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DOI: https://doi.org/10.63345/ijre.v15.i6.4
Dr. Aarti Sharma
Assistant Professor
Department of Education in Science and Mathematics (DESM)
Regional Institute of Education, Ajmer
National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT)
Ajmer, Rajasthan, India
ORCID ID: 0009-0001-9295-9280
Abstract— The implementation of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and the National Curriculum Framework for School Education (NCF-SE) 2023 has shifted Indian school education towards competency-based learning, emphasizing inquiry, critical thinking, and scientific literacy. Within this context, visual pedagogy has emerged as an important instructional approach for enhancing science learning. This study examines the pedagogical role of illustrations in the newly developed NCERT Curiosity science textbooks for Classes VI–VIII and explores their alignment with the objectives of competency-based science education.
Using a qualitative thematic review methodology, visual representations including diagrams, photographs, activity illustrations, infographics, and concept maps were systematically analyzed through a multidimensional coding framework. The analysis identified six major themes: conceptual visualization of scientific phenomena, inquiry-based and experiential learning, environmental awareness and sustainability education, development of scientific process skills, contextualization of science in everyday life, and multimodal and technology-enabled learning.
The findings indicate that illustrations function as pedagogical tools rather than decorative elements, supporting observation, interpretation, critical thinking, problem-solving, and evidence-based reasoning. The visual architecture of the textbooks reflects a deliberate shift toward learner-centred and competency-oriented pedagogy. By integrating authentic contexts, inquiry tasks, and multimodal representations, the textbooks contribute to the development of scientific
Keywords— Visual pedagogy; Competency-based learning; Science education; NCERT textbooks; NEP 2020; NCF-SE 2023; Thematic analysis; Middle school science; Scientific literacy; Curriculum reform.
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