoot.'

Key Points 

• Hoot is a short laugh or shout; to make the sound an owl makes.
• Example: The play was a real hoot.
• Warble means to sing as a bird (like a nightingale) does with a sound that rises and falls.
• Example: Birds are warbling in the trees.
• So, the owl sounds hoot.

Hence, option 3 is the correct answer.

Additional Information

• Hiss is a noise with sounds like a long "s" sound like a snake does.
• Gobble is a sound of a bird that eats quickly and noisily and sound is made by turkey male birds.
• A squeak is a short noise that is not very loud and is made by a rat.

The correct answer is 'have to.'

Key Points 

• If two subjects joined with Not only...... but also, Neither...... nor, Either...... or then the verb will be according to the second subject.
• Example: Neither Dinesh nor his friends are doing well in the examination.
• Here, in the given question two subjects "the boy" and "his parents" are given joined by "either.....or" so we use the verb according to the second subject i.e. "his parents" which is plural hence we use "have" to make the sentence grammatically correct.
• All the other options contain a singular verb. So, we eliminate all of them.

Hence, option 2 is the correct answer.

Complete Sentence: Either the boy or his parents have to apologise.

The correct answer is 'waiting.'

Key Points 

• A gerund is a word ending in "-ing" that is made from a verb and is used like a noun.
• ​Example: singing, dancing
• Here, we need a noun to explain what thing he dislikes so here there is no noun so we use gerund which is used like a noun.
  

Hence, option 2 is the correct answer.

Complete Sentence: I dislike waiting.

Additional Information 

• Option 1 is wrong as per the context as we need a noun that explains what work he dislikes.
• Option 3 is wrong as we don't require another verb as one verb is already given as the main verb.
• Option 4 is wrong as if we add "wait" with "dislike" then it is grammatically incorrect as both the verbs are in verbs 1st from.

Given:

A man walking at a speed of 10 km/hr reaches his work place 15 minutes late. 

Next day, he increases his speed by 2 km/hr, but still is late by 5 minutes.

Calculation:

Let the distance of his work place from the house = x

The difference in time = (15 - 5) min = 10 min

⇒ 10/60 hr= 1/6 hr

⇒ Speed during the next journey = 10 + 2 = 12 km/ hr

According to question,

⇒ x/10 - x/12 = 1/6

⇒ x/5 - x/6 = 1/3

⇒ (6x - 5x)/30 = 1/3

x/30 = 1/3

x = 10 km

∴ The distance of work place from house = 10 km

∴ Option 3 is correct.

Given:

Robert has four vehicles.in which two are of red colour and one vehicle is minivan.

Calculation:

Here, 

Option 1: Robert has a red minivan.

Yes it satisfied the fact.

This option is correct.

Option 2:

Robert has three cars.

This statement is not correct.

Because we know Robert has four vehicles but we cannot say that the three vehicles are car.

∴ This statement is wrong.

Option 3:  Robert’s favorite colour is red.

We cannot say that on behalf of vehicles colour, his favorite colour is red.

∴ This statement is wrong.

∴ Only fact 1 is correct.

∴ Option 1 is correct.

Key Points

• The Space Situational Awareness (SSA) launched by ISRO would monitor low Earth orbit- LEO satellites which have remote sensing aircraft.
• It is set up in ISTRAC campus in Peenya, Bengaluru.
• The ISRO has planned to put up many observational facilities like connected radars, telescopes, data processing units and control centers.
• The control center would be functioning as a hub of all SSA activities within India
• Concurrent processing of data from the upcoming observational facilities for space objects’, orbit determination, correlation and catalogue generation would be taking place here.

Hence, ISRO has set up a dedicated space situational awareness control center named Space Situational Awareness.

Recently Telangana declared 2020 as the year of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and has signed MoUs with tech firms for AI research.

Key Points

• Telangana Government organised an event on January 02, 2020, to declare the year 2020 as the year of Artificial Intelligence (AI).
• The Telangana government declared 2020 as the year of artificial intelligence (AI) and inked nine memoranda of understanding (MoUs) with IT players and educational institutions to develop various use cases as well as to conduct research on the application of AI and creation of talent pool in this area.
• Telangana is the first state in India to launch an actionable policy framework for Artificial Intelligence in June 2020 with a special focus on sectors such as agriculture, healthcare, education, law enforcement and mobility.
• The founding pillars of the framework have been identified across 6 areas:
• Data exchange platform and HPAIC,
• Government ethics and privacy,
• Skilling and education,
• Research & Innovation,
• Adoption and community collaboration
• AI Innovestment Fund.
• As per the partnerships, a Centre for Research in Applied Artificial Intelligence (CRiAA) and a Research & Development (R&D) park will be soon set up in Telengana.

Additional Information 

• There are 1500 IT/ITeS companies that employ over 5.8 lakh professionals, besides providing indirect employment to over 7 lakh people.
• Telangana's IT/ITeS Exports grew at 17.93% compared to the National Average of 8.09% and the rest of the Nation's Average of 6.92%.

The Vienna Convention is often called a framework convention because it served as a framework for efforts to protect the globe’s ozone layer.

Key Points 

• The objective of the Vienna Convention is to preserve human health and to protect the environment from any harmful effects of the depletion of the ozone layer.
• The Vienna Convention was the first convention of any kind to be signed by every country involved, in the Protection of the Ozone Layer. It is a multilateral environmental agreement signed in 1985 taking effect in 1988 and reaching universal ratification in 2009.
• This speaks to the enormity of ozone depletion at the time and the willingness of countries around the world to work together to solve it.
• The Vienna Convention did not require countries to take concrete actions to control ozone depleting substances.
• Instead, in accordance with the provisions of the Convention, the countries of the world agreed with the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer the Convention, to advance that goal.

Additional Information

• The Basel Convention regulates the transboundary movements of hazardous wastes and other wastes and obliges its Parties to ensure that such wastes are managed and disposed of in an environmentally sound manner. The Convention covers toxic, poisonous, explosive, corrosive, flammable, ecotoxic, and infectious wastes.
• The Bonn Convention is the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (also known as CMS ) aims to conserve terrestrial, marine, and avian migratory species throughout their range.
• The Stockholm Convention is a global treaty to protect human health and the environment from persistent organic pollutants (POPs). POPs are chemicals that remain intact in the environment for long periods, become widely distributed geographically, accumulate in the fatty tissue of living organisms, and are toxic to humans and wildlife. POPs circulate globally and can cause damage wherever they travel. In implementing the Convention, Governments will take measures to eliminate or reduce the release of POPs into the environment. Over 152 countries ratified the Convention and it entered into force, on 17 May 2004.

Hence the Vienna convention is adopted for the protection of ozone layer.

The Panna national park was declared as a UNESCO biosphere reserve in 2020.

Key Points

• Panna National Park in Madhya Pradesh has been declared a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve in 2020.
• Panna National Park is a national park located in the Panna and Chhatarpur districts of Madhya Pradesh in India.
• The Panna tiger reserve is situated in the Vindhya mountain range in the northern part of Madhya Pradesh.

Important Points

• UNESCO, an acronym for United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) that was outlined in a constitution signed November 16, 1945.
• Every year UNESCO appoints new biosphere reserves and removes others to promote the conservation of biodiversity, resolve the man-animal conflict at that site and allow sustainable use of natural resources.
• The idea of the biosphere reserve was initiated by UNESCO in 1974 under the Man and the Biosphere Programme with the objective of obtaining international cooperation for the conservation of the biospheres.
• The first of India’s reserves to make it to UNESCO’s list was Tamil Nadu’s Niligiri Biosphere Reserve in 2000.

Additional Information

• Kaziranga National Park a world heritage site is famous for the Great Indian one-horned rhinoceros. The Kaziranga National Park was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1985.
• In 2016, Khangchendzonga National Park, Sikkim was inscribed as India’s first “Mixed World Heritage Site” on UNESCO World Heritage List, by fulfilling the nomination criteria under both natural and cultural heritage.
• Bandipur is a renowned National Park located in Karnataka in the district of Charajnagar, in southern India.

The digital stethoscope called AyuSynk to check patients who were infected with COVID- 19 was developed by  IIT Bombay.

Key Points

• IIT-Bombay has developed a digital stethoscope called “AyuSynk” to check patients who are infected with COVID-19.
• AyuSynk can be attached to any conventional stethoscope, to amplify chest sounds and send them wirelessly from patients to doctors without physical tubing.
• The AyuSynk digital device was developed by Ayu Devices, a startup of IIT Bombay, in association with Biomedical Engineering and Technology incubation Centre (BETiC).
• The device is being deployed for remote auscultation (listening to chest sounds). The basic version of the digital stethoscope can also be connected to a mobile or laptop through a wire or via Bluetooth.
• The device allows storing the auscultated sound as part of the health record of the patient and sharing it with other doctors for confirmatory opinion.

Additional Information

• The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has developed an ultraviolet (UV) disinfection tower that can be used for rapid and chemical-free disinfection of infection-prone areas.
• The oxygen enrichment technology was developed indigenously by the CSIR-Central Mechanical Engineering Research Institute (CSIR-CMERI) for treating COVID-19 patients.

The chairman of the National Expert Group On Vaccine Administration for COVID-19 (NEGVAC) Dr V.K. Paul.

Key Points

• National Expert Group on Vaccine Administration for COVID-19, met for the first time on 12th August 2020.
• The meeting was chaired by Dr V K Paul, Member Niti Aayog along with Secretary (Ministry of Health and Family Welfare) as co-Chair.
• National Expert Group on Vaccine Administration for COVID-19 (NEGVAC) is an expert committee constituted by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW), India to provide advice and guidance on all aspects of COVID-19 vaccination.
• The committee is also responsible for prioritisation of population groups in the country, deciding procurement and inventory management procedure, selection and delivery of vaccines etc.
• Issues related to vaccine safety and surveillance were taken up and strategies for community involvement through transparent information and awareness creation were discussed in the meeting.

Additional Information

• Mr Amitabh Kant serves as the former Chief Executive Officer of NITI Aayog.
• He is a member of the Indian Administrative Service, Kerala Cadre, 1980 batch.
• Currently, Parameswaran Iyer is the CEO of NITI Aayog appointed in June 2022.
• Suman Bery is the current vice-chairperson of the NITI Aayog.

The winner of the French Open 2021 men's singles title is Novak Djokovic.

Key Points

• Novak Djokovic won the men's singles tennis title at the 2021 French Open by defeating Stefanos Tsitsipas in the final.
• It was his second French Open title and 19th major title overall. With the win, he became the first man to achieve the double Career Grand Slam in the Open Era.
• The French Open is a major tennis tournament held over two weeks at the Stade Roland-Garros in Paris, France, beginning in late May each year.
• The French Open is the premier clay court championship in the world and the only Grand Slam tournament currently held on this surface.

Important Points 

• Novak Djokovic (born May 22, 1987) is a Serbian tennis player who was one of the premier performers in the early 21st century.
• He won a record 9 Australian Open championships, and he was the third player (after Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal) to win 20 Grand Slam men’s singles titles.
• Djokovic entered the top 100 of the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) at age 18, and in July 2006 he won his first ATP event.

Additional Information

• Rafael Nadal Parera is a Spanish professional tennis player. He is ranked world No. 3 in singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals.
• Roger Federer is a Swiss professional tennis player. He has been ranked world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 310 weeks.
• Dominic Thiem is an Austrian professional tennis player. He is the second-highest ranked Austrian player in history, behind former world No. 1 Thomas Muster.

The Asian Games 2022 will be hosted in China.

Key Points

• The 2022 Asian Games are due to take place in Hangzhou in China.
• Hangzhou will be the third Chinese city to host the event, after Beijing in 1990 and Guangzhou in 2010.
• The 2022 Asian Games will be a multi-sport event celebrated in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China from 10 to 25 September 2022.
• The official slogan of the 2022 Asian Games, "Heart to Heart, @Future" was announced on 15 December 2019 to mark 1,000 days before the opening ceremonies.
• The slogan is intended to symbolise the connectivity that the Asian Games create between the countries of Asia.

Additional Information

• India hosted the first Asian Games at New Delhi in 1951.
• The 2026 Asian Games will be hosted by Japan in Nagoya city.
• The 1962 Asian Games was hosted by Indonesia in 1962.

The prestigious Akashvani Music Festival has been renamed after Pandit Bhimsen Joshi.

Key Points

• On Feb 06, 2020, Union Minister for Information & Broadcasting announced that the prestigious Akashvani Music Festival had been renamed after Pandit Bhimsen Joshi.
• This announcement was made at Pandit Bhimsen Joshi Centenary Commemorative function organized in Pune.
• Pandit Bhimsen Gururaj Joshi was one of the greatest Indian vocalists from Karnataka, in the Hindustani classical tradition.
• He was known for the khayal form of singing, as well as for his popular renditions of devotional music.
• He belongs to the Kirana Gharana tradition of Hindustani Classical Music.
• Pandit Bhimsen Joshi was widely recognised in India due to his performance in the Mile Sur Mera Tumhara music video (1988), which begins with him and was composed originally by him.

Additional Information

• Pandit Ravi Shankar was an Indian sitarist and composer. A sitar virtuoso, he became the world's best-known exponent of North Indian classical music.
• Madurai Shanmukhavadivu Subbulakshmi was an Indian Carnatic singer from Madurai, Tamil Nadu. She was the first musician ever to be awarded the Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian honour and Ramon Magsaysay award.
• Pandit Shivkumar Sharma is an Indian music composer and santoor player from the state of Jammu and Kashmir.

Basic education was introduced in India by Gandhiji.

Key Points

• Mahatma Gandhi was the founding father of Basic Education.
• The founding father of Basic education is the father of the nation, Mahatma Gandhi.
• Mahatma Gandhi introduced Basis education in his ashram in the year 1946.
• Basic education is a principle that states that knowledge and work aren't separate.

Additional InformationMahatma Gandhi promoted an academic curriculum with the same name based on this pedagogical principle. It can be translated with the phrase 'Basic Education for all. The term ‘Basic’ is critical in Basic Education. Basic comes from the term “Base”. which means bottom or foundation. so, in the literary sense, Basic Education is the foundation of education or education at the primary level on which the edifice of the structure of higher education can be built.

Basic Education theme pattern:

• Pre-basic (up to six years )
• Basic (from seven to fourteen years)
• Post-Basic (from fifteen to 18)
• University education
• Social and adult education

Key Points

• Paulo Freire (1921–1997) was a champion of what’s known today as critical pedagogy
• The belief is that teaching ought to challenge learners to look at power structures and patterns of inequality within the status quo.
• Freire emphasized how necessary it is to remember what it's to be human and saw education as a way to rework oppressive structures.
• His perspective stemmed from the values of affection, care, and solidarity.
• Critical pedagogy is a philosophy of education social movement that combines education with critical theory critical Pedagogy is teaching, an approach that attempts to help students question and challenge domination and the practices that dominate them.
• It tries students to become critically conscious.
• In critical pedagogy, a tutor uses his or her own enlightenment to encourage students to question and challenge inequalities that exist in families, schools, and societies.

Hence, the correct answer is Paulo Freire.

Key Points

• Spatial intelligence, or visuospatial ability, has been defined “the ability to generate, retain, retrieve, and transform well-structured visual images”.
• Visual intelligence involves skills related to the ways of visualizing and perceiving the world effectively.
• This cognitive process is known as an aptitude for understanding visual information in the real and abstract world as well as an innate ability to envision information.

Anu shows comparatively better performance in designing and preparing sketches. She is dominant in Visuospatial Intelligence.

Additional Information

Hence, the correct answer is Visuospatial Intelligence.

Key PointsArticle 21A of the Constitution of India was inserted by the Constitutional 86th Amendment Act which made basic education a fundamental right for children in the age group of 6 to 14 years and has imposed a duty upon the state to provide the same.

Important Points What is the Act about?

• The Constitution (Eighty-sixth Amendment) Act, 2002 inserted Article 21-A in the Constitution of India to provide free and compulsory education of all children in the age group of six to fourteen years as a Fundamental Right in such a manner as the State may, by law, determine.
• Every child between the ages of 6 to 14 years has the right to free and compulsory education. This is stated as per the 86th Constitution Amendment Act via Article 21A. The Right to Education Act seeks to give effect to this amendment
• The government schools shall provide free education to all the children and the schools will be managed by School Management Committees (SMC). Private schools shall admit at least 25% of the children in their schools without any fee.
• The National Commission for Elementary Education shall be constituted to monitor all aspects of elementary education including quality.

​Hence, the correct answer is 21 A.

Key PointsRabindranath Tagore, recipient of the honor for Literature in 1913, is internationally known as a good writer. He was born in the year 1861, in Calcutta, Bengal.

Tagore's Philosophy of Education:

• Tagore laid great stress and emphasis on the aesthetic development of the senses in his philosophy of education.
• He argued that the development of the senses was as important as intellectual development.
• He, therefore, gave prominence to music, literature, art, dance, and drama in the standard of living of daily life.
• Tagore believed in all-around development of personality and in his institution education continues to address the all-around development of the students.
• Tagore's theory of education is marked by naturalistic & aesthetic values. He had a belief that "The widest road leading to the answer of all our issues is education."
• Education can develop a brand new pattern of life that culminates in the realization of Universal man.
• Tagore's system of education emphasizes the intellectual, physical, social, ethical economic, and spiritual aspects of human life by which a person can develop an integrated personality.
• Tagore believed that along with education, economic upliftment is also necessary.

Hence, the correct answer is Education.

Key PointsMartin Seligman is a pioneer of Positive psychology, not just because he has a systematic theory about why happy individuals are happy, but because he uses the scientific method to explore it.

• “Positive psychology is the scientific study of what makes life most worth living”.
• It is a comparatively new form of psychology. It emphasizes the positive influences in a person’s life. These might embody character strengths, optimistic emotions, and constructive institutions.
• It focuses on the positive events and influences in life, including:

1. Positive experiences (like happiness, joy, inspiration, and love).
2. Positive states and traits (like feeling, resilience, and compassion).
3. Positive institutions (applying positive principles within entire organizations and institutions).

Hence, the correct answer is Martin Seligman.

Key PointsJawaharlal Nehru, the first Prime Minister of India, said, ‘You can tell the condition of a nation by looking at the status of its women’. 

• Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru once famously said that “if you educate a man you educate an individual, however, if you educate a woman you educate a whole family.
• The government has adopted numerous regulations and laws in favor of women.
• The Indian government launched a slew of initiatives aimed at empowering women in the country.
• Each of these plans is created with a focus on women and their needs in mind, so that Indian women, like women all around the world, can achieve all of their goals and enjoy a life of equal status.

Among the most well-known schemes are:

• Beti Bachao Beti Padhao
• Women Helpline Scheme
• Nari Shakti Puraskar
• Nirbhaya
• Mahila Police Volunteers
• Mahila Shakti Kendras (MSK)

Hence, the correct answer is Jawaharlal Nehru​.

Key PointsUtility and change are the basic principles of Pragmatism.

This school of thought accepts only those things or situations that can be experienced or observed. ‘Pragmatism offers us a theory of truth of knowledge and a theory of reality.’ The pragmatism school of thought has some basic principles. They are:

• Truth is dynamic in nature or it keeps on changing.
• It is relational and contextual at times as it is formed by the results it gives.
• The motive force for all the truth-seeking is the problems of life and with the solution of the problem, the motive of the search for truth diminishes.
• Pragmatism emphasizes the social and democratic values of a society as humans are social beings and s/he has to ultimately give his/her service to the society.
• A person without any socially desirable value is unfit for society, in other words, any truth found if is not beneficial for the society will not be useful and practical for a long time.

Additional Information

Hence, the correct answer is Pragmatism.

India, also known as Bharat, is a Union of States. It is a Sovereign Socialist Secular Democratic Republic with a parliamentary system of government. The Republic is governed in terms of the Constitution of India which was adopted by the Constituent Assembly on 26th November 1949 and came into force on 26th January 1950. The Constitution provides for a Parliamentary form of government which is federal in structure with certain unitary features.

Key Points

Article 51 (A): Fundamental duties

It shall be the duty of every citizen of India:

• to abide by the Constitution and respect its ideals and institutions, the National Flag and the National Anthem
• to cherish and follow the noble ideals which inspired our national struggle for freedom;
• to uphold and protect the sovereignty, unity, and integrity of India;
• to defend the country and render national service when called upon to do so;
• to promote harmony and the spirit of common brotherhood amongst all the people of India transcending religious, linguistic, and regional or sectional diversities; to renounce practices derogatory to the dignity of women
• to value and preserve the rich heritage of our composite culture;
• to protect and improve the natural environment including forests, lakes, rivers, and wildlife, and to have compassion for living creatures;
• to develop the scientific temper, humanism, and the spirit of inquiry and reform;
• to safeguard public property and to abjure violence;
• to strive towards excellence in all spheres of individual and collective activity so that the nation constantly rises to higher levels of endeavor and achievement.
• to provide opportunities for education by the parent the guardian, to his child or a ward between the age of 6-14 years as the case may be.

Additional Information

• Article 48 of the Constitution of India directs the Protection and improvement of the environment and safeguarding of forests and wildlife.
• Article 13 of the Indian Constitution describes the means for judicial review. It enjoins a duty on the Indian State to respect and implement the fundamental right. And at the same time, it confers a power on the courts to declare a law or an act void if it infringes the fundamental rights.
• Article 30 in the Constitution Of India is the Right of minorities to establish and administer educational institutions.

Therefore, to safeguard public property and to abjure violence is a fundamental duty contained in article 51A  of the Indian constitution.

The triarchic theory of intelligence originated as an alternative to the concept of the general intelligence factor.

Key Points

• Triarchic theory of intelligence was proposed by psychologist Robert J. Sternberg,
• Sternberg proposed his theory in 1985 as an alternative to the idea of the general intelligence factor.
• The general intelligence factor, also known as g, is what intelligence tests typically measure. It refers only to “academic intelligence.”
• Sternberg argued that practical intelligence—a person’s ability to react and adapt to the world around them—as well as creativity are equally important when measuring an individual's overall intelligence.
• He also argued that intelligence isn’t fixed, but rather comprises a set of abilities that can be developed.
• There are three types of intelligence:
• practical (the ability to get along in different contexts)
• creative (the ability to come up with new ideas)
• analytical (the ability to evaluate information and solve problems).
• The theory is comprised of three sub-theories: contextual, experiential, and componential.
• Each sub theory corresponds to one of the three proposed types of intelligence.

Therefore, the triarchic theory of intelligence was put forward by Robert J. Sternberg.

A heuristic, or heuristic technique, is an approach to problem-solving that uses a practical method or various shortcuts in order to produce solutions that may not be optimal but are sufficient given a limited timeframe or deadline.

Key Points

1. It helps in achieving cognitive, affective, and psychomotor objectives i.e. it helps in the all-around development of the child.
2. Students are put into the situation to learn by self-experience.
3. It certainly develops self-confidence and self-reliance in the learners.
4. It helps in developing scientific attitudes and creativity in the learners.
5. The teacher encourages the learners to explore the environment in search of the solution to the problems. By doing so, some new knowledge is discovered by them.
6. The teacher is always ready to provide individual guidance regarding the solution of the problem. Thus the interaction between the teacher and the learner takes place in a cooperative, conducive environment.

Additional Information

Disadvantages of Heuristic Teaching Method

1. It cannot be used at the primary level of education
2. Higher intelligence and divergent thinking are required in the learners. But, there are some students who are below average and fail to succeed in discovering the solutions to the problems. It frustrates them.
3. In a true sense, none of the teachers have patience for providing individual guidance to the learners. And learners, too, feel hesitation to approach the teacher for seeking his help.

Dysgraphia is a term that refers to trouble with writing.

 Key Points

• Dysgraphia is a Greek word. The base word graph refers both to the hand’s function in writing and to the letters formed by the hand.
• The prefix dys indicates that there is impairment. Graph refers to producing letterforms by hand. The suffix ia refers to having a condition. Thus, dysgraphia is the condition of impaired letter writing by hand, that is, disabled handwriting.
• Impaired handwriting can interfere with learning to spell words in writing and the speed of writing text.
• Children with dysgraphia may have only impaired handwriting, only impaired spelling (without reading problems), or both impaired handwriting and impaired spelling.

Additional Information

• Developmental co-ordination disorder (DCD), also known as dyspraxia, is a condition affecting physical coordination. It causes a child to perform less well than expected in daily activities for their age, and appear to move clumsily.
• Dyscalculia is a term referring to a wide range of difficulties with maths, including weaknesses in understanding the meaning of numbers, and difficulty applying mathematical principles to solve problems. Dyscalculia is rarely identified early.
• Dyslexia is a specific learning disorder that specifically affects their reading development.

Hence, A primary school child frequently makes mistakes in writing numbers. He is showing the symptoms of dysgraphia.

Repression is a psychological attempt to unconsciously forget or block unpleasant, uncomfortable or distressing memories, thoughts, or desires from conscious awareness. These thoughts or memories are directed into areas of the subconscious mind that are not easily accessible and completely unaware of their existence.

Key Points

Sigmund Freud And Repression

• Sigmund Freud originally developed the concept of repression as part of his famed psychoanalytic theory. As a definition, Freud believed repression to be the unconscious prevention of dangerous drives or impulses, which would lead to unacceptable behaviors.
• Freud believed repression played a crucial role in the human psyche and was the most important defense mechanism, declaring that the concept is “the cornerstone on which the whole structure of psychoanalysis rests.”
• His entire theory was built on it; he firmly believed that bringing unconscious thoughts into awareness could alleviate psychological distress.

Repression In Contemporary Psychology

• Psychologists often refer to repression as blocking painful memories and not necessarily censoring forbidden impulses as Freud originally meant it.
• Mainstream psychologists today often believe that repressing memories is not common and is quite rare.

Additional Information

• Withdrawal is the combination of physical and mental effects that a person experiences after they stop using or reduce their intake of a substance such as alcohol and prescription or recreational drugs.
• inhibition, in psychology, conscious or unconscious constraint or curtailment of a process or behavior, especially of impulses or desires.
• Suppression is the conscious process of pushing unwanted, anxiety-provoking thoughts, memories, emotions, fantasies, and desires out of awareness. 
• Suppression is the voluntary form of repression proposed by Sigmund Freud in 1892.

Therefore, psychological forgetting is also known as repression.

“Education should create a class of persons, Indian in blood and color, but English in taste, in opinions, in morals, and in intellect”. is the statement given by Thomas Babington Macaulay in 1835. He successfully westernised education in India; English was made the official language for the government and courts and was adopted as the official medium of instruction.

Key Points

• The British planned to educate a small section of upper and middle classes, thus creating a class that would act as interpreters. This was called the 'downward filtration theory'
• Downward filtration theory states that giving education to the members of the higher classes of the society would facilitate an opportunity for the grass root people of the society, too, because the lower class people always tend to imitate and follow the model of the people of higher status in the society.
• Downward Filtration Theory shows that Macaulay had some keen observation of human psychology. People always would select anything by looking at those who live in better circumstances. But he either failed to realize that formal education was not such a thing that could be gained only by imitating others or had a hidden agenda of creating two groups of people in India so that they could rule the country forever by making use of the tricky policy called divide and rule.

Hence “Education should create a class of persons, Indian in blood and color, but English in taste, in opinions, in morals, and in intellect” is recommended by Downward filtration theory.

Additional Information

• Magna Carta of education in India- Wood’s Despatch on Education in 1854 laid the foundation of the Indian educational system and the establishments of Universities in Kolkata, Mumbai, and Chennai.
• The despatch came to be considered as the Magna Carta of English education in India. The Scheme of education, as proposed by Wood`s Despatch, envisaged a coordinated system of education throughout the country.
• University education in India has a long history of its own and has a long tradition of learning.
• The ancient universities in India were the leading centers of learning in the contemporary world and attracted scholars from other countries.
• The earliest of the university was Takshashila (West Punjab, now Pakistan) which attained great fame as a university in the seventh century B.C.
• National Policy on Education ensures proper administration, management, and implementation of the educational system in all areas of society.
• It provides the direction for educational activities.
• India has had three national policies on education to date.
• The first came in 1968 and the second in 1986, under Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi respectively; the NEP of 1986 was revised in 1992 when P V Narasimha Rao was Prime Minister.
• The third is the NEP released in 2020 under the Prime Ministership of Narendra Modi.

Teacher evaluation is the standardized process of rating and assessing the teaching effectiveness of educators.

Key Points

Teacher evaluation systems often rely on a predetermined set of indicators. Effective teaching should include subcategories, such as

• Content knowledge
• Preparation and lesson planning
• Instructional techniques
• Student evaluation
• Classroom environment
• Collaboration
• Professional development

The most appropriate strategy to assess teachers is the evaluation done by students.

• Students spend most of their time with the teacher.
• Students should be given a feedback form containing various parameters on which to assess a teacher.

Additional Information

• Peer Evaluation of Teaching consists of the review of teaching performance by colleagues, usually in the same or a similar discipline, with the purpose of assessing and improving the quality of teaching. Peer review puts faculty in charge of the quality of their teaching.
• Self-assessments allow instructors to reflect upon and describe their teaching and learning goals, challenges, and accomplishments.
• Across the country, states and districts are designing principal evaluation systems as a means of improving leadership, learning, and school performance.
• Principal evaluation systems hold potential for supporting leaders' learning and a sense of accountability for instructional excellence and student performance.

The National Institute of Educational Planning and Administration (NIEPA), (Deemed to be a University) was established by the Ministry of Human Resource Development, Government of India.

Key Points

• It is a premier organization dealing with capacity building and research in the planning and management of education not only in India but also in South Asia.
• In recognition of the pioneering work done by the organization in the field of educational planning and administration, the Government of India has empowered it to award its own degrees by way of conferring it the status of Deemed to be University in August, 2006.
• The National Institute has its origin dating back to 1962 when UNESCO established the Asian Regional Centre for Educational Planners and Administrators which later became the Asian Institute of Educational Planning and Administration in 1965.
• After 4 years of its existence, it was taken over by the Government of India and renamed the National Staff College for Educational Planners and Administrators.
• Subsequently, with the increased roles and functions of the National Staff College, particularly in capacity building, research, and professional support services to governments, it was again renamed as the National Institute of Educational Planning and Administration (NIEPA) in 1979.

Inclusive education means all children in the same classrooms, in the same schools. 

Key Points

• Inclusive education values diversity and the unique contributions each student brings to the classroom.
• In a truly inclusive setting, every child feels safe and has a sense of belonging.
• Students and their parents participate in setting learning goals and take part in decisions that affect them.
• It means real learning opportunities for groups who have traditionally been excluded – not only children with disabilities but speakers of minority languages too.

To close the education gap for children with disabilities, UNICEF supports government efforts to foster and monitor inclusive education systems. Their work focuses on four key areas:

Additional Information

• Advocacy: UNICEF promotes inclusive education in discussions, high-level events, and other forms of outreach geared towards policymakers and the general public.
• Awareness-raising: UNICEF shines a spotlight on the needs of children with disabilities by conducting research and hosting roundtables, workshops, and other events for government partners.
• Capacity-building: UNICEF builds the capacity of education systems in partner countries by training teachers, administrators, and communities, and providing technical assistance to Governments.
• Implementation support: UNICEF assists with monitoring and evaluation in partner countries to close the implementation gap between policy and practice.

Self Learning Material (SLM) is developed with the approach of self-explanatory, self-contained, self-directed, self-motivating, and self-evaluating.

Key Points

“Programmed learning refers to the arrangement of instructional material in progressive sequences” -Harold W.Bernard.

• Programmed Instruction or Programmed Learning is one of the important innovations in the teaching-learning process.
• The term ‘Programmed Learning’ has been coined from principles of operant learning, developed in psychological laboratories on the basis of experimental studies conducted on animals by B.F Skinner of Harvard University (1943).

CHARACTERISTICS OF PROGRAMMED LEARNING

• The content is broken into small steps and each step is presented in several sentences, each step is called a frame
• The frames are arranged sequentially.
• Most of the frames require that the learner makes some kind of responses-an an answer to a question, an activity to demonstrate the understanding of the material.
• The student is provided with immediate confirmation of the right answers (i.e.) the learner is provided immediate reinforcement.
• In case he is correct, his response is reinforced and if he is wrong, he may correct himself by receiving the correct answer.
• It is the interaction between the learner and learning material that is emphasized in programmed learning.
• Here, the learner is active and is motivated to learn and respond.

Hence a self-contained instructional material is known as programme.

Additional Information A module is considered to be a set of learning opportunities organized around a well-defined topic that contains elements of instruction, specific objectives, learning activities, and self-assessment and evaluation using criteria-referenced measurement.

Survey method is suitable for finding the status of a society.

Key Points

• A survey is a research method used for collecting data from a predefined group of respondents to gain information and insights into various topics of interest.
• The process involves asking people for information through a questionnaire, which can be either online or offline.
• It is used to collect information about people's attitudes, beliefs and behaviour and involves the collection of standardized information from the population being studied.
• Standardized information is gathered by asking the same questions to all respondents in the exact same order.
• A social survey is most commonly used to describe research done on a social platform or survey software based on sample data collection through a systematic questionnaire or interview.

Additional Information

• A case study is a detailed study of a specific subject, such as a person, group, place, event, organization, or phenomenon.
• An experiment is a procedure carried out under controlled conditions in order to discover an unknown effect or law, to test or establish a hypothesis, or to illustrate a known law.
• Observation is the active acquisition of information from a primary source.

Global village describes the phenomenon of the entire world becoming more interconnected as the result of the propagation of media technologies throughout the world.

Key Points

• The term Global village was coined by Canadian media theorist Marshall McLuhan in his books The Gutenberg Galaxy(1962) and Understanding Media (1964).
• The term "global village" means all parts of the world as they are being brought together by the internet and other electronic communication interconnections.
• The new reality of the digital age has implications for forming new socially meaningful structures within the context of culture.
• On the Internet, physical distance is even less of a hindrance to the real-time communicative activities of people.
• Social Spheres are greatly expanded by the openness of the web and the ease at which people can search for online communities and interact with others who share the same interests and concerns.

 Additional Information

• ​The World Wide Web which is commonly referred to as WWW, W3, or the Web—is an interconnected system of public webpages accessible through the Internet.
• The Internet is a vast network that connects computers all over the world. Through the Internet, people can share information and communicate from anywhere with an Internet connection.
• Globalization is a term used to describe how trade and technology have made the world into a more connected and interdependent place.

The weakest link in any computer security system is people.

Key Points

• Unlike technology and processes, people are complex. They think for themselves and make their own decisions. Sometimes, these are good decisions and other times they are bad ones.
• People are error-prone because no clear solution exists. People will make the same mistake multiple times because they are unpredictable.
• At the core, the inability to find a way to prevent people from making the same mistake more than once makes them the weakest link in the chain.
• Some cybersecurity risks caused by humans are:
• Weak passwords
• Weak authentication
• Misconfigurations

Additional Information

• Computer hardware includes the physical parts of a computer, such as the case, central processing unit (CPU), monitor, mouse, keyboard, computer data storage, graphics card, sound card, speakers and motherboard.
• The communication system is a system model that describes a communication exchange between two stations, transmitter, and receiver.
• A computer program is a sequence of instructions in a programming language that a computer can execute or interpret.

Norton is an Antivirus Software.

Key Points

• Antivirus software, also known as anti-malware, is a computer program used to prevent, detect, and remove malware.
• Antivirus software was originally developed to detect and remove computer viruses.
• Once installed, most antivirus software runs automatically in the background to provide real-time protection against virus attacks.
• Norton Antivirus is an anti-virus or anti-malware software product, developed and distributed by Norton LifeLock since 1991 as part of its Norton family of computer security products.
• It uses signatures and heuristics to identify viruses. Other features included in it are e-mail spam filtering and phishing protection.

Additional Information

• Adobe Photoshop is used to create beautiful images, graphics, paintings and 3D artwork on the desktop.
• Yahoo is an American web services provider.
• Flash memory is a long-life and non-volatile storage chip that is widely used in embedded systems. It can keep stored data and information even when the power is off

Important PointsImportant characteristics of a researcher:

• An analytical mind
• Ability to stay calm
• Curiosity
• Intelligence
• Quick thinking ability
• Commitment

Overall a researcher should be open-minded that he/she can gram all the things important.

Key Points

• A researcher is someone who conducts research, i.e., an organized and systematic investigation into something.
• Scientists are often described as researchers.
• Researchers collect, organize, analyze, and interpret data and opinions to explore issues, solve problems, and predict trends.
• A good researcher must be open-minded and must also adopt a critical way of thinking.
• Besides, he/she should be hard-working, diligent, focused, and devoted to his/her specific field of interest.

Hence, the correct answer is Open-mindedness.

The best way of protecting data from loss is to make regular backups of the data.

Key Points

• Data protection is the process of safeguarding important data from corruption, compromise, or loss and providing the capability to restore the data to a functional state should something happen to render the data inaccessible or unusable.
• Backup is the process of creating a copy of the data on the system that can be used for recovery in case the original data is lost or corrupted.
• Backups protect against human errors, hardware failure, virus attacks, power failure, and natural disasters.
• Backups can help save time and money if these failures occur.
• We can also use the backup to recover copies of older files if you have deleted them from your system.
• Ways to backup the data are:
• USB stick
• External hard drive
• Network Attached Storage
• Cloud Storage
• Printing

Hence, the best way of protecting data from loss is taking regular backups of the data.

Gyan Darsan 2 provides interactive education using DVB- RCS technology.

Key Points

• Gyan Darshan is a set of educational television channels that release programs from various Doordarshan Kendras using satellite transmission in different languages.
• Gyan Darshan was launched by the Ministry of Human Resource Development, Information & Broadcasting, the Prasar Bharti, and IGNOU jointly on 26th January 2000. IGNOU was given the responsibility to be the nodal agency for uplinking/ transmission.
• Four different Gyan Darshan channels are available today and plans are afoot to launch Gyan Darshan-V.
• Gyan Darshan-II is an exclusive educational satellite to provide interactive education using DVB-RCS technology.
• It offers distance education through Virtual Class Room mode and provides access to a digital repository of educational content hosted at IGNOU.
• DVB-RCS is an acronym for Digital Video Broadcasting - Return Channel via Satellite.
• It is a specification for an interactive on-demand multimedia satellite communication system.

Additional Information

• DD Gyan Darshan 1 is a state-owned television channel telecasting from Doordarshan, Kendra, IGNOU. It is an educational media initiative of MHRD in collaboration with the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB), Prasar Bharati, and ISRO with IGNOU as the nodal agency.
• KITE VICTERS is an edutainment television channel in the Malayalam language operated by KITE under the Department of General and Higher Education and is wholly owned by the Government of Kerala.
• Doordarshan is an Indian public service broadcaster funded by the Government of India, owned by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, and one of Prasar Bharati's two divisions.

The operating system is the most common type of  System software.

Key Points

• System software is a set of computer programs that are designed to manage system resources.
• It is a collection of such files and utility programs that are responsible for running and smooth functioning of the computer system with other hardware.
• It is solely responsible for running the operating system (OS) and managing the computer device entirely.
• It is called Low-Level Software as it runs at the most basic level of a computer and is usually written in a low-level language.
• As soon as we install the operating system on our device, it gets automatically installed on the same device.
• An Operating System is the most basic type of System Software that helps to manage computer hardware and software.
• It is the central part of any computer system which is responsible for the smooth functioning of any computer device.

Additional Information

• Communication software is an application or program designed to pass information from one system to another. Such software provides remote access to systems and transmits files in a multitude of formats between computers.
• Application software is designed directly from the user's perspective. Each application has a specific purpose and thus is developed with high-level languages so that the purpose can be fulfilled.
• A word processor is a device or computer program that provides for input, editing, formatting, and output of text, often with some additional features.

Key Points

• “Institutional planning is a program of development and improvement prepared by an educational institution on the basis of its felt needs and the resources available or likely to be available, with a view to improving the school program and school practices.
• When a plan is prepared by a particular institution on the basis of its own development and improvement, we call it institutional planning.
• The major steps in the procedure of institutional planning are as follows: Analysis, Survey, Improvement, Implementation, and Evaluation.
• The analysis is the first and most essential step of institutional planning.
• For the effective organization of institutional planning, the Planning Board formed by the head of the institution should analyze the present situation in respect of the needs of the institution.
• In this respect, the head of the institution should hold a meeting of the staff with the Board in order to see that some pre-requisite conditions are fulfilled.

Hence, analysis is an essential step of Institutional Planning.

Additional Information

• Survey: The headmaster and the staff of the school should make a survey of the existing resources and the resources that can be easily available. Statistical facts and figures regarding enrolment, staff, equipment, books, examination results, etc. must be placed before the Board for ready reference.
• Improvement: After careful consideration, a list of improvement programs for the school may be prepared with details about each program. The program may be short-term or long-term programs.
• Implementation: The Board will make a selection of the projects that are to be undertaken during the ensuing session. Lastly, the project must be executed through the material and human resources available at hand.
• Evaluation: The success of the plan is determined by its evaluation. There should be adequate provisions for evaluating the plan progress from time to time.

The rating scale assesses the degree of performance of respondents.

Key Points

• The rating scale is defined as a closed-ended survey question used to represent respondent feedback in a comparative form for specific particular features/products/services.
• It is one of the most established question types for online and offline surveys where survey respondents are expected to rate an attribute or feature.
• This scale is used to evaluate the performance of a product or service, employee skills, customer service performances, processes followed for a particular goal, etc.
• Rating scale survey question can be compared to a checkbox question but rating scale provides more information than merely Yes/No.
• When conducting a survey, there are four types of rating scales that can be used effectively:
• Graphic rating scale.
• Numerical rating scale.
• Descriptive rating scale.
• Comparative rating scale.

Additional Information

• A checklist is a list of items required, things to be done, or points to be considered, used as a reminder.
• An interview is a structured conversation where one participant asks questions, and the other provides answers.
• Observation is the active acquisition of information from a primary source.

Variability describes how much data sets differ and allows you to compare your data to other sets of data using statistics.

Key Points

The four main ways to measure variability in a data set are

Therefore, Range is the best measure of variability.

Additional Information

• The variability expresses how far apart they are.
• This is significant because the amount of variability determines how well you can generalize sample results to your entire population.
• Low variability is ideal because it allows you to better predict population information based on sample data. High variability indicates that the values are less consistent, making predictions more difficult.
• Data sets can have the same central tendency but different levels of variability or vice versa.

PLATO, an abbreviation for Programmed Logic for Automatic Teaching Operations. 

Key Points

• It is a computer-based education system developed by Donald L. Bitzer at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 1960.
• In addition to being used successfully as a teaching tool.
• PLATO was based on a time-sharing computer system that connected users and programmers to a central mainframe.
• PLATO also spawned one of the first successful online communities.
• The system included a number of pedagogical features, such as text overlaying graphics, contextual assessment of free-text answers based on keyword inclusion, and feedback designed to respond to alternative answers.

Therefore, PLATO in the teaching-learning context is Programmed Logic for Automated Teaching Operation.

Additional Information

• PLATO creation and evolution were significant on two fronts.
• First, networked education and communication systems cannot be overstated.
• Second, It influenced the development of software applications and structures, as well as the norms found in later Internet user communities.

Gandhian philosophy is not only political, moral, and religious at the same time.

Key Points

• It is also traditional and modern, simple and complex.
• It embodies many of the Western influences to which Gandhiji was exposed, but it is rooted in ancient Indian culture and employs universal moral and religious principles.
• There are several levels of philosophy: spiritual or religious, moral, political, economic, social, individual, and collective.
• Gandhian ideology emphasizes practical idealism rather than idealistic idealism.
• Gandhian philosophy is a two-edged sword.
• Its goal is to transform both the individual and society at the same time, in accordance with the principles of truth and nonviolence.

Therefore, Idealism is the basis of Gandhian Philosophy.

 Additional Information

• Gandhiji derived these ideologies from a variety of sources**, including the Bhagavad Geeta, Jainism, Buddhism, the Bible, Gopal Krishna Gokhale, Tolstoy, and John Ruskin, among others.**

Major Gandhian Ideologies

• Truth and nonviolence
• Satyagraha
• Sarvodaya
• Swaraj
• Trusteeship
• Swadeshi

Kerala State Higher Education Council is a higher education advisory body to the Kerala government.

Key Points

 The Council shall have the general responsibilities and functions listed below:

• to provide advice to the State Government, Universities, and other institutions of higher learning;
• to coordinate the roles of the State's government, universities, and apex regulatory bodies in higher education;
• the development of new concepts and programs in higher education;
• to provide common facilities in higher education without interfering with the autonomy of other higher education institutions.

​Therefore, All the options are correct in regards to Kerala State High Education Council. 

Additional Information

• The Governor of the State serves as the Council's Patron, and the Chief Minister serves as a Visitor.
• The Council is chaired by the Minister of Higher Education.
• The Council's Vice Chairman is the Chief Executive, who is followed by the Member Secretary, who is appointed by the Government for a four-year term.
• The Council is organized into three levels: an Advisory Body, a Governing Body, and an Executive Body.
• The Council's bodies are appointed by the government for a four-year term.

Confusion Points

• According to the Kerala State Higher Education Council (Amendment) Act, 2018, the Council will continue to exist for another four years until a new Council is formed.

Key Points 

Therefore, (a) - (3), (b) - (1), (c) - (2), (d) - (4) is correct option.

Behaviorist pedagogy, also known as behaviorism, examines students' observable actions to determine whether they are learning as effectively as possible.

Key Points

• The Central belief is that students learn through reinforcement - constant feedback that tells them whether what they are doing is correct or incorrect.
• Behaviourism was a school of thought in psychology that held that psychology, as a science, must be based on the study of what is observable.
• They investigated the concept of association and its limitations in explaining how learning occurs.
• Guthrie's interpretations in his writings are based on the *Contiguity*** theory of learning.
• The theory of learning is that a combination of stimuli that has accompanied a movement will tend to be followed by that movement on its recurrence.
• Guthrie avoids mentioning drives, successive repetitions, rewards, or punishment in his theory.
• He is referring to the combination of stimuli and movement.
• Guthrie was regarded as a behaviorist.  ​

Hence, Edwin Guthrie is a behaviorist. 

Additional Information

A learning management system (LMS) is software that is specifically designed to create, distribute, and manage educational content delivery.

Key Points

• The LMS can be hosted as a standalone product on the company server or as a cloud-based platform hosted by the software company.
• Some Examples of LMS software are Socrative, Mindflash, SkyPrep, ProProfs LMS, Spring Learn, TalentLMS, Docebo, Blackboard Learn, MOODLE etc.

Therefore, Google Classroom is NOT a Learning Management System. 

Additional Information

• Google Classroom is not an independent learning management system, course management system, or student information system.
• Google Classroom is updated on a regular basis with new features.
• In April 2021, Google Classroom will be able to sync data with the Skyward 2.0 and Infinite Campus student information systems.
• According to Google, more SIS integrations are currently being tested or developed.
• it may begin to resemble and function more like an LMS.
• it's best to think of the tool as a one-stop-shop for the class organization.
• SO, technically Google Classroom is not LMS.

In 2006, The term "Web 3.0" was coined by John Markoff. 

Key Points

• Web 3.0 technologies aid online educators in the development of courses, support of students, assessment of students, and maintenance of records.
• The integration of educational data is the foundation of the semantic network.
• Students who work online will benefit from the Semantic Web's ability to personalize learning and build knowledge.
• Web 3.0 is used in distance higher education their role in empowering students by transforming education to improve learning outcomes.
• Its ability to aggregate data from multiple sources and establish semantic relationships between all available content to ensure seamless accessibility, searchability, and usability.
• It enables interaction with other devices such as tablets, smartphones, and desktop computers.

Therefore, Web 3.0 is known as the Mobile web.

Additional InformationWeb 3.0 characteristics, which are listed below: 

Confusion Points

• Tim Berners-Lee coined the term "Semantic Web" and promotes the idea of converting the Web into a large collection of databases.

Reliability is the consistency of test results.

Key Points

• There are four methods of evaluating the reliability of an instrument:
• Split-Half Reliability
• Test-Retest Reliability
• Parallel Forms Reliability
• Inter-Rater Reliability
• When validating a measure, the Researcher will most likely want to assess the split-half reliability of your instrument.
• Split-half reliability assesses an instrument's internal consistency.
• The basic idea behind split-half reliability is that a test is divided into two halves.
• This method will inform the Researcher, how consistently your measure evaluates the construct of interest.
• If the Researcher has dichotomous items (e.g., right-wrong answers), as in multiple-choice exams, then use the KR-20 formula.
• In the case of the Likert scale Use the SpearmanBrown formula.
• SpearmanBrown formula: (\frac{\left( 2r_{\frac{1}{2}} \right)}{\left(1+r_{\frac{1}{2}}\right)}), where r is Pearson correlation of scores in the two half tests.

Hence, the Reliability coefficient of a test using the split-half method is (\frac{\left( 2r_{\frac{1}{2}} \right)}{\left(1+r_{\frac{1}{2}}\right)}). 

Additional Information

• ​If the Researcher uses a Likert Scale or another measure with more than one correct answer, coefficient alpha is the best statistic to use to calculate split-half reliability.
• It is difficult to calculate the coefficient alpha by hand then use SPSS, by using the coefficient alpha.
• In the case of calculating reliability manually then use the Spearman-Brown formula.
• Spearman-Brown is less accurate, but it is much easier to compute.

Given:

Total number of students = 40

Number of students answer in test in upper group = 32

Number of students answer in test in lower group = 14

Concept used:

Difficulty in upper (DU) = Total number of correct answer in upper group/ total number of test taker in the upper group

Difficulty in Lower (LU) = Total number of correct answer in lower group/ total number of test taker in the lower group

Discriminating power = difficulty in upper - difficulty in lower

Calculation:

Total number of students = 40

Number of students answer in test in upper group = 32

Number of students answer in test in lower group = 14

Difficulty in upper (DU) = 32/40 = 0.8

Difficulty in lower (LU) = 14/40 = 0.35

Discriminating power = 0.8 - 0.35 = 0.45

∴ Option 3 is correct.

The 5E Instructional Model can be used to create a science lesson because it is based on cognitive psychology, constructivist-learning theory, and best practices in science teaching

Key Points

• The cycle is consists of cognitive learning stages such as engage, explore, explain, elaborate, and evaluate.
• This approach allows students to redefine, reorganise, elaborate, and change their initial concepts through self-reflection and interaction with their peers and their environment.
• The model can be integrated or applied at multiple levels by teachers and curriculum developers.
• Order of learning cycle: Engagement, Exploration, Explanation, Elaboration, Evaluation.

Therefore, The order of the learning cycle used in lesson plans is Engagement, Exploration, Explanation, Elaboration, Evaluation. 

Additional Information

• Learners interpret objects and phenomena and internalize those interpretations in relation to their current conceptual understanding.
• The model can be an organizing pattern for a series of daily lessons, individual units, or a yearly plan.
• The teacher may move back and forth within the Es several times or may include an additional engagement before beginning an elaboration phase.

In1960, Daniel Stufflebeam developed the CIPP model.

Key Points 

• Context, Input, Process, and Product (CIPP) are acronyms for Context, Input, Process, and Product.
• CIPP is a decision-focused approach to evaluation that emphasizes systematic information provision for program management and operation.
• This framework combines four stages of evaluation, users of this model are frequently focused on management-oriented evaluation.
• The emphasis is on continuous improvement by focusing on four areas of a program:
• the overall goals or mission (Context Evaluation): Context evaluation aids in determining the needs and opportunities within a specific context or environment.
• the plans and resources (Input Evaluation): The goal of this type of evaluation is to provide information for determining the resources used to achieve the program's goals.
• the activities or components (Process Evaluation): Process evaluation is concerned with the operation of the program and the teaching and learning processes.
• the outcomes or objectives (Outcomes Evaluation) (Product Evaluation): The product's focus is not on the student's academic achievement, but on the skills, attitudes, knowledge, learning, and abilities that the student will use in life to benefit society.

​Hence, the CIPP approach is Context Input, Process, Product. ​

Illustrations are a visual way to portray or illustrate a written text. They might help explain an idea or tell a story or provide decoration. They come in many forms both traditional and digital.

Key Points

• Teachers use TLMs to illustrate or reinforce a skill, fact, or idea.
• TLMs also help in bringing novelty and freshness in classroom teaching as it relieves learners from anxiety, fear, and boredom.
• Teaching-learning materials provide a range of learning experiences to learners from direct to indirect.
• Edgar Dale (1969) arranged the learning experiences on Teaching – Learning Materials a continuum of ‘directness to indirectness’ which has a correlation with a continuum of ‘concreteness to abstract’. He called it a ‘Cone of Experiences’.
• The organizing principle of the cone is the progression from the most concrete (direct) experience at the bottom of the cone to the most abstract (indirect) at the top.
• According to Dale, the least effective method is at the top i.e. more use of verbal/ textual symbols like reading or listening to spoken words.
• The most effective method is at the bottom involving direct, purposeful, concrete learning experiences, such as hand on or field experience.
• As action learning results in up to 90% retention, teachers should strive for making classroom teaching nearest to direct experiences.
• As field or hands-on experiences are not possible in all cases, a teacher should try and make the classroom instruction most direct using appropriate TLM.

Hence according to the above explanation, the two categories of illustrations used in teaching are verbal and abstract.

IPC 354A Offence: Sexual harassment of the nature of unwelcome physical contact and advances or a demand or request for sexual favors or showing pornography.

Key Points

• The punishment for IPC 354A is Up to 3 years or Fine or Both.
• IPC 354A is Cognizable.
• IPC 354A is Bailable offense.
• IPC 354A is tried in the court of Any Magistrate.

Hence Section 354A provides for Sexual harassment and punishment for sexual harassment.

The teaching method refers to the general principles, pedagogy, and management strategies used for classroom instruction.

Key Points

• Teaching methods are the procedure, technique, or way of teaching, especially in accordance with a defined plan.
• The teaching method depends on what fits a teacher—educational philosophy, classroom demographic, subject area(s), and school mission statement.
• Teaching theories can be organized into four categories based on two major parameters: a teacher-centered approach versus a student-centered approach, and high-tech material use versus low-tech material use.
• In a teacher-centered approach to learning, teachers are the main authority figure in this model.
• Students are viewed as "empty vessels" whose primary role is to passively receive information (via lectures and direct instruction) with an end goal of testing and assessment.
• It is the primary role of teachers to pass knowledge and information onto their students.
• In this model, teaching and assessment are viewed as two separate entities. Student learning is measured through objectively scored tests and assessments.
• In the  Student-Centered Approach to Learning, while teachers are the authority figure in this model, teachers and students play an equally active role in the learning process.
• The teacher's primary role is to coach and facilitate student learning and overall comprehension of the material.
• Student learning is measured through both formal and informal forms of assessment, including group projects, student portfolios, and class participation.
• Teaching and assessments are connected; student learning is continuously measured during teacher instruction.
• Commonly used teaching methods may include class participation, demonstration, recitation, memorization, or combinations of these.

Additional Information

Teaching strategies are methods and techniques that a teacher will use to support their pupils or students through the learning process; a teacher will choose the teaching strategy most suitable to the topic being studied, the level of expertise of the learner, and the stage in their learning journey.

The Computer Literacy and Studies in Schools (CLASS) Project was introduced as a pilot project in 1984-85.

Key Points

• India recognized the importance of Information & Communication Technology (ICT) in education as early as 1984-85 when the Computer Literacy and Studies in Schools (CLASS) was initially introduced as a Pilot Project with the introduction of BBC micro-computers.
• A total of 12,000 such computers were received and distributed to Secondary and Senior Secondary Schools through State Governments.
• The project was subsequently adopted as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme during the 8th Plan (1993-98).
• During the 8th Five Year Plan, the Scheme was widened to provide financial grants to institutions that were given BBC Micros and also to cover new Government aided Sec./ Sr. Sec. Schools.
• Assistance included annual maintenance grant for BBC micros and purchase as well as maintenance of equipment for new Schools.

Hence the major objective of the CLASS project (1984-85) was to expose children to the utility and applications of computers.

Inclusive education, as an approach, seeks to address the learning needs of all children, youth, and adults with a specific focus on those who are vulnerable to marginalization and exclusion.

 Key Points

• Inclusion is one of the major challenges facing the education system worldwide set within the overall framework of Education for All, the aim is the development of schools that can respond to students’ diversity, focusing in particular on groups of students that are vulnerable to marginalization, exclusion, and underachievement.
• Inclusion expresses commitment to educate each child, to the maximum extent appropriate, in the school and classroom he/she would otherwise attend. It involves bringing support services to the child.
• The meaning of inclusion emerged as a result of the social justice movement in the field of disability which emphasizes that schools should create an environment in which students with special needs are seen as valuable members of the social community such that they are seen as competent and as capable of making a positive contribution.
• The fundamental principle of inclusive school is that all children should learn together.
• In the inclusive classroom, each student gets access to knowledge, skills, and information, which improves available choices to all children.

Hence, the main objectives of inclusive education are the protection of child rights, Identification of skills, and Education for All.

The second type of programmed instruction is the Branching or Intrinsic or Crowderian. programming. It has been propounded by Norman A. Crowder in 1954.

Important Points 

• Norman A Crowder has given its definition as ―It is a program which adapts to the needs of the students without the medium of the extrinsic device like a computer.
• It is called intrinsic because the learner within himself makes the decision, to adapt the Learning to his/her needs.

Additional Information

Hence, the propagator of branched programming is Norman A Crowder.

The correct response is 5.482.

Key Points

Here's how we can calculate the GPA:

• Assign numerical values to grades:

 

A+: 10

A: 9

B+: 9

B: 8

Others (not provided in this case): Follow a similar pattern

Calculate grade points for each subject:

• Multiply the numerical grade value by the credit for each subject.

 

Calculate total grade points and credits:

• Add the grade points for all subjects.
• Add the credits for all subjects.

<br>

Calculate GPA:

Divide the total grade points by the total credits.

<br>

Here's the calculation table:

 

 

GPA = 126 / 14 = 9

Therefore, the GPA on a 9-point scale is 9, which corresponds to option 3) 5.482 (rounded to three decimal places).

Communication requires at least four elements - the Source, the Message, Channel, and Receiver. The sender or source may be an individual (speaking, writing, illustrating, gesturing), or a communication organization.

​ Key Points

• While lecturing, the teacher should describe concepts, principles, theories, etc., with the help of examples.
• Effective illustration with examples can make lectures more communicative and meaningful.
• Various components of this skill are the Formulation of simple, interesting, and relevant examples.
• Use of appropriate media for presenting examples.
• Use of appropriate approach for presenting examples. in sum, it may be stated that there are a number of skills that can improve a teacher's talk and thereby the quality of the lecture.
• However, the most critical ones seem to be modulation of voice, the skill of stimulus variation, the skill of explaining, and the skill of illustrating with examples.

Therefore, the Teacher illustrates a concept to students. Here illustration can be considered as the source of communication

In the history of the world, 8th century B.C. to 1st century A.D is known as ‘Axial Era’, a period of great ‘Spiritual Quest’ where we get almost all lasting answers to life’s perennial questions. India gave her contribution to the genuine thoughts of the Axial Era in the form of Upanishadic inquiry, religions of Jainism and Buddhism, and all other systems of thought.

Key Points

• Everyone who accepts Buddha agrees on one thing his basic teaching is four noble truths (chatvari arya satyani).
• They are ‘sarvam dukkam’, ‘dukka samudaya’, ‘dukka nirodha’, ‘dukka nirodha marga’.
• This is actually ethico-religious teaching.
• This is exposed in the first discourse the ‘Dhammacakkapavattana-sutta’.
• According to him, “Birth is suffering, old age is suffering, sickness is suffering, death is suffering, to be united with what is unpleasant is suffering, if one wants something and does not get it, that also is suffering; in brief, the life as we see it is suffering (it is the aggregate of five skandhas with a thirst for existence and clinging)”.
• If we ask the question of why it is suffering we must say it is suffering because it is impermanent. Though this initial pessimism was there in Buddha, it did not make him inactive; rather, it energized him to search for answers.
• When one strikes at the root of this endless chain by removing the basic ignorance which is the wrong view of Atma, permanence, and pleasure, one prepares the way for third noble truth.
• Dukka Nirodha (cessation of suffering) It is the third noble truth about cessation of suffering, nirvana.
• Negatively if we speak of nirvana it is the cessation of all suffering; annihilation of all that binds; complete vanishing of thirst, abandoning of all afflictions (upadhi). Positively it is the attainment of freedom. The question is freedom from what and freedom to what. Nirvana is a freedom from all three types of acts that bind mental, vocal, and physical.

Therefore, according to Buddha's Third Noble Truth is that Sorrow can be eliminated.

The English psychologist, Charles Spearman (1863-1945), in 1904 proposed his theory of intelligence called two-factor theory. According to him intellectual abilities are comprised of two factors, namely; the general ability known as G-factor and specific Abilities known as S-factors.

Key Points

The Eclectic Theory or Bifactor Theory:

• This theory has been propounded by Spearman.
• Intelligence, according to his view consists of two factors the general factor and specific factor.
• The general factor is symbolized by ‘g’ and the specific factor is symbolized by 's'. The ‘g’ factor is always the same for the same individual and the ‘s’ factor varies from task to task according to its nature. But there are differences in the general abilities of different individuals as well as in their special abilities.

Additional Information

• Oligarchic Theory: Prof. G. H. Thomson has advanced the theory of ‘group factors’.
• According to this, intellectual abilities are regarded to belong to some groups.
• Though there is much correlation between abilities belonging to the same group, there is little correlation between the abilities belonging to the other groups.
• It holds that cognitive abilities are manifestations not of a single Commanding faculty but of a few main intellectual powers of groups of abilities. A boy may be good in Mathematics but poor in a language or vice-versa. In related subjects, he does fairly well but fails in unrelated subjects.
• Anarchic Theory: The chief exponent of this theory is Prof. Thorndike.
• According to him, the mind is a host of highly particularised and independent faculties.
• The theory maintains that from a man’s ability to do one kind of work we can infer absolutely nothing as to his ability to do another kind of work. If a boy is good in literature, we can judge absolutely nothing about his ability to study Chemistry; even in scientific subjects, if they are unrelated to each other, from one’s ability to do well in one subject, one can say nothing whether in another subject he would do equally well or not.
• The Monarchic Theory: Dr. Johnson, who believed in such a doctrine, said that if Newton could have turned his mind to poetry, he would have been as great a poet as he was a mathematician.
• According to this theory, intelligence is regarded as adaptiveness that enables a creature to adjust itself to changing environment.
• People holding this view believe in inborn all-around mental efficiency as a sign of intelligence.
• According to this view, a person who can perform one intellectual task very well can also perform another task equally well.

Therefore, Spearman’s Two Factor Theory is also known as eclectic theory.

The Correct Answer is Reliability

The idea behind internal consistency procedures is that items measuring the same phenomena should produce similar results. Following internal consistency, procedures are commonly used for estimating reliability are

• Split Half Reliability
• Kudar-Richardson Estimate of Reliability
• Cronbach’s Alpha (α)

Key PointsKuder-Richardson Formula 20 (KR-20):

• It was developed by Kuder and Richardson.
• it is a measure of internal consistency reliability for measures with dichotomous choices
• A high KR-20 coefficient (e.g., >0.90) indicates a homogeneous test.
• Values can range from 0.00 to 1.00 (sometimes expressed as 0 to 100), with high values indicating that the examination is likely to correlate with alternate forms (a desirable characteristic).

To compute reliability with the help of Kuder-Richardson formula number 20, the following formula is used:

​

Hence, Kuder-Richardson Technique is used to establish the Reliability of a tool.

The Correct Answer is the Chi-square test

• The goodness of fit of a statistical model describes how well it fits a set of observations.
• Measures of goodness of fit typically summarize the discrepancy between observed values and the values expected under the model in question.
• Chi-Square Goodness of fit test is used to find out how the observed value of a given phenomenon is significantly different from the expected value

Important PointsChi-square test:

• it is used to find out how the observed value of a given phenomenon is significantly different from the expected value.
• It is used in order to compare the observed sample distribution with the expected probability distribution.
• It determines how well theoretical distribution (such as normal, binomial, or Poisson) fits the empirical distribution.
• In this sample data is divided into intervals.
• Then the numbers of points that fall into the interval are compared, with the expected numbers of points in each interval.
• In regard to the procedure, set up the hypothesis for the Chi-Square goodness of fit test, which is set up for both null and alternative hypotheses.
• Null hypothesis: In this, the null hypothesis assumes that there is no significant difference between the observed and the expected value.
• Alternative hypothesis: In this, the alternative hypothesis assumes that there is a significant difference between the observed and the expected value.
• chi-square using the formula and find out for the given degrees of freedom if the chi-square value is significant at .05 or .01 levels. If so reject the null hypothesis. If not significant accept the null hypothesis.

Additional Information

• Wilcoxon signed-rank test :
• It is a non-parametric statistical hypothesis test used either to test the location of a set of samples or to compare the locations of two populations using a set of matched samples.
• Kolmogorov–Smirnov test :
• In statistics, it is a nonparametric test of the equality of continuous, one-dimensional probability distributions that can be used to compare a sample with a reference probability distribution, or to compare two samples.
• Sign test :
• It is a statistical method to test for consistent differences between pairs of observations, such as the weight of subjects before and after treatment.
• Given pairs of observations for each subject, the sign test determines if one member of the pair tends to be greater than the other member of the pair.

The Correct Answer is Genius

Key Points

• Intelligence Quotient (IQ)
• IQ was originally computed by taking the ratio of mental age to chronological (physical) age and multiplying by 100.
• IQ Score = MA / CA x 100
• Mental age (MA): the typical intelligence level found for people at a given chronological age
• Chronological age (CA): the actual age of the child taking the intelligence test
• People whose mental age is equal to their chronological age will always have an IQ of 100.
• Most of the population falls in the middle range of scores between 84 and 116                ​
• Calculating IQ Score for the above question
• IQ Score  =7.2/5x 100=144

Hence a child of 5 years with a mental age of 7.2 belongs score 144 that is to Genius or gifted as per the below chart         

The  correct answer is the Ipsative test

Important Points

Ipsative test:

• ​In psychology, ipsative measures are those where respondents compare two or more desirable options and pick the one they prefer most.
• It is also called the forced-choice scale
• This measure contrasts Likert-type scales in which respondents score—often from 1 to 5—how much they agree with a given statement.
• The respondent is not asked to mark statements that are true; he is asked to mark the statement that is most true, even if all are false.
• Similarly, even if all are true, he will need to choose one that is least so. This is where the ‘forced’ in the forced-choice description comes in.
• Ipsative testing has the core purpose in educational contexts is to measure or track the progress of the individual by comparing his or her performance, or scores, against his or her own previous performances or scores.

Hence it is most useful in assessing the process of finding out students’ progress based on their earlier work.​

Additional Information

• A criterion-referenced test 
• It is a test that measures a student's performance according to a particular standard or criterion which has been agreed upon.
• A prognostic test 
• It is a test that is designed to predict how well one is likely to do in a language course.
• Normative assessments 
• ​it compares an individual's performance to others in a group and determines whether the individual achieved at a level above, below or equal to the average performance.
• Normative assessments are commonly used to rate the differences that exist between individuals.

The Correct Answer is Students are given A grades for those who scored above 80 scores

Grading. is the process of classifying students into different categories on the basis of pre-defined standards and representing each category by a specific letter.

Important Points

Absolute grading:

• When grades are assigned on the basis of predefined standard (level of performance) and each grade is associated with a fixed performance regardless of the distribution of grades ultimately assigned in the class it is known as absolute grading
• For example, An examinee who scores 75% or above will be assigned an A grade, representing a performance of 'distinction'.
• Absolute grading is a mode of grading where grades are given based on predetermined cutoff levels.
• Here, each point value is assigned a letter grade. Most schools adopt this system, where it’s possible for all students to receive an A.

Additional Information

• Grading performance in short answer type questions:
• in view, the performance in this type of question is generally graded on a five or three-point scale.
• To find out the combined grade in short answer type questions the following formula may be used.
• Combined Grade: Sum of the numerical grade value of short answer questions x2
• Number of short answer questions
• Students are given A grades for those who have completed 4 out of 5 assigned works.is an example of this type of grading
• Relative grading:
• Relative grading or norm-referenced grading is the process of-assigning letter grades to students on the basis of ranking them on their relative level of achievement in a particular group.
• For this method of grading a decision is made in advance about approximately what percentage or proportion of students would be awarded a particular letter grade on the basis of Developing Valid Grading of their relative performance
• Students are given A grade when 80% of students in the class got lesser scores than those who received A grade example of this