Importance of Extracurricular Activities for Student Development
“Extracurricular activities” is a misnomer. Why “extra”? Secondary to what?
Why not “essential”?
At Sri Adwayananda Public School, while academics is of great importance,
the school now thrusts on extra-curricular or co-curricular activities as well.
The School interprets the “extra” in “extracurricular” to mean “enhanced,” not
of secondary importance. Skits, presentations, exhibitions, debates, and games are
interwoven with the time tables and classes, which not only act as ‘extra’ activities
but also enrich the curriculum.
On the Lower Secondary level, the children recently performed a Republic
Day skit for their parents. When they took up the roles of luminaries like Mahatma
Gandhi, Sarojini Naidu and Dr. B. R. Ambedkar, they learned more than the signing
of the Indian Constitution; they lived it.
Again, in sports, often considered “extracurricular,” the players learn
teamwork, individual initiative, perseverance and respect for rules, which carry over
into their curricular learning.
For students of the School, every experience is curricular, whether a walk
through the wooded greenery of the High School campus as part of a Biology class
or a visit from a working professional whose experiences echo what they have heard
in Economics class.
The school thrives to enrich and enhance learning by amalgamating regular academics
with these ‘co-curricular’ activities, where neither
one is ‘more important’ than the other. A place where learning is the central focus be
it lessons learnt in sports and activities, or lessons learnt in classes through the
academic curricula.
