A VIEW ON SCHOOL SUBJECTS AND ACDEMIC DISCIPLINE IN INDIA

A VIEW ON SCHOOL SUBJECTS AND ACDEMIC DISCIPLINE IN INDIA

MEANING OF SCHOOL SUBJECTS

            A subject or a field of study is a branch of knowledge that is taught and researched at the school, college or university level.

            A school subject refers to an area of knowledge that is studied in school . It can be called a learning tool or the criteria by which we learn. More precisely, subjects are the parts into which learning can be divided. It is a field or sphere of knowledge in which the learner has chosen to specialise.

            It can sometimes be used synonymously with the term ‘discipline’ and can be referred to as a systematic instruction given to the students in a particular area of learning that follows a specific code of conduct.

Humanist educators argue that school subjects are created to provide students with “intrinsically rewarding experiences” that contribute to the pursuit of self actualization, personal growth, and individual freedom . School subjects, therefore, need to be formulated according to the interest, attitudes, and developmental stages of individual students. They need to derive content from a wide range of sources – such as personal experiences, human activities, and community cultures and wisdoms. Disciplinary knowledge might (or might not) be useful for the formation of school subjects.

 From the perspective of social efficiency, school subjects are constructed for the primary purpose of maintaining and enhancing economic and social productivity by equipping future citizens with the requisite knowledge, skills, and capital. The formation of school subjects, therefore, is justified with close reference to the needs of occupation, profession, and vocation. Specialized and applied fields (e.g., engineering, accounting, and marketing, among others), therefore, are the primary sources from which the contents of school subjects are derived.

For social reconstructionist, school subjects are created to provide students with meaningful learning experiences that might lead to emancipation and engender social agency. To this end, the formation of school subjects is based upon an examination of social contexts, social issues, and futures, with the intention of helping individuals reconstruct their own analyses, standpoints, and actions. Like humanistic educators, social reconstructionist believe that school subjects derive contents from a wide range of sources.

Definition for School Subject

A school subject can be defined as a branch of knowledge or a body of knowledge that is being provided to its learner.

According to Zongyi Deng “a school subject refers to an area of learning within the school curriculum that constitutes an institutionally defined field of knowledge and practice for teaching and learning.”

Meaning of Discipline

            The term ‘discipline’ originates from the Latin words discipulus, which means pupil, and disciplina, which means teaching. A discipline is focused study in one academic field or profession. A discipline incorporates expertise, people, projects, communities, challenges, studies, inquiry, and research areas that are strongly associated with a given discipline. A discipline may have branches, and these are often called sub-disciplines.

Meaning of Academic Discipline

An academic discipline or field of study is a branch of knowledge that is taught and researched as part of higher education.

Definition for Academic Discipline

According to Zongyi Deng “an academic discipline is a field or branch of learning affiliated with an academic department within a university, formulated for the advancement of research and scholarship and the professional training of researchers, academics, and specialists.

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SCHOOL SUBJECTS AND ACADEMIC DISCIPLINE

BASIS OF DIFFERENCE	SCHOOL SUBJECTS	ACADEMIC DISCIPLINES
Aims of education	Development of basic skills and awareness. Development of a social citizen.	Development of specialised knowledge and skills. Development of scholars, researchers, academics, specialists, etc.,
Nature of content	Simple ideas and informations.	Complex theories of educators.
Curriculum construction	Considering needs, wants of learners. Includes learner centred teaching methods.	Contents are arranged for the development of different specialised skills at complex and wider levels.
Development of skills	Gives importance for the development of basic skills , such as reading , writing and arithmetic.	Gives importance for the development of specialised skills, mainly professional and vocational skills.
Area of operation	Limited to Schools.	For university and other higher education.
Developmental phases	School subjects comes first in the development of a person.	Academic disciplines comes  later in one’s learning journey from school to university

Content of a School Subject

The argument proposed here is that teachers do need basic knowledge of related academic disciplines, but knowing the content of a school subject lies at the heart of their professional understanding. School subjects, not academic disciplines, constitute the “locus” of classroom teaching; they frame classroom teachers’ practice and per- spectives on curriculum and instruction . Knowing the content of a school subject involves knowing more than the content per se; it entails knowing the theory of content – i.e., knowing how the content is selected, formulated, framed, and transformed in ways that render meaningful and educative experiences for students. This knowing is crucial for disclosing the educational potential inherent in the content.

Teachers need to have three kinds of subject matter knowledge: content knowledge, pedagogical content knowledge, and curricular knowledge.  Content knowledge includes knowledge of the substance and structure of the academic discipline. Pedagogical content knowledge involves an understanding of pedagogical representations and instructional strategies, and of students’ pre-conceptions with respect to particular curriculum topics at particular grade levels. By means of this knowledge, the teacher transforms his or her disciplinary content into “forms that are pedagogically powerful and yet adaptive to the variations in ability and background presented by students”. Curricular knowledge involves an understanding of the curriculum and the instructional materials available for teaching a subject at various grade levels, which can be an aid to the transformation process.

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SCHOOL SUBJECTS AND ACADEMIC DISCIPLINE

School subjects can have different and variable relationships to academic disciplines, depending on their aims, contents, and developmental phases. School subjects are derived from and organized according to the “structure” of academic disciplines. They constitute a faithful and valid introduction to the academic disciplines. While students are dealing with relatively simple ideas and methods in school subjects, they study the same ideas and methods known by experts in the academic disciplines. So school subjects are the connecting links to academic disciplines. Academic disciplines are of complex nature, and they are the continuation of school subjects.

 School subjects are basis for the development of basic informations that will turns the learners into specialists in academic disciplines. A school subject results from the transformation of an Academic Discipline. School subjects come first and academic disciplines later in one’s learning journey from school to university. An academic discipline provides the endpoint for the formation of a school subject and the school subject furnishes the avenue for getting to know the academic discipline.

WHY STUDYING SCHOOL SUBJECTS ?

F To develop basic skills like reading ,writing and arithmetic [ 3R’s]

F To enhance students’ understanding of themselves, their society, their nation, the human world and the physical environment.

F To enable students to develop multiple perspectives on contemporary issues in different contexts (e.g., cultural, social, economic, political, and technological contexts).

F To help students become independent thinkers so that they can construct knowledge appropriate to changing personal and social circumstances.

F To develop in students a range of skills for life-long learning, including critical thinking skills, creativity, problem-solving skills, communication skills, and information technology skills.

F To help students appreciate and respect diversity in cultures and views in a pluralistic society and handle conflicting values.

F To help students develop positive values and attitude towards life, so that they can become informed and responsible citizens of society, the country and the world.

F They contribute to the pursuit of self actualization, personal growth, and individual freedom.

PRASANTH.S.R

ASST. PROF.IN GENERAL AND

COMMERCE EDUCATION