Jaipur: School education department Wednesday ordered that students in all govt schools must read newspapers for 10 minutes daily during the morning assembly. Five new words from the newspaper will also be selected daily and explained during the morning assembly to improve students’ vocabulary.Officials said the initiative was to ensure students were aware of national, international, and sports-related events and that they develop a reading habit.
The order has come a week after the Uttar Pradesh govt made newspaper reading mandatory for govt school students.The department has instructed every govt senior secondary school and govt English-medium school to subscribe to a minimum of two newspapers, one in English and one in Hindi. Govt upper primary schools must subscribe to a minimum of two Hindi newspapers.“During the morning assembly, one national-level newspaper in English and one in Hindi should be read aloud. During this time, students should be divided into class-wise groups, and they should be made to read the main editorials and major news events related to national, international, and sports news,” states the order.Students assigned to read the news on a particular day must arrive at the school 30 mins before school time to prepare for the reading.“This initiative will not only improve students’ general knowledge, vocabulary, and social awareness but also prepare them for competitive examss. Our aim is to encourage students to read as much as possible, and newspapers are one of the best ways to do this. If a child reads, then automatically their comprehension and attention skills will improve,” said Krishna Kunal, secretary for school education.The necessary funds for newspapers in govt schools will be provided by Rajasthan School Education Council, Jaipur.Schools have been instructed to ensure that newspaper reading, spelling, and dictation exercises are conducted during the first two periods.
