Middle School Curriculum for Sikh Schools Developed.

The Sikh Research Institute (SikhRI) has announced the release of the new Middle School Curriculum under their Sojhl (Punjabi for “insight”) school curriculum program. The Sojhl – Gurmat and Punjabi Education resource – has developed their Middle School Curriculum in Boll (Language Arts) and Virsã (Sikh Heritage). The curriculum for grades 6 – 8 is standards based and expands on the curriculum developed for elementary schools in June 2006. Sojhl strives to improve the effectiveness of Sikh education by developing high standards of learning with comprehensive teaching materials. The Curriculum is oriented around the goal of developing insights to inspire a Guru-centered life.

Currently, thirty-five schools across US, Canada, and the UK are using the elementary school courseware. Jasmine Kaur, SikhRI Director of Educations says that, “Sojhi is the only Sikh curriculum which is developed from a standards perspective rather than a textbook-use perspective.” Content standards identify learning goals that define the knowledge, content and skills that students must achieve at particular grade levels. “We want students to be equipped with the right tools to cherish Sikhi in their daily lives,” she adds.

Example of Grade 7 Boli standard: Standard 6: Students identify and learn the differences between the types of nouns as they appear in Gurbani. Students will be able to recognize importance of the different noun types and how grammar and linguistics help us understand Gurbani.

Ardaman Kaur, a curriculum lead at Bridgewater Khalsa School says, “implementing Sojhi in our lower classes has made us appreciate that a lot of research and thought was put into the coursework by the Sikh Research Institute. We look forward to implementing the new Middle School curriculum that will engage our middle school scholars and further develop their leadership skills."

The new middle school curriculum package consists of two binders with over 150 lesson plans. It also comes with developmental milestones as well as 2 CDs – one with a audio files and the other with print-based resources for the classroom. The Sojhl team, consisting of over 15 full time, part time and volunteer staff members has developed comprehensive education plans for Sikh schools and continues to develop supplemental resources for classroom use.

Harinder Singh, the SikhRI Executive Director and the visionary behind the Sojhl curriculum project, highlights the importance of understanding Gurmat. “Our children need to connect with the Guru, Granth-Panth, to revive the original freshness of Sikhi from the perspective of Bani, history, and the Sikh lifestyle.”

For more information on how to order the new middle school curriculum or elementary school curriculum: Contact: Jasmine Kaur 210.757.4555 [email protected]

About the Sikh Research Institute:
The Sikh Research Institute is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization seeking to develop a principle-driven community by protecting the core and enlarging the resource pool. The Institute’s mission is to facilitate training and development while inspiring Sikh values, create global awareness of Sikhi, and deliver strategic solutions to the key challenges faced by the Sikh community. All donations are tax deductible.