Scope of EVS MCQ Quiz - Objective Question with Answer for Scope of EVS - Download Free PDF

Environmental Studies (EVS) is a multidisciplinary field that focuses on understanding the environment, its components, and the interactions between humans and nature.

Key Points

•  The Environmental Studies curriculum may lead to holistic learning of children if it is integrated, inclusive, and thematic.
• Integrated learning ensures that environmental concepts are connected to various subjects, providing a well-rounded understanding of the environment.
• Inclusive approaches ensure that every child, regardless of their background or abilities, has the opportunity to learn about environmental issues.
• Thematic teaching focuses on key themes related to the environment, allowing children to explore topics in-depth and make connections between different ideas.
• All of these approaches together help children gain a comprehensive understanding of environmental issues, promoting critical thinking, empathy, and problem-solving skills.

Hence, the correct answer is all of the above.

In a child-centered EVS classroom, the focus is on active engagement, student participation, and learning through hands-on experiences. 

Key Points

• Children will be seen participating in interactive discussions and group activities – This aligns with the principles of a child-centered classroom. Active engagement through discussions and group activities encourages critical thinking, collaboration, and learning from peers.
• Children will be encouraged to share their personal experiences and ideas – This is a common practice in a child-centered classroom. Sharing personal experiences helps students connect with the content and allows for deeper engagement with the subject matter.
• The classroom environment will be designed to be flexible, supporting various hands-on activities – Flexibility in the classroom environment supports the idea of active learning, where students can participate in hands-on activities that promote experiential learning and inquiry-based exploration.

Hint

• The teacher will conduct long lectures where students are expected to listen passively – This is least likely in a child-centered EVS classroom. In this approach, the teacher’s role is more of a facilitator than a lecturer. Passive listening is not encouraged because it doesn’t actively involve students in the learning process.

Hence, the correct answer is 'the teacher will conduct long lectures where students are expected to listen passively'.

The EVS syllabus of class III to V is connected and integrated within broad themes and sub-themes to make content more lively for students so that they can make the best of their educational experiences.

Key Points

• Assertion: "The theme-based EVS curriculum encourages the integration of activities like observation, experimentation, discussion, and field visits."
• This is true. Theme-based EVS teaching promotes experiential learning by integrating real-world, hands-on activities that make learning meaningful and connected to the learners' environment.
• Reason: "Such activities promote rote memorization and reduce learner engagement with the environment."
• This is false. These activities enhance engagement and understanding by encouraging critical thinking, exploration, and application of knowledge—exactly the opposite of rote memorization.

Hence, the Assertion is true, but the Reason is false.

In a child-centered Environmental Studies (EVS) classroom, the focus is on active learning where children engage in a variety of activities that foster curiosity, critical thinking, and hands-on experiences.Key PointsActivities likely to occur in a child centered EVS classroom:

• The seating arrangement will be seen to change according to the activity of the children- This is a common feature in child-centered classrooms. Seating arrangements are flexible and can be modified based on the activity (e.g., group discussions, experiments, project work), promoting collaboration and interaction among students.
• Children will also be seen sharing their experiences while discussing in the class- Sharing experiences is a key component of a child-centered classroom. It allows students to connect personal knowledge to the topic being studied, encourages peer learning, and enhances critical thinking.
• Children will be seen actively working in a variety of activities- This is a fundamental characteristic of a child-centered EVS classroom. Students engage in a variety of hands-on activities, such as field trips, experiments, and group work, which helps them understand environmental concepts more effectively.

Hint

• In a child-centered classroom, students are encouraged to be active participants in the learning process. While the teacher may facilitate learning, the goal is to minimize passive listening and focus on engagement. Therefore, this option is the least likely to occur in a child-centered classroom, as it emphasizes passive learning instead of active involvement.

Hence, the correct answer is 'Children will be seen in the classroom, listening to the teacher'.

The Environmental Studies (EVS) curriculum is an educational framework designed to introduce students, particularly at the primary and upper-primary levels, to the environment and its interconnected systems.

Key Points 
Assertion:

• The assertion is correct because the NCERT Environmental Studies curriculum follows a theme-based approach, which means that lessons are organized around central themes (such as "Food," "Water," "Environment," "Natural Resources," etc.).
• These themes are interrelated, meaning that the concepts from one theme are often connected to those in other themes. For example, discussions around natural resources may also touch on topics like conservation, pollution, and human impact.

Reason:

• The reason is also true because the theme-based curriculum does indeed promote a deeper understanding of each theme.
• Each theme is typically introduced with questions that stimulate curiosity and encourage students to explore the topic in greater detail. This approach not only helps students develop critical thinking but also makes learning more interactive and engaging.

Conclusion:

• Both the Assertion and the Reason are correct. Additionally, the Reason logically explains the Assertion, as it outlines the purpose behind the theme-based structure of the curriculum, which is to enhance understanding by starting with engaging questions related to each theme.

Hence, the correct answer is both Assertion and Reason are correct and Reason is the correct explanation of Assertion.

The EVS syllabus of class III to V is connected and integrated within broad themes and sub-themes to make content more lively for students so that they can make the best of their educational experiences.

Key Points

"Animals" is a subtheme under the broad theme "Family and Friends" suggested in the EVS syllabus while remaining are the broad themes of the EVS syllabus for class III to V.

Hence, we can conclude that Animals is a subtheme under the theme suggested in the EVS syllabus.

NCF(National Curriculum Framework) 2005 is one of the four NCF published in India by NCERT. It seeks to provide a framework for the betterment of educational purposes and experiences.

Key Points Providing a contextual learning environment is the most appropriate reason for the above-mentioned recommendations of NCF. 

• In early childhood, children look at their environment in a holistic manner.
• Therefore, in classes I and II the concepts of environmental science are integrated into language and mathematics
• Also, the teaching of language and mathematics are woven around the child's immediate environment to ensure contextual learning.

Hence, to provide a contextual learning environment, NCF 2005 has not recommended any prescribed curriculum and textbooks for EVS for classes I and II.

National Curriculum Framework, 2005: It is a document that seeks to provide a framework within which teachers and schools can choose and plan experiences that they think children should have. It addresses four issues such as educational purpose, educational experience, organization of experience, and assessing the learner.

Key Points

• The syllabus of EVS based on the NCF 2005 is designed to provide an integrated perspective that draws upon insights from sciences, social sciences, and environmental education. It is important to be acquainted with the organization of the syllabus in order to better understand and use the textbooks.
• Environmental Studies at the primary stage is perceived as an approach to learning of the environment in its totality without being burdened by any disciplinary consideration.​

Important Points
The thematic approach in the syllabus:- A child’s understanding of ‘environment’ begins with us (and our inner-self) and grows in an ever-expanding series of concentric circles to include family, neighborhood, school, community.

• The thematic structuring of the content is visualized to help the child locate himself/ herself in a larger context – as part of a community, the country, etc.
• This thematic organization also brings in a concept of the mutual dependence of ‘self’ with ‘others’ and natural environment, providing the child with a holistic perspective of the environment and the Planet Earth which we share with all other living organisms that are plants, animals and micro-organisms, interdependent and interrelatedness of all living things and life support systems.
• A significant feature of the syllabus is that it is ‘integrated’ in nature. It proposes themes that allow for a connected and inter-related understanding of different aspects of the different environments – natural and socio-cultural to develop.
• The  EVS syllabus for classes (III-V) as per NCF 2005 is woven around six common themes:-These themes provide an opportunity for introducing aspects of science, social science, and environmental education.
  • Family and Friends: Its sub-themes are:
    • Relationships
    • Work and Plan
    • Animals
    • Plants
  • Food
  • Shelter
  • Water
  • Travel
  • Things we make and do
• The content of the themes is derived from the child’s own experiences rather than a prescriptive body of knowledge or subject.
• These are presented based on the way a child encounters these in daily life. Starting with these personal experiences the child easily “connects” and builds links with theoretical knowledge.

Thus, it is concluded that Family & Friends, Food, Water, and Travel correctly represent four of the six themes suggested in the EVS syllabus as prescribed by NCF 2005.

Giving information is an easy task for a teacher in an EVS classroom because it depends on the teacher only. There is no need for compulsory involvement of learners. The teacher may just give the information he has regarding this topic. This is easy but also the least effective method of teaching. Key Points

• Engaging students is not that easy because it involves the planning of a lot of activities. Presenting the content in a very innovative way also requires a lot of teaching-learning materials.
• Addressing students' ideas and Providing opportunities to students for learning is also difficult compared to providing information because this requires a lot of time and patience due to which the syllabus completion may get delayed for some time.

Hence giving information to students is easy for a teacher in an EVS classroom but is also the least effective method compared to the other three.

India is a multilingual, multicultural, and multireligious country and the effect of this diversity could also be seen in the classroom. So, addressing the multicultural dimensions of diverse classrooms is a desirable practice for an EVS teacher.

Key Points A teacher should always address the multicultural dimensions of diverse classrooms by:

• using contents and examples from different cultures.

• providing equal educational opportunities to every learner.

• including learners irrespective of their caste, culture, and creed.

• helping learners to develop a positive attitude towards different cultures.

• modifying his/her teaching methodology to fulfill the multicultural needs of learners.

Hence, we conclude that addressing multicultural dimensions of diverse classrooms is a desirable practice for an EVS teacher.

The environment generally refers to the surroundings of an individual which includes social and as well as the natural environment. for example, culture, school, family, land, water, air, etc. 

• Environmental education is also known as Environmental Studies which include the study of different ecosystems in depth.  It also studies how humans can contribute positively to bring the desired changes in our environment.

Key Points

• Refuse, reduce, reuse, recycle is the main theme of environmental education which refers to the process in which children make to learn about environmental facts and issues.
• The main objective of environmental education is to help children to explore and connect to their surroundings to make them sensitized to their environment.
• It makes them able to solve environmental issues in an inclusive manner by exposing the natural world.
• The children will learn to refuse the use of materialistic things which are harmful to our environment and will reduce their usage in their daily life like the use of plastic can be replaced with other alternatives.
• The things which can be reused will be recycled and then they can use it for more than one time like paper.

​Thus, it is clear that environmental education will help the children in knowing and connecting with their environment with the main theme of "refuse, reduce, reuse and recycle".

Additional Information

Key Points

In the NCERT, EVS (environment studies) syllabus of primary class (III to V), there are six main themes: -

Broad Six Themes of EVS are:-

• Family and Friends: 
  • ​It encompasses four sub-themes:
    • Relationships
    • Work and Play
    • Animals
    • Plants
• Water : ​It deals with the important issue of water like the availability and conservation of water. 
• Travel: ​It suggests traveling throughout deserts, hills, forests, or big cities. It also suggests classroom resources like the experience of the children of migrating families and discussion on problems they face while a new life in a new city begins. 
• Food: ​​It deals with cooking and eating in the family. This is the theme about what we, others, and animals eat, etc.
• Shelter: It includes habitat, which is associated with the world of Living things. It deals with the differences between urban and rural houses. It also deals with a variety of houses in different topographical regions. 
• Things we Make and Do: We humans make things not only to meet our daily needs but also to express ourselves in different ways to delimit our limitations. We also comprehend better when we do things ourselves.

Hence, from the above discussion, we may say that 'AIR' is not a theme or even sub-theme of EVS (environment studies).

At the primary level, Environmental Education (EE) is introduced as Environmental Studies (EVS). EVS for classes III to V deals with the study of our environment (physical, biological, and socio-cultural) with an emphasis on its preservation and conservation (NCF 2005). 

• EVS, at the primary stage, is an integrated subject area that draws upon insights from sciences (physical, chemical, and biological), social studies (history, geography, political science, sociology, etc), and environmental education (protection and conservation).
• It helps children connect with their natural and human-made environment and in understanding our dependence on the various components of the environment (biotic, abiotic, and human-made).
• Also, It helps children develop a holistic understanding of their environment including the socio-cultural environment.
• Further, It helps children in maintaining a multidisciplinary perspective to the understanding of our environmental issues/problems and appreciate the impact/s of our daily activities on its integrity.

Scope of EVS:

• The main aim of EVS as mentioned in NCF 2005 is “to expose students to the real-life world, natural and social, in which they live; to enable them to analyze, evaluate, and draw inferences about problems and concerns related to the environment; to add, wherever possible, to our understanding of environmental issues; and to promote positive environmental actions in order to facilitate the move towards sustainable development”.
• The NCF 2005 endorses the scope of EVS by emphasizing that it has to raise awareness and understanding of children about their environment, building capacities to develop a holistic vision and participate in its protection and management his assertion gains importance as the world is increasingly moving towards protection and conservation of environment.
• EVS has organized around three broad principles
  • Learning about the environment
  • Learning through the environment
  • Learning for the environment
• Hence the scope of EVS is very wide. It ranges from using the environment as a medium of learning to all that one can do to protect and conserve it.
• The contents are spirally organized starting with the immediate experience of the child (known) moving out to the world she/he inhabits (unknown), leading to an analysis of some of the factors that influence life on this planet.
• The focus of EVS enlarges from the personal to the national and global (local to global), from a physical dimension to the aesthetic dimension.
• The teaching-learning of EVS is thus just not a study area for primary stage children but is a training ground for developing environmentally friendly attitudes, values, habits, and behaviors among the children.
• EVS is believed to be a permanent investment in creating a sustainable society. Thus, the scope of EVS lies in not only helping children explore and understand their environment but also in:
  • developing positive attitudes, values, and practices such as respect and care for all life on earth, compassion, caring for self and others, conservation of natural resources, appreciation of cooperative learning, sense of belonging, social responsibility, valuing culture, etc.
  • generating positive and proactive actions in improving the quality of the environment
  • promoting a conservation ethic and adoption of environment-friendly practices and habits

From the above, it is clear that developing positive values for non-living things is not a scope of EVS.

Social development is about improving the well-being of every individual in society so they can reach their full potential.

Key PointsSocial development is the change over time in an individual's understanding of, attitudes concerning, and behavior toward others. For example, a developmental change in how people behave with members of the other gender or their understanding of what friendship entails.

Hurdles in the path of Social development:

• The persistence of poverty and vulnerability to poverty.
• Unfair and inefficient structural inequalities and the culture of privilege.
• Disparities in the development of human capacities – education, health, and nutrition – and access to basic services.
• Decent work deficits and uncertainties associated with technological transformations in the world of work.
• Communalism as communalism has divided our society for a long. It causes belief in orthodox tenets and principles, intolerance, hatred towards other religions and religious groups, distortion of historical facts, and communal violence and is a barrier to social development.
• An insufficient level of social investment; and
• Emerging obstacles: various forms of violence; increasing exposure to disasters and the effects of climate change; demographic, epidemiological, and nutritional transitions; migration; and technological changes and the new capacities they require.

Thus, it is clear that communalism is a hurdle in the path of social development.