New Delhi: The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), New Delhi, is all set to introduce gym operations as a subject for Std XI and XII. The course will be offered from the next academic session i.e. 2012-13. As per sources, the Board has taken the decision by keeping in view the rapid growth of the fitness industry in India. The Fitness and Gym Operation will be a vocational course in sports. By introducing such an innovative course, CBSE anticipates that it will help students learn the skills that employers are looking for.
The Board is just not treating this subject as an equivalent to physical education, but it is also focusing on the management aspect of the fitness industry. According to a circular issued by the Board recently, while pursuing this course, students will be required to study the local gym management scenario. Students will study about selecting a suitable location and establishment of a gym, its publicity requirements, policy, reception and information etc.
Sources informed that the central board is now in talks with various organizations for a joint certification of the course - either partially or fully. The course exam will be of 100 marks of which theory will account for 60. There will be five units in the theory section (for both Std XI and XII) which will traverse variety of topics such as nutrition, fitness profiling, menu planning and financial operations etc.
However, practical(s) would carry 40 marks and will not restrict just to doing physical exercises in the school campus. Students of Std XI will have to visit local gyms and study the procurement, placement and maintenance of equipments, whereas Std XII students will study tele-marketing and etiquettes, along with 'concept of dietary aids and gimmicks'.
Schools, who to start this course, will be required to follow stringent guidelines of the CBSE. Firstly, schools will require a fully functional gym along with a permanent staff member who has a post graduate degree in physical education. This staff member will have to attend a CBSE orientation programme at a venue, to be announced by the Board later. In addition, students, too, will have to undergo a 15-day internship during their summer vacation at a gym designated by the Board, at their own cost.
