EMRS TGT key terms

The study and practice of how teachers design instruction, manage classrooms, and assess learning. It covers teaching methods, learning theories, and the reasoning behind instructional choices rather than subject content alone.

A learning theory holding that learners build new understanding by connecting new information to prior knowledge and experience, rather than passively receiving facts. It favours active, inquiry-based and collaborative classroom tasks.

Temporary support a teacher provides so a learner can complete a task just beyond independent ability. Support is gradually withdrawn as competence grows, shifting responsibility to the student.

The gap between what a learner can do alone and what they can do with guidance from a more capable person. Instruction targeted at this zone is challenging yet achievable.

Ongoing checks during teaching that reveal what students understand so instruction can be adjusted. It is low-stakes, feedback-oriented, and distinct from grading at the end of a unit.

Evaluation conducted at the end of a term, unit, or course to judge overall achievement against standards. Results are typically graded and reported rather than used to reshape ongoing teaching.

A precise statement of what a learner should know or be able to do by the end of a lesson or course. Outcomes are written in observable, measurable verbs and guide both teaching and assessment.

A hierarchical classification of cognitive objectives, from remembering and understanding through applying, analysing, and evaluating to creating. Teachers use it to pitch questions and tasks at varied levels of thinking.

Deliberately adapting content, process, or product to learners' readiness, interests, and profiles within a common classroom. It aims for equitable access to the same core learning goals.

An approach in which students with disabilities and other marginalised groups learn in mainstream classrooms with appropriate accommodations. It treats learner diversity as normal and removes barriers to participation.

A written document specifying a student's special educational needs, measurable goals, services, and accommodations. It is reviewed periodically with parents and specialists and is legally mandated under the RPWD framework.

Targeted instruction for learners who lag behind in specific skills, addressing gaps before moving on. It is diagnostic, usually in small groups, and distinct from enrichment for advanced learners.

An assessment used before or during instruction to identify specific strengths and error patterns in a learner's skills. Results guide remedial planning rather than ranking students.

A scoring guide listing criteria and performance levels for a task, often with descriptors for each level. It makes grading transparent and helps students understand expectations before they work.

Mental processes such as analysis, evaluation, and creation that go beyond recall and comprehension. Tasks demanding these skills usually require justification, comparison, or original problem-solving.

The disciplined habit of questioning assumptions, weighing evidence, and judging the strength of claims. In classrooms it is developed through argument, source evaluation, and open-ended problems.

An approach where students investigate genuine questions, gather and interpret evidence, and construct explanations. The teacher frames problems and guides process rather than delivering conclusions.

Systematic inquiry by a teacher into their own classroom practice to solve a local problem and improve instruction. It cycles through planning, acting, observing, and reflecting.

The habit of reviewing one's own teaching decisions and their effects on learners, then adjusting future practice. It may use journals, peer observation, or lesson recordings.

A structured arrangement in which a colleague watches a lesson and gives feedback for professional growth. It is non-evaluative and focuses on agreed aspects of teaching.

Sustained learning activities teachers undertake throughout their careers, such as workshops, courses, mentoring, and research. It aims to update subject knowledge and pedagogical skill beyond initial training.

India's current education policy framework, replacing the 1986 policy. It restructures school stages into 5+3+3+4, emphasises foundational literacy and numeracy, mother-tongue instruction in early years, and multidisciplinary higher education.

A national mission launched in 2021 to ensure every child attains foundational literacy and numeracy by the end of Grade 3. It sets learning targets and tracks them through a national framework.

The basic ability to read with comprehension and perform simple arithmetic, treated in NEP 2020 as the highest priority of early schooling. It is the stated goal of the NIPUN Bharat mission.

Indian law guaranteeing free and compulsory elementary education for children aged 6 to 14. It sets norms on pupil-teacher ratio, bans screening at admission, and bars detention and expulsion up to elementary level.

An assessment scheme covering scholastic and co-scholastic areas throughout the year rather than through single terminal exams. It uses multiple tools and aims to reduce exam stress.

India's Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, which recognises 21 specified disabilities and mandates inclusive education, reasonable accommodations, and non-discrimination in schools.

Eklavya Model Residential Schools, established to provide quality residential education to Scheduled Tribe students. They are run under the Ministry of Tribal Affairs and select teachers through a national test.

Schooling designed for and with Scheduled Tribe communities, addressing language, geography, and cultural barriers. It emphasises mother-tongue support, residential provision, and equitable access.

The use of two or more languages by a learner or community. NEP 2020 treats it as a resource, recommending mother-tongue medium in early grades and gradual transition to other languages.

The natural, subconscious process by which children internalise a first language through exposure and interaction. It differs from conscious learning of rules in a second language.

The ability to use a language appropriately across contexts, combining grammar with sociolinguistic and strategic skills. It is the aim of communicative language teaching rather than accuracy alone.

An intuitive grasp of quantities, place value, and relationships between numbers that supports mental computation and estimation. It is built through concrete manipulation before formal algorithms.

A staged teaching sequence moving from physical objects to diagrams and finally to symbols. It is widely used in mathematics to anchor abstract procedures in tangible experience.

A cyclical process of forming hypotheses, testing them through controlled observation or experiment, and revising explanations. It emphasises evidence, variables, and reproducibility.

The skill of reading tables, graphs, and charts to extract trends, comparisons, and conclusions. Aptitude tests use it to measure quantitative reasoning under time pressure.

The ability to draw valid conclusions from given premises, detect patterns, and identify flawed arguments. Common formats include syllogisms, series completion, and coding-decoding.

Instruction organised around learners' needs, interests, and pace rather than teacher-dominated delivery. It values participation, choice, and active construction of meaning.

The set of strategies a teacher uses to maintain an orderly, engaged, and safe learning environment. It includes routines, seating, transitions, and positive behaviour support.