Employability Skills

Textbook for Class X

 ISBN 978-93-5292-218-5

First Edition ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

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 Foreword

The National Curriculum Framework–2005 (NCF–2005) recommends

bringing work and education into the domain of the curricular, infusing it in
all areas of learning while giving it an identity of its own at relevant stages.
It explains that work transforms knowledge into experience and generates
important personal and social values such as self-reliance, creativity and

an educational activity with an inherent potential for inclusion. Therefore,

an experience of involvement in productive work in an educational setting
will make one appreciate the worth of social life and what is valued and
appreciated in society. Work involves interaction with material or other
people (mostly both), thus creating a deeper comprehension and increased
practical knowledge of natural substances and social relationships.
Through work and education, school knowledge can be easily linked

the legacy of bookish learning and bridges the gap between the school,
home, community and the workplace. The NCF–2005 also emphasises
on Vocational Education and Training (VET) for all those children who
wish to acquire additional skills and/or seek livelihood through vocational
education after either discontinuing or completing their school education.

As a follow-up of this, NCERT has attempted to infuse work across

the subject areas and also contributed in the development of the National

learning outcomes, which the learner must possess regardless of whether

they are obtained through formal, non-formal or informal learning.
The NSQF sets common principles and guidelines for a nationally

and Training Institutions, Technical Education Institutions, Colleges

and Universities.
It is under this backdrop that Pandit Sunderlal Sharma Central Institute
of Vocational Education (PSSCIVE), Bhopal, a constituent of NCERT has
developed learning outcomes based modular curricula for the vocational
subjects from Classes IX to XII. This has been developed under the
Centrally Sponsored Scheme of Vocationalisation of Secondary and Higher
Secondary Education of the Ministry of Human Resource Development.
This textbook takes care of generic skills embedded in various job roles
in a comprehensive manner and also provides more opportunities and
scope for students to engage with these common and necessary skills,
such as communication, critical thinking and decision making in different
situations pertaining to different job roles.
I acknowledge the contribution of the development team, reviewers
and all the institutions and organisations, which have supported in the
development of this textbook.
NCERT would welcome suggestions from students, teachers and
parents, which would help us to further improve the quality of the material
in subsequent editions.

HRUSHIKESH SENAPATY
Director
New Delhi National Council of Educational
June 2018 Research and Training

(iv)
 About the Textbook

look for in a potential employee. These skills equip the employees to

carry out their role to the best of their ability and client satisfaction. For
example, the ability to explain what you mean in a clear and concise way
through written and spoken means, helps to build a better relationship
with the client or the customer. Similarly, handling stress that comes with

be done through effective self-management training. It can also be done

by working well with other people from different disciplines, backgrounds,

expect that the employees should be able to make use of elementary

functions of information and communication technology to retrieve,
access, store, produce, present and exchange information in collaborative
networks via the Internet. Students need to develop entrepreneurial skills,
so that they can develop necessary knowledge and skills to start their own
business, thus becoming job creators rather than job seekers. Potential
employees need to develop green skills, which are the technical skills,
knowledge, values and attitudes needed in the workforce to develop and
support sustainable social, economic and environmental outcomes in
business, industry and the community. Thus, as a student you are expected
to acquire a range of skills so that you can meet the skill demands of the
organisation that you would work for or to set up and run your own business.

self-management, information and communication technology,

entrepreneurial and green skills. It has been developed as per the learning
outcome based curriculum. The employability skills are embedded in the

The textbook aims to provide learning experience through a blended

approach of text and video-based interactive e-learning lessons. Running
these e-learning lessons in classrooms would require a computer with
Internet connection, projector and sound system, which the school should
provide to the teachers and students. The teachers will guide you to actively
participate in class — asking and answering questions and following the
instructions to complete the exercises and activities.

VINAY SWARUP MEHROTRA

Professor and Head
Curriculum Development and Evaluation Centre
and NSQF Cell,
PSS Central Institute of Vocational Education, Bhopal

(vi)
 Acknowledgements

The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT)

expresses its gratitude to all members of the Project Approval Board

(MHRD), Government of India, for their cooperation in the development

of this textbook. The Council would like to thank Rajesh P. Khambayat,
Joint Director, PSS Central Institute of Vocational Education (PSSCIVE),
Bhopal for providing support and guidance in the development of
this textbook.
The Council extends its gratitude to Vinay Swarup Mehrotra, Professor
and Head, Department of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry and
Curriculum Development and Evaluation Centre, PSSCIVE, Bhopal, for
his untiring efforts, skillful guidance and assistance in the development
and publishing of this textbook. The Council is grateful to Saroj Yadav,
Professor and Dean (Academic), NCERT, and Ranjana Arora, Professor and
Head, Department of Curriculum Studies, NCERT for their sincere efforts

The Council acknowledges the contribution of the following review

committee members from PSSCIVE — Abhijit Nayak, Professor and Head,
Department of Health and Paramedical, Dipak Shudhalwar, Associate
Professor and Head, Department of Engineering and Technology, Kuldeep
Singh, Associate Professor, Department of Agriculture and Animal
Husbandry, Mridula Saxena, Professor, Department of Home Science and
Hospitality Management, P. Veeraiah, Professor and Head, Department of
Business and Commerce, Pinki Khanna, Professor and Head, Department
of Home Science and Hospitality Management, Rajiv Pathak, Professor,
Department of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry, Saurabh Prakash,
Professor, Department of Engineering and Technology, R.K. Shukla,
Professor, Department of Business and Commerce and Vipin K. Jain,
Associate Professor and Head, Department of Humanities, Science,
Education and Research for reviewing this textbook.
The Council also acknowledges the valuable contribution of
Aakash Sethi, , Quest Alliance, Aditi Kumar,
Project Manager, Quest Alliance, Amit Singh, Advisor, National Institute
for Entrepreneurship and Small Business Development, Austin Thomas,
Executive Vice President, Wadhwani Foundation, Mekin Maheshwari, Chief
, Udhyam Learning Foundation, Nidhi Sahni, Curriculum
Manager, Wadhwani Foundation, Nikita Bengani, Senior Program
Manager, Quest Alliance, Poonam Sinha, Joint Director, National Institute
for Entrepreneurship and Small Business Development, Rohit Massey,
Consultant, National Institute for Entrepreneurship and Small Business
Development, Shivani Gandhi, Program Manager, Udhyam Learning
Foundation, Sonal K Jain, Consultant, Wadhwani Foundation, Sunil
Dahiya, Executive Vice President, Wadhwani Foundation, and Vikrant
Chandela, Associate Director, Wadhwani Foundation for their assistance
in development of the textbook and for providing illustrations for the
textbook. Vikas Kogey, Visual Analyser and Pinki Tiwari, Graphic Designer,
PSSCIVE, Bhopal are also duly acknowledged for redrawing illustrations
for the textbook. The images other than these used in the textbook have
been sourced from the Creative Commons License.
The Council also acknowledges the copyediting and valuable
contribution of Shilpa Mohan, Assistant Editor (Contractual) Publication
Division, NCERT, in shaping this textbook.
The efforts of Pawan Kumar Barriar, DTP Operator and Sachin Tanwar,
DTP Operator
layout design are also acknowledged.

(viii)
 CONTENTS
Foreword iii
About the Textbook v
Unit 1 Communication Skills 1
Session 1 Methods of Communication 1
Session 2 Verbal Communication
Non-verbal Communication 10
Session 4 Communication Cycle and Importance of Feedback 16
Session 5 Barriers to Effective Communication 20
Session 6 Writing Skills — Parts of Speech 24
Writing Skills — Sentences
Unit 2 Self-management Skills 39
Session 1 Stress Management 40
Session 2 Self-awareness — Strength and Weakness Analysis 46
Self-motivation 51
Session 4 Self-regulation — Goal Setting 54
Session 5 Self-regulation — Time Management 58
Unit 3 Information and Communication Technology Skills 63
Session 1 Basic Computer Operations
Session 2 Performing Basic File Operations
Computer Care and Maintenance
Session 4 Computer Security and Privacy
Unit 4 Entrepreneurial Skills 84
Session 1 Entrepreneurship and Society 85
Session 2 Qualities and Functions of an Entrepreneur
Myths about Entrepreneurship
Session 4 Entrepreneurship as a Career Option
Unit 5 Green Skills 103
Session 1 Sustainable Development
Session 2 Our Role in Sustainable Development
Answer Key 114
Glossary 117
 1
Communication
Skills

INTRODUCTION
In the present time, a thorough knowledge
of language with communication skills
is very important in any occupation or
business. As a student, you may study
any language, but it is important that you
are able to read, write, speak and listen
well in order to communicate properly.
Speaking more than one language can
help you to communicate well with people
around the world. Learning English can
help you to communicate with people who
understand English besides the mother
tongue i.e., the language one has been
exposed to since birth.

SESSION 1: METHODS OF COMMUNICATION

The word ‘communication’ comes from the Latin word
, meaning ‘to share’.
Being able to communicate effectively is one of the
most important life skills. Communication skills are
 NOTES needed to communicate effectively with people and
customers. This module aims to help you improve your
communication skills.
Clear and concise communication is of immense
importance in work and business environment as there
are several parties involved. Various stakeholders, like,
customers, employees, vendors, media, etc., are always
sending important information to each other.
Communication has three important parts:
1. Transmitting — The sender transmits the
message through one medium or another.
2. Listening — The receiver listens or understands
the message.
3. Feedback — The receiver conveys their
understanding of the message to the sender in the
form of feedback to complete the communication
cycle.
Let us look at an example below in an outlet of a
bookstore:
Customer (to a retail associate): Do you have the
textbook of published by National
Council of Educational Research and Training?
Salesperson : Let me check.
In the above conversation, the is being
by the . The is
the in this case. The discussion about book is
the .
Salesperson: Yes, we have the textbook of
.
Customer: Please give me one copy of the textbook.
I want to purchase it.
In the above conversation, the
(i.e., the salesperson) is the . This is an
example of a communication between the customer and
the salesperson.
The process of conveying a message is complete
only when the person receiving it has understood the
message in its entirety. In this case, the customer
understood that the book store has the textbook and
they can get a copy of the same.

2 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

Communication Process and Elements
Let us see the process of communication in detail.

Information/ Behaviour/
Input Output
The Channel—
What speaking, writing
I mean graphic, video, etc. What
I understand

Coding The Message De-coding

The The
At least some
Messenger Recepient
code in common

Sender sends a
message
Giving Information

Message
(Encoding) channel
Sender Receiver
Communication A Channel is
starts with used to transfer
sender the message

Reply to Sender
(Encoding)

Receiver channel Message is Receiving Information

replies to the received by the
sender receiver

COMMUNICATION SKILLS 3
 The various elements of a communication cycle are:
Sender: the person beginning the communication.
Message: the information that the sender wants to
convey.
Channel: the means by which the information is sent.
Receiver: the person to whom the message is sent.
Feedback: the receiver’s acknowledgement and response
to the message.
We are constantly use some form of communication or
another to send a message across. Without the different
methods of communication available today, it would be

done today and with the same swiftness. Some common

methods of communication are given in Table 1.1.
Table 1.1: Methods of Communication
Method Description Pictorial Description
Face-to-face informal There is nothing better than face-to-face
communication communication. It helps the message
to be understood clearly and quickly.
Also, since body language can be seen
in this case; it adds to the effectiveness
of the communication.

e-mail e-mail can be used to communicate

quickly with one or many individuals

convenience and low-cost.

Notices/Posters It is effective when the same message

has to go out to a large group of
people. Generally used for where email
communication may not be effective.
For example, ‘Change in the lunch time
for factory worker,’ or ‘XYZ Clothing
will remain closed for customers on
Sunday.’
Business Meetings Communication during business
meetings at an organisation are generally
addressed to a group of people. It can
be related to business, management
and organisational decisions.

4 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

Other Methods There can be various other methods
like social networks, message, phone
call for communication, newsletter,
blog, etc.

Choosing the right method of communication

depends on
target audience
costs
kind/type of information
urgency/priority
The methods of communication you choose could affect
your relationship with peers, supervisors and customers.
It is, therefore, vital that you spend considerable time
and consider all factors choosing the right methods to
aid you in your tasks.

Practical Exercises
The teacher will facilitate these activities by showing you the
e-learning lesson at http://www.psscive.ac.in/stud_text_book.
html. This will include videos and e-content for the above topics
as well as detailed instructions for some activities below.
Initial Thinking Activity
After watching the initial video in the e-learning lesson for
this topic, write the answer of the following question: Why is it
important to communicate effectively?

Activity 1
Role Play on Communication
Procedure
Form groups with four students in each group.
The situation is that a student is Sales Executive at a
toy store and he or she is supposed to communicate to
customers about the various types of toys available with
the store for different age group.
The other students will reach the Sales Executive one by
one and ask different types of questions related to toys.
Develop a script for the role play and act on the same.
Discuss what you all learned from this activity.

COMMUNICATION SKILLS 5
 NOTES Activity 2
Identifying Elements of the Communication Cycle in Activity 1
Material required
Paper and pencil
Procedure
Each student will draw a communication cycle.
The entire class will then discuss how each element
affected communication during Activity 1.

Check Your Progress

A. Multiple choice questions
Read the questions carefully and circle the letter(s) (a),
(b), (c) or (d) that best answer(s) the question. (Note: There
can be more than one correct choice)

1. Which of the following is NOT an element of communication

within the communication process cycle?
(a) Channel
(b) Receiver
(c) Sender
(d) Time
2. You need to apply leave at work? Which method of
communication will you use?
(a) e-mail
(b) Poster
(c) Newsletter
(d) Blog
3. By which action can senders send their messages?
(a) Gestures
(b) Speaking
(c) Reading
(d) Writing

B. Subjective question

1. Make a chart highlighting all the methods of

communication. Use markers and colours to highlight
differences amongst all.

What Have You Learnt?

After this session, you will be able to
identify the different communication elements.
explain the communication process along with all the
communication elements.
list the various methods of communication.

6 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

SESSION 2: VERBAL COMMUNICATION
Verbal communication includes sounds, words,
language, and speech. Speaking is one of the most
effective and commonly used way of communicating. It
helps in expressing our emotions in words. By improving
your verbal communication skills you will build rapport,
and have a better connect. Table 1.2 lists the important
forms of verbal communication.
Table 1.2: Verbal Communication
Type of Verbal Examples
Communication
Interpersonal This form of communication takes
Communication place between two individuals and is
thus a one-on-one conversation. It
can be formal or informal.

1. A manager discussing the

performance with an employee.
2. Two friends discussing
homework.
3. Two people talking to each other
over phone or video call.
Written Communication This form of communication
involves writing words. It can be
letters, circulars, reports, manuals,
SMS, social media chats, etc. It can
be between two or more people.

1. A manager writing an
appreciation e-mail to an
employee.
2. Writing a letter to grandmother
enquiring about health.

Small Group This type of communication takes

Communication place when there are more than two
people involved. Each participant
can interact and converse with
the rest.

1. Press conferences
2. Board meetings
3. Team meetings

COMMUNICATION SKILLS 7
Public Communication This type of communication takes
place when one individual addresses
a large gathering.
Examples
1. Election campaigns
2. Public speeches by dignitaries

Advantages of Verbal Communication

It is an easy mode of communication in which you
can exchange ideas by saying what you want and get
a quick response. Verbal communication also enables
you to keep changing your interaction as per the other
person’s response.

Disadvantages of Verbal Communication

Since verbal communication depends on written or spoken
words, sometimes the meanings can be confusing and

Mastering Verbal Communication

Most people tend to get nervous while speaking in front
of a large group, or even while speaking to their teachers,
managers or supervisors. However, if you focus on the
points given in Table 1.3, you can enhance and master
your verbal communication skills.
Table 1.3: Mastering Verbal Communication
Think Before You Think about your topic.
Speak Think about the most effective ways to make your listeners
understand the topic.
Write or note down whatever you plan to say.
Concise and Clear Speak clearly, loudly and at moderate speed.
Be sure the information you want to share is to the point.
Do not repeat the same sentences.

Body Language Maintain eye contact, stand straight and be attentive.

Be friendly.

Practical Exercise
The teacher will facilitate these activities by showing you the
e-Learning lesson at http://www.psscive.ac.in/stud_text_book.
html. This will include videos and e-content for the above topics
as well as detailed instructions for some activities below.

8 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

 Initial Thinking Activity NOTES
After watching the video in the e-Learning lesson for this topic write
down why do you think Tina’s directions were misunderstood?
How would you have given directions on the phone?

Activity 1
Group-Practice: Role Play of a Telephonic Conversation
Material required
Notebook, pen
Procedure
Form groups with three students in each group.
Write a phone conversation based on a given scenario of a
student calling a university academic coordinator to know
about study courses and admission procedure.
One student acts as caller and the other as receiver.
Read out the conversation by enacting the roles.
The third student gives feedback based on the 7Cs of
communication (clear, concise, concrete, correct, coherent,
complete and courteous).

Activity 2
Group-Practice on Public Speaking
Material required
Notebook, pen
Procedure
Form groups with three students in each group.
Within the group, choose a topic for a short speech.
For example, Importance of Punctuality, Healthy Food
Habits, etc.
Each person should make a speech to the others in the
group; who then give feedback based on whether the
person was able to communicate properly.
One student from the group volunteers to give the same
speech in front of the class.

Check Your Progress

A. Multiple choice questions
Read the questions carefully and circle the letter (a), (b),
(c) or (d) that best answers the questions.

1. Which of the following is an example of oral

communication?
(a) Newspapers
(b) Letters
(c) Phone call
(d) e-mail

COMMUNICATION SKILLS 9
 NOTES 2. What are the types of words we should use for
verbal communication?
(a) Acronyms
(b) Simple
(c) Technical
(d) Jargons
3. Why do we use e-mails?
(a) To communicate with many people at the same time.
(b)
(c) To talk to each other in real-time.
(d) To keep a record of communication.

B. Subjective question

1. List the different types of verbal communication.

Include examples for each verbal communication type.

What Have You Learnt?

After completing this session, you will able to
describe different types of verbal communication.
list the advantages and disadvantages of verbal
communication.

SESSION 3: NON-VERBAL COMMUNICATION

Non-verbal communication is the expression or
exchange of information or messages without using any
spoken or written word.
In other words, we send signals and messages to
others, through expressions, gestures, postures, touch,
space, eye contact and para language. In this session,

10 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

you will learn about the importance of different types
of non-verbal communication skills and also know the
correct body language to be used for communication.

Importance of Non-verbal Communication

In our day-to-day communication
55% communication is done using body
movements, face, arms, etc.
38% communication is done using voice, tone,
pauses, etc.
only 7% communication is done using words.

As we can see in Figure 1.4, around 93% of our

communication is non-verbal. Certain examples of
communicating with tone of voice and body language
are shown in Table 1.4.
Table 1.4: Non-verbal Communication
Non-Verbal Communication
Gestures Raising a hand to greet or say goodbye

Expressions Smiling when you are happy

Making a sad face when you are sad

COMMUNICATION SKILLS 11
Body Language Postures by which attitudes and feelings
are communicated. Standing straight,
showing interest.

Our message becomes more effective if we use the

right gestures while communicating.
If we know about non-verbal communication,
we can understand our audience’s reaction and
adjust our interaction accordingly.
Using the right gestures and postures is a sign of
professionalism and etiquette.
If verbal messages are obstructed by noise or
distance, etc., we can use our hand movements to

on the lips indicates the need for silence while

nodding the head is the same as saying ‘yes’.
As mentioned in Table 1.5, let us learn about some
of the ways in which we communicate non-verbally.
Table 1.5: Types of Non-verbal Communication
Type What it means How to use effectively?
Facial Expressions Our expressions can show different Smile when you
feelings, such as Happiness, meet someone.
Sadness, Anger, Surprise, Fear, etc. Keep your face relaxed.
Match your expressions
with your words.
Nod while listening.

Posture Keep your shoulders

feelings. For example, a straight straight and body relaxed.
Sit straight while resting
while a slumped posture is a sign of your hands and feet in
weakness. relaxed position.
While standing, keep your
hands by your sides.
Gestures or Gestures include body movements Keep your hands open.
Body Language that express an idea or meaning.
For example, raising a hand in at people.
class to ask a question and biting Tilt your head a bit to show
nails when nervous. that you are attentive.

12 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

 Touch We communicate a great deal
through touch. For example, meeting someone.
Avoid other touch
gestures during formal
to encourage someone. communication.

Space Space is the physical distance Maintain proper space

between two people. The space depending on the
between tow persons while relationship, which could
communicating, generally depends be formal or informal or
on the intimacy or closeness the closeness with the
between them. person with whom you
are talking.
Eye Contact The way we look at someone can Look directly at the person
communicate a lot. Eye contact who is speaking.
shows that we are paying attention Avoid staring; keep a
to the person as opposed to looking relaxed look.
away, which can make the other Maintain eye contact with
person feel ignored. intermittent breaks.
Paralanguage How we speak affects our Use a suitable tone
communication and includes the and volume
tone, speed and volume of our Maintain a moderate speed
voice. For example, talking fast while talking
may show happiness, excitement or
nervousness while speaking slow
may show seriousness or sadness.

Visual Communication
Visual communication proves to be effective since it
involves interchanging messages only through images
or pictures and therefore, you do not need to know any
particular language for understanding it. It is simple
and remains consistent across different places. Some
common types of visual communication are shown in
Table 1.6.
Table 1.6: Examples of Visual Communication
Visual Communication: Exchanging Information through Images
Under construction No pets allowed

COMMUNICATION SKILLS 13
No parking zone No entry

Danger warning Radiation/biohazard

warning

Under CCTV surveillance No mobile phone

Practical Exercises
The teacher will facilitate these activities by showing you the
e-learning lesson at http://www.psscive.ac.in/stud_text_book.
html. This will include videos and e-content for the above topics
as well as detailed instructions for some activities below.
Initial Thinking Activity
After watching the initial video in the e-learning lesson for this
topic write down how could Rohit understand something was
wrong with Amar? Can you understand how your friends are
feeling even when they do not tell you anything?

Activity 1
Group-Practice: Role-play on Non-verbal Communication
Material required
Notebook, pen
Procedure
Form groups with three students in each group.
Prepare the script for the role play, based on the given
scenario. For example, a hearing impaired salesperson is
attending a female customer at an apparel store.
Act it out in front of your group.
One group volunteers to act before your whole class.
Discuss how students used non-verbal communication.
Was this communication effective?

14 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

 Activity 2
NOTES
Group-Practice: How to Avoid Body Language Mistakes
Material required
Notebook, pen
Procedure
In the same group of three students as above, discuss what
are the Dos and Don’ts of avoiding miscommunication
because of body language.
Each student should write down a list of these Dos and
Don’ts. (Prepare the lists as homework, if there is less time
left to complete the task in class).

Activity 3
Individual-Practice: Comparing Methods of Communication
Material required
Notebook, pen
Procedure
Discuss the three methods of communication (Verbal,
Non-verbal and Visual).
Ask each student to write a list of the advantages and
disadvantages of each method.
Practice: In all your conversations at home and school,
pay attention to the non-verbal signs others are using.
Practice using the non-verbal methods you learnt here in
the right manner.

Check Your Progress

A. Multiple choice questions
Read the questions carefully and circle the letter (a), (b),
(c) or (d) that best answers the question.

1. Which of these is a positive (good) facial expression?

(a) Frowning while concentrating
(b) Maintaining eye contact
(c) Smiling continuously
(d) Rolling up your eyes
2. What does an upright (straight) body posture convey
or show?
(a) Pride
(b) Professionalism
(c)
(d) Humility
3. Which of these is NOT an appropriate non-verbal
communication at work?
(a) Keeping hands in pockets while talking
(b) Talking at moderate speed

COMMUNICATION SKILLS 15
 NOTES (c) Sitting straight
(d) Tilting head a bit to listen
4. Which of the following statement is true
about communication?
(a) 50% of our communication is non-verbal
(b) 20% communication is done using body movements,
face, arms, etc.
(c) 5% communication is done using voice, tone,
pauses, etc.
(d) 7% communication is done using words
5. Put a X mark against the actions below which are
examples of bad non-verbal communication.
Laughing during formal communication
Scratching head
Smiling when speaking to a friend
Nodding when you agree with something
Standing straight
Yawning while listening
Sitting straight
Maintaining eye contact while speaking
Biting nails
Firm Handshake
Clenching jaws
Looking away when someone is speaking to you
Intense stare

B. Subjective question

1.
Communication. Explain what each conveys and where
did you see it?

What Have You Learnt?

After completing this session, you will be able to
explain non-verbal and visual communication and
their importance.
identify different types of non-verbal communication.
use non-verbal communication in the right manner at work.
avoid common mistakes in non-verbal communication.

SESSION 4: COMMUNICATION CYCLE AND

IMPORTANCE OF FEEDBACK
Feedback is an important part of the communication
cycle. For effective communication, it is important
that the sender receives an acknowledgement from

16 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

the receiver about getting the message across.
While a sender sends information, the receiver
provides feedback on the received message.
Translated to the work environment, when you
observe someone perform their work and then,
communicate with them to help improve their
performances, you are giving feedback. Feedback
can be positive or negative. A good feedback is always

helpful
kind

Table 1.5: Types of Feedback

Type of Feedback Examples

Positive Feedback
perfectly. Great job!
I really appreciate you taking that
call. Can you please also share
the details?

Negative Feedback You keep forgetting to smile at the

hotel guests when you talk
to them.
You take really long to reply to
e-mails! Are you always so busy?

No Feedback It is also a feedback in itself which

indicates disagreement of ideas.

Feedback
Feedback, if shared properly, can help reinforce existing
strengths and can increase the recipient’s abilities to

COMMUNICATION SKILLS 17
 NOTES rectify errors. It can have a long-term effect in managing
and achieving goals.
A good feedback is one that is:
Avoid general comments. Try to
include examples to clarify your statement.
Offering alternatives rather than just giving
advice allows the receiver to decide what to do
with your feedback.
Timely: Being prompt is the key, since feedback
loses its impact if delayed for too long.
Polite: While it is important to share feedback,
the recipient should not feel offended by the
language of the feedback.
Offering continuing support: Feedback sharing
should be a continuous process. After offering
feedback, let recipients know you are available
for support.

Importance of Feedback

important factors in the process of communication since

the sender. Let us look at certain reasons why feedback

is important.
It validates effective listening: The person
providing the feedback knows they have been
understood (or received) and that their feedback
provides some value.
It motivates: Feedback can motivate people to
build better work relationships and continue the
good work that is being appreciated.
It is always there: Every time you speak to
a person, we communicate feedback so it is
impossible not to provide one.
It boosts learning: Feedback is important to
remain focussed on goals, plan better and develop
improved products and services.
It improves performance: Feedback can
help to form better decisions to improve and
increase performance.

18 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

 NOTES
Practical Exercise
The teacher will facilitate these activities by showing you the
e-learning lesson at http://www.psscive.ac.in/stud_text_book.
html. This will include videos and e-content for the above topics
as well as detailed instructions for some activities below.

Activity 1
Role Play on Providing Feedback
Material required
Notebook, pen
Procedure

Two volunteers in the group should act out a role play

of a hotel staff. For example, Volunteer A can act as a
front desk executive and Volunteer B as a guest enquiring
availability of rooms.
After the role play, remaining members of group will give
constructive feedback to both the volunteers.

Activity 2
Group-Practice on Constructive Feedback
Material required
Notebook, pen
Procedure

Each member in the group should write down three

sentences showing how feedback should NOT be given.
Then, each group forms a circle. One person in the circle
starts by saying a sentence or feedback. The next person
in the circle tries to make the feedback more constructive.
Keep repeating until all written feedback have
constructive alternatives.

Check Your Progress

A. Multiple choice questions
Read the questions carefully and circle the letter (a), (b),
(c) or (d) that best answers the question.

1. Which of these are examples of positive feedback?

(a) Excellent, your work has improved.
(b) I noticed your dedication towards the project.
(c) You are always doing it the wrong way.
(d) All of the above

COMMUNICATION SKILLS 19
 NOTES 2. Which of these are examples of negative feedback?
(a) I hate to tell you this but your drawing skills are poor.
(b) You can surely improve your drawing.
(c) This is a good drawing but you can do better.
(d) None of the above
3. Which of the following are effective components of a good
feedback?
(a) Detailed and time consuming
(b) Direct and honest
(c)
(d) Opinion-based

B. Subjective question

1. What do you mean by feedback? Let’s take a scenario.

Radha is your co-worker. Together you are making a
report on how to manage the waste in your store. Since

whole report has got delayed and the manager has given
you both a warning. Write down the feedback you would
like to give your co-worker on managing time. Try to keep

What Have You Learnt?

After completing this session, you will able to
identify how and when to give feedback.
explain the importance of feedback.
use suitable words and phrases when giving or receiving
feedback.

SESSION 5: BARRIERS TO EFFECTIVE

COMMUNICATION
What is Effective Communication?
We now know that there are different methods of
communication: non-verbal, verbal and visual. However,
all these methods can only be effective if we follow the
basic principles of professional communication skills.
These can be abbreviated as 7 Cs i.e., Clear, Concise,
Concrete, Correct, Coherent, Complete and Courteous.
These are further explained in Figure 1.6.
Absence of any of these 7Cs can lead to
miscommunication. Let us take a closer look at certain
barriers to effective communication.

20 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

 NOTES

Linguistic Cultural

Barriers to
Communication

Physical and
Interpersonal
Organisational

Barriers to Effective Communication

Physical Barriers
Physical barrier is the environmental and natural
condition that act as a barrier in communication in
sending message from sender to receiver. Not being
able to see gestures, posture and general body language
can make communication less effective. For example,
text messages are often less effective than face-to-face
communication.

Linguistic Barriers
The inability to communicate using a language is known
as language barrier to communication. Language
barriers are the most common communication
barriers, which cause misunderstandings and

COMMUNICATION SKILLS 21
 NOTES misinterpretations between people. For example,
slang, professional jargon and regional colloquialisms

Interpersonal Barriers
Barriers to interpersonal communication occur when
the sender’s message is received differently from how

with someone who is not willing to talk or express their

feelings and views. Stage fear, lack of will to communicate,
personal differences can create interpersonal barriers
to communication.
Organisational Barriers
Organisations are designed on the basis of formal
hierarchical structures that follow performance
standards, rules and regulations, procedures, policies,

of communication in organisations and therefore,

need to be suitably managed. Superior-subordinate
relationships in a formal organisational structure can be

to communicate with their peers too.

Cultural Barriers
Cultural barriers is when people of different cultures are
unable to understand each other’s customs, resulting in

stereotypical assumptions about others based on their

cultural background, this leads to difference in opinions
and can be a major barrier to effective communication.
Although there are certain barriers to effective
communication, you can always overcome these
barriers by following some best practices of effective
communication that are listed here.
Ways to Overcome Barriers to Effective
Communication
Use simple language
Do not form assumptions on culture, religion
or geography

22 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

 Try to communicate in person as much as possible NOTES
Use visuals
Take help of a translator to overcome differences
in language
Be respectful of other’s opinions

Practical Exercise
Activity 1
Role Play on Barriers to Effective Communication.
Material required
Notebook, pen
Procedure

Two volunteers from the group should act out a role play of
a salesperson in a shopping mall. For example, Volunteer
A can act as a sales executive, and Volunteer B as a
customer enquiring about a television set. The customer
is from a foreign country.
Enact the communication barriers or challenges the
customer or salesperson may face while interacting with
each other.

Activity 2
Group practice: Overcoming Barriers
Material required
Notebook, pen
Procedure

Each member in a group should write down three ways

to overcome barriers to effective communication. The
group members will then stand in a circle. Each student
should say aloud one point each; till all the ways have
been discussed.

Check Your Progress

A. Multiple choice questions
Read the questions carefully and circle the letter(s) (a),
(b), (c) or (d) that best answers the question.

1. Which of these is NOT a common communication barrier?

(a) Linguistic barrier
(b) Interpersonal barrier

COMMUNICATION SKILLS 23
 NOTES (c) Financial barrier
(d) Organisational barrier
2. Which of these are ways to overcome communication
barriers?
(a) Respecting each other’s differences
(b) Using a translator
(c) Not communicating at all
(d) Using your own language for comfort

B. Subjective question

1. Write down the common communication barriers you

may come across when you move to a new city or country.

What Have You Learnt?

After completing this session, you will be able to
identify the common barriers to effective communication.
list ways to overcome barriers to effective communication.

SESSION 6: WRITING SKILLS — PARTS OF SPEECH

Writing skills are part of verbal communication and
include e-mails, letters, notes, articles, SMS/chat,
blogs, etc. In all these forms of written communication,
we use sentences to express ourselves. Sentences
are important because they help to clearly present
the message. We all know that a sentence is a group
of words that communicates a complete thought. For
example, Pooja goes to school. On the other hand, a
group of words, which does not make complete sense, is
known as a phrase. For example, Pooja goes. A sentence
always begins with a capital letter, and it always ends
with a question mark, full stop or exclamation mark. In
this session, we will cover all these topics in detail. But

When will you complete your homework?

I completed it yesterday.
That is good!

Capitalisation
We know that all sentences begin with capital letters.
However, there are certain other points in a sentence
where we should use capital letters. ‘TINS’is a set of
24 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X
simple rules that help you capitalise words correctly.
Each letter in the word TINS refers to one capitalisation
rule as shown in Table 1.7.
Table 1.7: Capitalisation Rules
Alphabet T I N S
What it shows: Titles word ‘I’ Names Starting letter
of sentences
Rule Capitalise the Capitalise the Capitalise
letter ‘I’ when it letter in the names
the titles used is used as a word of people, places, letter in every
before people’s (Pronoun). days and months. sentence.
names.
Example Dr Malik and He said that I The summer break The little girl
Mr Pandey should accompany is starting this lost her book.
were invited to him to the mall. Friday and will
the party. continue till the end
of June. Suresh is
planning to visit
London next year.

Punctuation
Certain set of marks, such as full stop, comma, question
mark, exclamation mark and apostrophe are used in
communication to separate parts of a sentence for
better clarity of message. Some common punctuation
marks and their rules are shown here in Table 1.8.
Table 1.8: Punctuation Marks
Punctuation Sign Use Example
name
Full stop . Used at the end of a Omar is a professor. His students
sentence. call him Prof. Omar.
Used with short form of
long words.
Comma , Used to indicate a pause After getting down from the bus, I
in the sentence. walked towards my school.
Used to separate two or The grocery store had fresh
more items in a row. kiwis,strawberries and mangoes.
Question mark ? Used at the end of a Where is your book?
question.
Exclamation mark ! Used at the end of a What a beautiful dress!
word or a sentence to Hooray! We won the match.
indicate a strong feeling.

COMMUNICATION SKILLS 25
Apostrophe (‘) Used followed by an ‘s’ That is Shobha’s cat.
to show possession or Are these Rahim’s colour pencils?
belonging. Let’s go for the movies today.
Used with shortened She isn’t coming to school today.
form of words in
informal speech.

Basic Parts of Speech

The part of speech indicates how a particular word
functions in meaning as well as grammatically within
the sentence. Some examples are nouns, pronouns,
adjectives, verbs and adverbs as shown in Figure 1.8.
Nouns
(Name, Place,
Animal, Thing)

Adverbs Pronouns
(slowly, (He, she,
quickly, etc.) you, I)

Adjectives
Verbs (Walk, (Salty, Spicy,
Talk, etc.) etc.)

Table 1.8: Parts of Speech

Parts of What they do Example sentence Example
speech words
Noun Words (naming words) Kavita bought a book. ‘Kavita’ Tiger
that refer to a person, and ‘book’ are nouns. Truth
place, thing or idea. India
Raj
January
Pronoun Words used in place of Kavita bought a book. She has I
a noun a great book collection. ‘She’ is You
used in place of the noun Kavita. They
Us
She
He

26 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

Adjectives Words that describe Kavita bought a best-selling book Large
other words. best-selling is an adjective that Red
describes the noun book. Naughty
Weak
One-foot
Verbs Words that show action Kavita buys a new book every Run
month. Buys is the verb that tells Eat
about Kavita’s actions. Think
Sit
Adverbs Words that add meaning Kavita quickly read her Easily
to verbs by answering book.‘Quickly’ tells us how Kavita Always
How? How often? When? did the action. Before
and Where? Fast
Carefully

Let us now see how these words are used. Read aloud
the sentence given below.
Hooray! Shyam and his team won the exciting
match yesterday.
We already know that Shyam, team and match are
nouns. ‘Exciting’ is an adjective here because it describes
the noun match, the word won is a verb because its
hows an action and the word ‘yesterday’ is an adverb
because it describes when they won the match.
But what about the remaining words in this sentence:
Hooray, the, and? Such supporting words are used to
join the main parts of speech together and also to add
information to the sentences. Let us now look at some
types of these supporting words.
Supporting Parts of Speech Types
Articles (a,
an, the)

Interjection
Conjunctions
(wow, oh no,
(and, but, etc.)
etc.)

Preposition
(in, on, etc.)

COMMUNICATION SKILLS 27
 Some supporting words are shown in Figure 1.9. Let
us learn more about them using Table 1.10.

Table 1.10: Supporting Parts of Speech

Supporting Parts Use Example
of Speech
Articles (a, an, the) Generally used before nouns. Wow! The boy was taken
An — used before words with a vowel sound by surprise because he
A — used before nouns with a consonant
sound his head.

Conjunctions Joins two nouns, phrases or sentences Wow! The boy was taken
(and, but, by surprise because he
because)
his head.
Prepositions (on, Connects one word with another to Wow! The boy was taken by
over, in, under) usually answer the questions ‘where’, surprise because he saw a
‘when’ and ‘how’.
Interjections Expresses strong emotions, such as Wow! The boy was taken
(Wow!, Help!) happiness, surprise, anger or pain. by surprise because he

his head.

Practical Exercise
The teacher will facilitate these activities – by showing you the
e-learning lesson at http://www.psscive.ac.in/stud_text_book.
html. This will include videos and e-content for the above topics
as well as detailed instructions for some activities below.
Initial Thinking Activity
After watching the initial video in the e-learning lesson for
this topic, write down what do you think was wrong with
Seema’s letter?

Activity 1
Identifying Parts of Speech
Material required
Notebook, pen
Procedure

In the paragraph given below (taken from from ‘La Bamba’—

a short story; Gary Soto pp. 115), identify the different
parts of speech and write them down accordingly.
“manuel walked on stage and the song started immediately
glassy-eyed from the shock of being in front of so many

28 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

 people manuel moved his lips and swayed in a made-up
NOTES
dance step he couldn’t see his parents but he could see his
brother mario who was a year younger thumb-wrestling
with a friend mario was wearing manuel’s favourite shirt
he would deal with Mario later. He saw some other kids get
up and head for the drinking fountain and a baby sitting
in the middle of an aisle sucking her thumb and watching
him intently.”
This paragraph contains examples of the parts of speech
you learnt about in this lesson.
Identify as many of these parts of speech as you can and

Write the paragraph with correct capitalisation and

punctuation. One of the groups will volunteer and present
to the class what they have marked. They write out the
paragraph on the board with proper punctuation. The
other students will share if it is correct.

Activity 2
Pair Activity: Sentence Construction
Material required
Notebook, pen
Procedure
Form pairs of students.
List out nine parts of speech that you learnt in the lesson.

which use these parts of speech.

For each part of speech, a volunteer reads out their
sentences. The other students share if it is correct.

Activity 3
Group Practice: Identify Name, Place, Animal, Thing
Material required
Notepad and pens
Procedure
Number yourselves from 1 to 5.
One set of 1–5 is in one group and so on.
Each member of a group has to say a word that is either a

to perform any kind of action.

Each group gets 30 seconds to think what they are going
to say and do.
Discussion
The class discussion will highlight different words that are used
to name a person, place, animal, thing, or feeling and their role in
a sentence as parts of speech. The discussion will also highlight
the role of action words as parts of speech

COMMUNICATION SKILLS 29
 NOTES
Check Your Progress
A. Multiple choice questions
Read the questions carefully and circle the letter (a), (b),
(c) or (d) that best answers the question.

1. In which of the following, the underlined word is

an adjective?
(a) Radha has a red dress.
(b) I can speak French.
is a best-seller.
(d) Abdul can swim fast.
2. Which of these sentences is capitalised correctly?
(a) Ravi and i are going to the movies.
(b) Salim is visiting India in july.
(c) The Tiger is a strong animal.
(d) She is arriving on Monday.
3. Which of these sentences are punctuated correctly?
(a) When is the party.
(b) I had bread omelette and a Banana for breakfast.
(c)
(d) This is Abdul’s notebook.
4.
(a) Divya drinks milk every day.
(b) Sanjay gifted me a new pen.
(c) I opened the door lock.
(d) Sita is 5-feet tall.

B. Fill in the blanks

1. Fill correct nouns and verbs from the given options to
complete the sentence in table given below.

Nouns Verbs
Boy, Ms Sen, Rahim, Children, Swimming, Driving, Writing,
Cat, Students Teaching, Eating, Playing

a. The __________________ is b. The _________________ are

________________________. _______________________.

c. The _________________ are d. __________________________

________________________. is_______________ the car.

30 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

 e. _______________ is f. The ____________ is
_________________. _________________.

C. Subjective question

1. Identify the conjunctions and prepositions from the list

below and write these in the correct box.
Over, Because, Under, And, Since, In, At, Although, Or, Up,
On, Beside
Conjunction Preposition

What Have You Learnt?

After completing this session, you will be able to
use capitalisation and punctuation rules for sentences.
identify the basic parts of speech.
explain the usage of the different parts of speech.
identify the supporting parts of speech.

SESSION 7: WRITING SKILLS — SENTENCES

Parts of a Sentence
We all know that almost all English
sentences have a subject and a verb
while some also have an object.
Subject: Person or thing that performs
an action.
Verb: Describes the action.
Object: Person or thing that receives
the action.
Let us see the different parts of the
sentence in Figure 1.10.
Read aloud the example sentences
shown in Table 1.11 and understand
which is the subject, verb and object.

COMMUNICATION SKILLS 31
 Table 1.11: Parts of a Sentence
Sentence Subject Verb Object
He swam in the lake. He swam the lake
She rode the bicycle. She rode the bicycle
He threw the ball. He threw the ball
The dog chased the cat. Dog chased the cat

Types of Objects
In a sentence, there can be two types of objects — Direct
and Indirect. The objects provided in the above
examples are called direct objects since they are
directly ‘acted on’ by the verb. On the other hand,
an indirect object answers questions, such as ‘to/
for who.’
For example, in the sentence “She bought a bicycle
for her son.” The verb is ‘bought’.
What did she buy? A bicycle. For who? For her
son. Here, ‘bicycle’ is the direct object and ‘her son’
is the indirect object. Some sentences only have
direct objects while some have both direct and
indirect objects.
Read aloud the examples given in Table 1.12 and

Table 1.12: Direct and Indirect Objects

Sentence Verb Verb+What? Verb+by Direct Indirect

whom/to Object Object
whom?
Ravi repaired repaired car Car
his car.

The children played football Football

played football.

The parents sent sent postcard him Postcard him

him a postcard.

He bought his bought computer his daughter Computer His daughter

daughter a
computer.

32 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

Types of Sentences NOTES

Active and Passive Sentences

Read aloud the sentence shown in Figure 1.11. What is
the difference between the two sentences?
1. Radha is reading a book.
2. A book is being read by Radha.
The action (verb) in both sentences is reading a book.
But the ‘subject’ of both sentences is different. In the

the second sentence, the subject (a book) receives the

action. Read the sentences in Figure 1.12 again.

COMMUNICATION SKILLS 33
 Sentences where the subject does an action are
known to be in the Active voice, whereas sentences in
which the subject receives an action are known to be in
the Passive voice.
Read aloud some more active and passive voice
examples given in Table 1.12.
Table 1.12: Active and Passive Sentences
Active Voice Passive Voice

I will clean the house every Saturday. The house will be cleaned by me every Saturday.
Ravi painted the entire house. The entire house was painted by Ravi.

So, now we know that there are active voice and

passive voice sentences. Besides these, we also have
other types of sentences which are based on the purpose
that the sentences serve while communicating.
Read aloud the sentences in Figure 1.13. How do
you think they differ from each other?

Each of these sentences has a different purpose.

Also, notice how each sentence in Figure 1.13 ends.
Read the examples in Figure 1.14 to understand the
different types of sentences.

34 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

 Table 1.13: Types of Sentences
Types of Sentences
Statement or Question or Emotion/Reaction Order or
Declarative Sentence Interrogative or Exclamatory Imperative
Sentence Sentence Sentence
Provides information Asks a question. Expresses a strong Shows an order,
or states a fact. Always ends emotion. command, request
Always ends with a with a question Always ends with or advice.
‘full-stop’ (‘.’). mark (‘?’). an exclamation Can end with a
mark (‘!’). full stop or an
exclamation mark
(‘.’ or ‘!’).
Read aloud the related examples
Blue is my favourite Do you want tea or This is the best day Please lower
colour coffee? of my life! your voice.
The farewell party Is it raining? Oh, my goodness, we Respond
begins in two hours. won! immediately.
You’re a good man, Have you had lunch? I can’t wait for
Raj. the party! at 10am.

Paragraph
By now, you have understood how to form correct
sentences by identifying the various components that

COMMUNICATION SKILLS 35
 NOTES make up a sentence. Just as a group of words form
a sentence, a group of sentences forms a paragraph.
However, to qualify as a paragraph, all the sentences
within it must have a common idea or theme.
For example, if you are writing about your best friend,

age, personality, friendship duration and other such

details. In the next paragraph you can use sentences to
describe what qualities you like about your best friend
and how valuable your friendship is.

My mother is my best friend. She loves me a lot and cares

for me. When I am in any kind of trouble, I seek her help
and support. She gives me sound advice, and does all she
can to comfort me and make me happy.
My mother always wishes me well, and prays for my
good health, happiness and success. I cannot thank my
mother enough for all that she does for me. I am grateful
to God for giving me such a wonderful mother. I love my
mother, and hope I can make her proud.

Practical Exercise
The teacher will facilitate these activities by showing you the
e-learning lesson at http://www.psscive.ac.in/stud_text_book.
html. This will include videos and e-content for the above topics
as well as detailed instructions for some activities below.
Initial Thinking Activity
After watching the initial video in the e-learning lesson for this
topic write down if you think that Sanjay and Dia were able to
make correct sentences?

Activity 1
Pair-work: Making Sentences
Material required
Notebook, pen
Procedure
Form pairs of students.

direct and indirect objects.

Use different colours to mark the different parts of each
sentence. (Subject, Verb, Object). One volunteer shows
their list to class, who correct them, if needed.

36 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

 Activity 2
NOTES
Pair-work: Active and Passive Voice
Material required
Notebook, pen
Procedure
With same pairs as above, write a paragraph on the topic
‘My Favourite Movie.’
The paragraph should have at least two sentences in active
voice and two sentences in passive voice.
One volunteer reads out their paragraph to the class. The
class gives feedback on it.

Activity 3
Individual Work: Types of Sentences
Material required
Notebook, pen
Procedure
Each student will make a list of minimum 12 sentences.
These should have at least three sentences of each type —
declarative, interrogative, exclamatory and imperative.
For each type of sentence, different volunteers read out
their sentences to the class.
The class gives feedback on the correctness of
the sentences.

Check Your Progress

A. Multiple choice questions

1. Identify the object, verb and subject in the sentence,

‘The car crashed into a tree.’
(a) Object: a tree; Verb: crashed; Subject: the car
(b) Object: The car; Verb: crashed; Subject: a tree
(c) Object: crashed; Verb: the tree; Subject: the car
(d) Object: crashed; Verb: the car; Subject: the tree
2. Identify the indirect object in the sentence, ‘The band
played music for the audience.’
(a) The band
(b) played
(c) music
(d) audience
3. Which of these is an imperative sentence?
(a) Switch off the fan.
(b) Sheila has gone to the market.
(c) Where are my pen colours?
(d)

COMMUNICATION SKILLS 37
 NOTES 4. Which of these sentences is in active voice?
(a) A movie is being watched by them.
(b) The car was repaired by Raju.
(c) He is reading a book.
(d) The thief was being chased by a policeman.

B. Subjective questions

1. Write two sentences of each type of sentence — statement,

question, exclamatory and order.
2. Which is your favourite food, dish or cuisine? Write two
paragraphs about your favourite food, dish or cuisine.

Make sure you follow all the rules about sentences and
paragraphs you have learnt.
3. Practice speaking in active and passive voice with your
classmates. Also, try to identify the different parts of
sentences while you speak.

What Have You Learnt?

After completing this session, you will be able to
identify the different parts of a sentence.
list the differences between active and passive voice.
identify and use different types of sentences.
describe the important elements of a paragraph.

38 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

 2
Self-management
Skills

INTRODUCTION
Self-management, also referred to as ‘self-control,’
is the ability to control one’s emotions, thoughts and
behaviour effectively in different situations. This also
includes motivating oneself, and setting goals. People
with strong self-management skills are better in doing
certain things better than others.
Therefore, employers too strongly prefer
people with good self-management skills.

Basics of Self-management
To perform well at work and life in
general, you must be able to manage
and improve yourself in various skills
including discipline and timeliness,
goal-setting, problem solving, teamwork,
professionalism, etc. Once you develop
your personality and abilities in these
areas,you will be able to succeed in
personal as well as professional life.
Figure 2.1 Self-management
 Following are some of the skills you must master to
succeed in life:
Self-awareness: Ask for honest feedback. Gather

and how you handled situations well or could

have handled them differently.
Responsibility:

the step towards self-development. For example,

if you have been assigned a task by a teacher;
ensure you take complete ownership. Even if you
are unable to complete the task on time, you must
report it and then correct it.
Time Management: Prioritise the things you
have to do. Remove waste and redundancy from
work. Make a time table and follow it diligently.
Adaptability: Stay current with best practices
and read up on new information always. Prepare
yourself for new changes, so that you can
transition seamlessly.

SESSION 1: STRESS MANAGEMENT

Stress and Stress Management
Have you ever felt worried that you will not pass in an
exam? Do you feel pressurised when people around you
bring up certain topics for discussion (issues that you
are not comfortable with)? Do you fear that
you will be unsuccessful in life? If yes, then
you are going through stress. Stress motivates
you to achieve more but when you are under
stress for a prolonged period of time, it can
cause health problems and mental troubles
as well.

What is Stress?

mental, physical and social reaction to any

or threats are called stressors. Stressors are

Figure 2.2 Stress the reason for stress.

40 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

For example, NOTES
you are too close to the exams but feel unprepared.
you are experiencing a loss of someone close in
the family.
you are worried about what people would think
of you if you don’t dress well or cannot speak

you are stressed due to lack of sleep.

Stress Management
Stress is a part of everyday life. There are many

is intended to cause stress that alerts you to avoid

time. But when experienced in excess or for a long

period of time, stress has the opposite effect. It can
harm our emotional and physical health, and limit our
ability to function well at home, in school and within
our relationships.
Managing stress is about making a plan to be able to
cope effectively with daily pressures. The ultimate goal
is to strike a balance between life, work, relationships,
relaxation and fun. By doing this, you are able to deal
with daily stress triggers and meet these challenges
head on.
Always keep in mind the ABC of stress management
A: Adversity or the stressful event
B: Beliefs or the way you respond to the event
C: Consequences or actions and outcomes of the event

Stress management can help you to

have a joyful life.
focus and complete tasks on time.
be a happy person as you are stress free.
be more energetic and spend quality time with your
friends and family.

SELF-MANAGEMENT SKILLS 41
 Three Steps to Manage Stress
Look out for signs of stress, such as
Step 1: Be aware
headache, sleeplessness, sadness, excessive
that you are worrying, nervousness, etc. Only when we
stressed are aware, we can manage stress.

Step 2: Identify Find out the reason for your stress. Is it

what is causing because of exams, family pressures, money
you stress issues, not eating good food, etc.?

Use time management tools to manage your

Step 3: time well. Focus on the important tasks and
Apply stress get them done. Talk to someone close about
management the issue. Take time to relax by exercising,
methods watching movie or any other activity which
can help feel relaxed.

Figure 2.3 Managing stress

Management Techniques
Here are a few simple stress management techniques.
Time management: Proper time management
is one of the most effective stress-relieving
techniques.
Physical exercise and fresh air: A healthy lifestyle
is essential for students. Stress is generally lower
in people who maintain a healthy routine. Doing
yoga, meditation and deep breathing exercises
help in proper blood circulation and relaxes the
body. Even taking a walk or playing in the park
will help you get a lot of fresh oxygen, which will
help you become more active.
Healthy diet: Having a healthy diet will also help
you reduce stress. Eating a balanced diet, such
as Dal, Roti, vegetables and fruits will give you

Positivity: Focussing on negative aspects of life

will add more stress. Instead, learn to look at
the good things and stay positive. For example,
instead of feeling upset over a scoring less in a
test, try to maintain a positive attitude and look
at ways to improve the next time.

42 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

 Organising academic life; no delaying: By NOTES
assignments on time, and keeping track of all
deadlines, stress can be reduced to a great extent.
Sleep: We should get a good night’s sleep for at
least 7 hours so that your brain and body gets
recharged to function better the next day.
Holidays with family and friends: Going to a
relative’s place, such as your grandparents’ house
or a new place during your summer vacations can
help you break from the normal routine and come
back afresh.

Ability to Work Independently

If you can become a calm and relaxed person, you will
be have the ability to work independently, which means.
1. becoming self-aware, self-monitoring and
self-correcting.
2. knowing what you need to do.
3. taking the initiative rather than being told what
to do.
4. recognising your mistakes and not blaming others.
5. having the ability and the will to learn continuously.

Emotional Intelligence
Emotional intelligence is the ability to identify and
manage one’s own emotions, as well as the emotions
of others. It is generally said to include at least
three skills:
Emotional awareness : the ability to identify and
name one’s own emotions.
Harnessing emotions : the ability to harness
and apply emotions to tasks like thinking and
problem solving.
Managing emotions : the ability to regulate one’s
own emotions when necessary and help others to
do the same.
Knowing how to manage one’s emotions is critical
for all of us. You can manage stress, keep your brain

SELF-MANAGEMENT SKILLS 43
 NOTES active and open minded, and easily overcome failures
if you can keep your emotions in check. Emotional
intelligence can also help you have better relations with
your friends and family.
Let us take an example. Ravi and his best friend,
Shiv, have been practising for the annual school dance
competition. They are both performing solo. On the
day of the competition, Shiv won. Ravi felt extremely
sad and dejected. He shouted at Shiv unnecessarily,
cried and also did not talk to his parents for 3–4 hours.
On the contrary, if Ravi would have been emotionally
intelligent, he would have accepted defeat gracefully,
and done better in the next competition.
Being emotionally intelligent enhances your chances
of success and a balanced life.
Some steps to manage emotional intelligence are as
given below.
Understand your emotions: Observe your
behaviour and note the things you need to work
on. You can then work on the things you need
to improve.
Rationalise: Do not take decisions abruptly; be
rational in your thinking.
Practise: Do meditation and yoga to keep
yourself calm.

Practical Excercise
The teacher will facilitate these activities by showing you the
e-learning module for this lesson via http://www.psscive.ac.in/
Employability_Skills.html. The module will include videos and
e-content for the above topics as well as detailed instructions for
some activities below.
After watching the video ‘Have you faced this situation?’ in
the e-learning lesson, discuss what you have learnt from
the video. Do you think Priya was worried that she will
not meet her goal? What would you do differently in her
situation?
After watching the video ‘Managing Stress at Work’ in the
e-learning lesson, discuss the various stress management
techniques that were used in the video by Gaurav to
improve his situation.

44 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

 Activity 1 NOTES
Role Play on Avoiding Stressful Situation
Material required
Pen, notepad or sheets of paper
Procedure
Form groups of three.
Choose any one situation from below.
Prepare a skit (role play) and perform within your groups.
Two members will perform the skit and one member will
observe and share feedback.
Situation 1
You have missed your school bus and you are getting late. What

Situation 2
You have to perform your best in the next cricket or badminton
match so you get a chance to play for your school at the national
level cricket or badminton tournament. You have been anxious
(worried or stressed). Will you lose your sleep worrying about it

Activity 2

Material required
Pen or pencil
Procedure
Complete the below table by listing the situation(s) that
can cause stress and what will you do to avoid stress in
such situations.
Use the stress management techniques shared in the
lesson to complete the exercise.
Stress Management
Stress Causing Situation(s)
Techniques

Activity 3

Material required
Pen or pencil
Procedure
Write an essay to describe the place and your experience
during a holiday trip or summer camp.
Highlight how the trip helped you de-stress.

SELF-MANAGEMENT SKILLS 45
 Check Your Progress
A. Subjective questions

1. Describe stress and stress management in your

own words.
2. List your favorite stress management technique and

What Have You Learnt?

After completing this session, you will be able to

identify the steps for managing stress.

create a list of personal stressful situation and ways to
handle them.

SESSION 2: SELF-AWARENESS — STRENGTH AND

WEAKNESS ANALYSIS
Being self-aware means that you can identify your
strengths and weaknesses. Self-awareness, therefore,
will help you in converting your weakness into strength
and strength into an exceptional talent. Analysing your
strengths and weaknesses helps you to attain success
in life. However, strength and weakness analysis begins

Knowing Yourself
Understanding who you are, what
Beliefs you like or dislike, what are your
beliefs, what are your opinions,
Background what is your background, what
you do well and what you do not
do well is important because only
Who am I? Opinions then can you actually measure
your strengths and weaknesses
(see Figure 2.4).
Likes/dislikes
Strength and Weakness
Analysis
Values
Understanding who you are
Figure 2.4 Knowing Yourself means looking outside your usual

46 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

interpersonal relationships. In other words, being self-
aware actually means knowing your inner strengths,
hidden talents, skills and even weaknesses. Let us look

Figure 2.5 Strength and Weakness

Examples of strengths
I am good at creative writing.

I play guitar very well.

Examples of weaknesses

I do not like to lose in any game or sports.

By understandig Based on that

By improving, we will
ourselves we can information, we can
know what we plan the next steps
what we do.
can/cannot do. to improve ourselves.

Techniques for Identifying your Strengths

and Weaknesses
Finding Strengths (or abilities)
Think of anything that you are always
successful at.

SELF-MANAGEMENT SKILLS 47
 Think about what others like in you.
Take out time and think about what you do well.

Finding Weaknesses
Point out the areas where you struggle and the

Look at the feedback others usually give you.

Be open to feedback and accept your weaknesses
without feeling low about it. Take it as an area
of improvement.

How am I different from others?

What do I do better than others?
What do other people admire in me?
What makes me stand out?
Where do I worry and struggles?
Where, how and why do others perform better
than me?
What advice for improvement do I often receive
from others?

Difference between Interests and Abilities

(Strengths)

Table 2.1: Difference between Interests and Abilities

S.No Interests Abilities
1. Things that you like to do in your An acquired or natural capacity
free time that make you happy.
2. Things you are curious about or Enable you to perform a
would do even if no one asked you particular job or task with
to do it.
3. Things you want to learn or would
like to do in the future.

When your interests do not match your abilities, you

can either improve your abilities or follow some other
path. For example, you may like music, but you may
not be good at singing. In that case, do not try to become
a singer!

48 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

 Practical Exercise
The teacher will facilitate these activities by showing you the
e-Learning lesson athttp://www.psscive.ac.in/stud_text_book.
html. This will include videos and e-content for the above topics
as well as detailed instructions for some activities below.
Initial Thinking Activity
After watching the initial video ‘Finding the right job’ in the
e-Learning lesson, write down the points that you will use from
the video to understand your own strengths and weaknesses.

Activity 1
Pair Activity: Aim in Life
Material required
Pen, notepad or sheets of paper
Procedure
Form pairs of students.
Each student will make a list of things that they can do
well based on the given format.
Share your notes with your partner.
One volunteer from the pair comes and reads, in front of
the class.

I am
I can (abilities)
I will (plan)
My aim is

Activity 2
Individual Activity: Interests and Abilities Worksheet
Material required
Student textbooks, pen
Procedure
Each student has to complete the given worksheet,
containing a list of statements and questions.

the worksheet as it is for their own understanding

of themselves.
If they are not real and honest, they will get incorrect
results about their own interests and abilities.
Worksheet - My Interests and Abilities

I am happiest when
My idea of a perfect day

SELF-MANAGEMENT SKILLS 49
 NOTES
Five things I really
enjoy doing
Three things I like to do
every day
I am most passionate about
Ideas or issues I care deeply
about
If I had the talent or ability,
I would
If I could choose any job, it
would be
The three activities that
I love to do?
How often do I do them?
What stops me from doing
the activities more often?

I need to make in order to

engage in these activities
more frequently?

Check Your Progress

1. Fill in the table given below to prepare an action
plan to build upon your strengths and overcome
your weaknesses.
Strengths Weakness Action plan to build upon
your strengths and
overcome your weaknesses

What Have You Learnt?

After completing this session, you will be able to
identify your own strengths and weaknesses.
explain how to build on your strengths and overcome your
weaknesses.
identify your interests.

50 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

SESSION 3: SELF-MOTIVATION
Have you heard of the story of the hare and tortoise?
Who won that race in spite of being slow? The tortoise.
They key to win was that the tortoise never thought less
of itself and stayed motivated even though it was lagging
behind. But slowly and gradually it crossed all hurdles
and continued the race without being demotivated.
Self-motivation is simply the force within you that
drives you to do things. Self-motivation is what pushes
us to achieve our goals, feel happy and improve our
quality of life. In other words, it is our ability to do
the things that need to be done without someone or

Here are some examples of self-motivation.

Neha spends all her Rekha gets up at 5

after-school hours am and goes for her
to practice more dance classes. Then
and more sample she comes home and
question papers. She
wants to do well in before going to school.
her exams so that she She does this all by
can get admission in herself. No one tells
her dream college in her to do it.
the city.

Figure 2.7 Self-motivation

Different people are motivated by different things

and at different times in their lives.

Types of Motivation
Internal Motivation: LOVE
We do things because they make us happy, healthy
and feel good. For example, when you perform on
your annual day function and you learn something
new, such as dancing, singing, etc., you feel good.

External Motivation: REWARD

We do things because they give us respect, recognition
and appreciation. For example, Suresh participated
in a 100m race and won a prize. This motivated him
to go for practice every morning.

SELF-MANAGEMENT SKILLS 51
 Qualities of Self-motivated People
There are some typical behaviours seen in self-motivated
people which are as given below.

Know what they want Are focussed Know what is

from life important their dreams
Figure 2.8: Qualities of self-motivated people

Mr E Shreedharan, Former Managing Director, Delhi

Metro Rail Corporation Ltd, was a self-motivated and
energetic person. With his dedication and respect for
others, he motivated his team to work hard and achieve
results.
Mahashay Dharmapal Gulati, the founder of
Mahashian Di Hatti (MDH) Private Limited started with a
small shop in Karol Bagh but with his focus, dedication
and clear ideas, MDH (Spice Company) became one of
the most popular brands in India besides having a good
reputation all over the world.

Building Self-motivation
There are four steps for building self-motivation, which
are as given below.

Stay loyal to
Develop a plan your goals
to achieve
your goals
Set and focus
on your goals Work towards
Find out your achieving your goal,
Plan and set timelines even when you are
strengths to achieve your goals,
Plan a list of activities For example, even
that you will do to though I did not clear
you want to achieve each goal. For
achieve and the Hotel Management
Identify your likes example, after schooling, entrance exam, I will
and dislikes. focus all your you may be required to
Understand what energy to achieve appear for a competitive
your goal. For become a chef.
makes you happy. examination to join Hotel
For example, I example, I want Management Institute.
love cooking. to be a chef.

Figure 2.9: Building self-motivation

52 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

 NOTES
Practical Exercise
The teacher will facilitate these activities by showing you the
e-learning module for this lesson via http://www.psscive.ac.in/
Employability_Skills.html. The module will include videos and
e-content for the above topics as well as detailed instructions for
some activities below.
Initial Thinking Activity
After watching the initial video in the e-learning lesson for
this topic why do you think that Shyam was unable to
complete his work?
Also, watch the video on ‘Becoming Self-motivated and
Commitment’ in the e-learning lesson and discuss how
Nikhil motivated Sheela using the Hare and Tortoise story.
Discuss your learnings in the class.

Activity 1
Staying Motivated (Group Discussion)
Material required
Pen, notepad or sheets of paper, chart paper
Procedure
Form groups of three.
Choose any one of the following situation and write down
the steps you would take to motivate yourself.
Your teacher gives you feedback on the essay you had
written. There are a lot negative remarks. What will
you do to motivate yourself to improve the essay?
Your father has given you the responsibility of
arranging for a birthday party for your little sister who
is turning 3 years old. You do not want to do this task.
How will you motivate yourself to do the work?

Activity 2

Material required
Pen or pencil
Procedure
Make a list of reasons that stop you from being motivated.
Write down ways by which you will motivate yourself to
overcome them.
Reasons for not Ways to overcome
being motivated
For example: People For example: I will learn to speak English
make fun of the way correctly by attending classes after school.
I speak English.

SELF-MANAGEMENT SKILLS 53
 NOTES

Check Your Progress

A. Multiple choice questions
Read the questions carefully and circle the letter(s) (a),
(b), (c) or (d) that best answers the question.
1. What makes you complete work or studies without
others cheering you?
(a)
(b) Communication
(c) Self-motivation
(d) Self-esteem

2. Which of the following are types of motivation?

(a) Internal
(b) Intermediate
(c) External
(d) Extensive
3. Ravi works hard to get the best student award at the
end of year. What type of motivation is this?
(a) Internal
(b) External
(c) Both internal and external
(d)

What Have You Learnt?

After completing this session, you will be able to
explain the meaning of self-motivation.
identify types of motivation.
list the qualities of self-motivated people.
list the steps to build self-motivation.

SESSION 4: SELF-REGULATION — GOAL SETTING

Goals and Setting SMART Goals
A man was travelling and stopped at an intersection. He
asked an elderly man, “Where does this road take me?”
The elderly person asked, “Where do you want to go?”
The man replied, “I don’t know.” The elderly people said,
“Then take any road. What difference does it make?”
How true is that? When we do not know where we are

54 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

going, any road will take us there. So in life, we need
to have a clear vision of what we will do and where we
want to go.

Goal setting is a very

essential factor in your
personal life. The process
of goal setting in your life
helps you decide on how
to live your life, where you
want to be, and how you
want to be in the future.

Goals : They are a set of dreams with a deadline to

get them, for example, saving pocket money to buy a
favourite mobile phone by a particular date.
Goal setting :
goals and then planning on how to achieve them.
Goals allow you to separate out what’s important.
It helps you to focus on the end result instead of less
important work. This will make you successful in your
career and personal life.

How to Set Goals?

We can use SMART method to set goals. SMART
stands for:

questions. Who is involved in the goal? What do

I want to do? Where do I start? When do I start

doing this?

English.”

school everyday, and in six months I will take

part in the inter-school debate competition.”
Measureable : A measureable goal answers the
questions “How much?”, “How many?” and “How
do I know that I have achieved results?”

SELF-MANAGEMENT SKILLS 55
 NOTES Not measurable goal: “I want to be rich.”
Measurable goal: “I want to have 5 times more
money than what I have today in my hand at the
end of this year.”
Achievable : Breaking down big goals into smaller
parts will make the goal achievable.
Bigger Goal: “I want to become a teacher in my
school.”
Breaking it into smaller goals:
Complete higher secondary
Complete Graduation
Complete B.Ed.

Realistic : A realistic goal would be something

that we want to achieve and can work towards.
Example of unrealistic goal: “I will read my
entire year’s syllabus in one day and get good
marks.”
Realistic goal: “I spend 3 hours every day of
the year after school to revise my subjects to get
good marks in the exams.”
Time bound : A SMART goal should have a
timeframe by when the goal needs to be achieved.
This encourages us to take actions to completely

Not a time bound goal: “I want to lose 10 kg

someday.”
Time bound goal: “I want to lose 10kg in the
next 6 months.”

Practical Exercise
The teacher will facilitate these activities by showing you the
e-learning module for this lesson via http://www.psscive.ac.in/
Employability_Skills.html. The module will include videos and
e-content for the above topics as well as detailed instructions for
some activities given ahead.
After watching the initial video ‘Introduction’ in the
e-learning lesson, discuss the in the class: Why did Amit
feel he was not prepared for the future?
After watching the video ‘Setting SMART Goals’ in the
e-learning lesson, discuss what you have learnt from
the video.

56 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

 Activity 1 NOTES
SMART Goal or Not (Group Work)
Materials required
Pen, notepad or sheets of paper
Procedure
Indicate whether the below mentioned goals are SMART or
not. If they are SMART goals then tick mark against each
aspect of SMART.
Goals Measurable Achievable Realistic Time
(Yes or (Yes or No) (Yes or No) (Yes or bound
No) No) (Yes
or No)
I want to
earn INR 1
crore in my

I want to
become
a teacher
after my
post-
graduation.
I want
to travel
to many
places.

Activity 2
Long-term Goals and Short-term Goals (Peer Feedback)
Material required
Pen, notepad or sheets of paper
Procedure
Form groups of four. Work individually in your group and
complete the below table. Once completed, share with
your group and seek feedback on your goals. Share your
feedback when other members of the groups are presenting
their goals.
Short-term Goals (What are Long-term Goals (What are
your goals in the next 6 your goals in the next 5
months to 2 years?) years?)
1. 1.

2. 2.
3. 3.

SELF-MANAGEMENT SKILLS 57
 NOTES Activity 3

Material required
Pen or pencil
Procedure
Complete the table below by writing how you will make
sure that the goals you set for yourself are SMART. Use the
tips shared in the lesson for doing this.
SMART Goals How will make sure the goals
are SMART

Measurable
Achievable
Realistic
Time-bound

Check Your Progress

A. Subjective questions

1. What is Goal Setting?

2. In SMART goals, what does ‘S’ stand for? Explain.
3. What is the best way to work on long-term goals?

What Have You Learnt?

After completing this session, you will be able to
explain the meaning of ‘Goal Setting.’

create short-term and long-term goals using

SMART method.

SESSION 5: SELF-REGULATION — TIME

MANAGEMENT
Time Management and Its Importance
Sameer was a very lazy boy and always used to postpone
things. His father tried to make him understand the
value of time. Sameer promised his father that he would

in a singing competition. He was asked to collect the

58 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

prize the same day. He didn’t care and went to collect
the prize the next day. But the prize was now useless for
him, as it was a ticket to a circus show for the previous
day. That day Sameer learnt an important lesson — the
importance of doing things on time.

Time management is the ability to

plan and control how you spend
the hours of your day well and do
all that you want to do. An example
of good time management skills

your homework immediately after

school so you have time to watch
TV later in the evening.

Example and Non-example of Time

Management

Sameera is always punctual Nisha usually arrives late to work.

at school. She has a regular She does not submit her assignments
schedule that she follows on time. She sometimes gets carried
everyday. She plans for study away in certain activities and forgets
and play time in advance. the main tasks in hand.

Time management is the thinking skill that helps

you to
complete tasks on time.
make a daily timetable.
make a good guess at how long it will take you to
do something.
submit homework and assignments on time.
not waste time during the day.
SELF-MANAGEMENT SKILLS 59
 Four Steps for Effective Time Management
Step 1 Step 2 Step 3 Step 4

Organise Pritortise Control Track

We plan our day- We make a to-do We have a We identify
to-day activities. list that has all our control over our and note where
We make a activities and we activities and we have spent
timetable that we rank them in the time. our time. This
follow. order of importance. We avoid time will help us
We keep our For example, you wasters like analyse if we
surroundings and may rank doing chatting on have used our
study table clean homework as the the phone, time effectively
and mess free. most important task. or not. It
We put things back It helps us to get sites, etc., and also helps
where they belong. the most important focus on more us to identify
It helps us save important time-wasting
time! also to track what is things. activities
pending.

Tips for Practicing the Four Steps for

Effective Time Management
Avoid delay or postponing any planned activity
Organise your room and school desk
Develop a ‘NO DISTURBANCE ZONE’, where you
can sit and complete important tasks
Use waiting time productively
Prepare a ‘To-do’ list
Prioritise
Replace useless activities with productive activities

Practical Exercise
The teacher will facilitate these activities by showing you the
e-learning module for this lesson via http://www.psscive.ac.in/
Employability_Skills.html. The module will include videos and
e-content for the above topics as well as detailed instructions for
some activities given below.
After watching the video ‘ Time Management’ in the e-learning
lesson, discuss — What you have learnt from the video? Which
steps of time management were followed in the video?

60 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

 Activity 1
NOTES
Pair Work : Making a List of Activities
Material required
Pen, notepad or sheets of paper
Procedure
Form groups of two. Complete the below table with a list
of activities that you do on a daily basis. Remember to
include in the list, every small activity that you do.
The next step would be to group them into three types
‘Must Do’, ‘Should Do’ and ‘Nice to Do’.
Use a tick mark to indicate the group. An example is
given below.
Once completed share with your partner and discuss each
other’s table.
List of Must Do Should Do Nice to Do (Not
Activities (Urgent and (Important Urgent and Not
Important Tasks) Important)
tasks)
Complete
Homework
Chat with
friends
Book movie
tickets for
tomorrow

Activity 2
Managing your time to reach school on time
Material required
Pen
Procedure
List out the to-do plan with timing to make sure you reach
school on time.

To-do List
1.
2.
3.
4.

Check Your Progress

A. Subjective questions
1. What is time management and how can you manage
your time?
2. How can tracking your time help you?

SELF-MANAGEMENT SKILLS 61
 NOTES What Have You Learnt?
After completing this session, you will be able to

list the steps for managing time effectively.

create a to-do list of various activities that you need to do
in a day (in order of priority).

62 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

3 Information and
Communication
Technology Skills

SESSION 1: BASIC COMPUTER OPERATIONS

ICT stands for Information and Communication
Technology. ICT refers to all the methods, tools,
concepts related to storing, recording and sending
digital information.
Information can be recorded or stored in many
ways, handwritten on paper, written using a typewriter
and so on. When information is stored and recorded
on electronic devices, it takes on a ‘digital’ form. ICT
devices are tablets, smartphones and laptops as shown
in Figure 3.1.
ICT skills help us to communicate, run our
business and stay connected with our family and
friends. Hence, every person needs to acquire
ICT skills and build them to stay updated with
the latest software and applications (apps).

Computer Hardware and Software

A computer system consists of two main parts—
the hardware and the software. The physical
parts that we can see and touch are called
Figure 3.1: ICT Devices
 hardware. It is the machinery of a computer.
These are the keyboard, monitor, CPU, etc.
There is another important part i.e., the
software. Though we cannot see it, it makes the
hardware work the way we want.
The monitor is a physical device or the
hardware. When we start a program, for
example, a game, it is displayed on the monitor.
Software This is done by the software which displays text,
Hardware images and videos on the monitor as shown

Figure 3.2: Hardware and Software

in Figure 3.2. Hardware would not be able to
function without software.
Mobile devices, such as smartphones and tablets
are also computer systems with hardware and software.
They are simply smaller in size and can be easily
carried around.
The most important software in any computer is the
Operating System (OS). This is the software that starts
working as soon as we switch on a computer. It displays
the desktop on the monitor. Some of the most commonly
used operating systems for laptops and desktop are
Ubuntu, Microsoft Windows and Mac OS.
Mobile devices also have an operating system that
helps them perform their functions. Some of the mobile
operating systems are Apple iOS and Google Android
(as shown in Figure 3.3).
All the computer applications, such as browsers,

Figure 3.3: Mobile Android OS that perform particular functions.

Starting a Computer

the morning? What if your father tells you to do your

homework immediately? Can you do it? Normally you
would do some daily activities and get ready before you
start working? Similarly, when a computer is switched
on, it performs some basic processes/functions before
it is ready to take instructions from the user.
To start a computer, press the Power button on the
CPU. This will start the operating system and display
the Ubuntu desktop as shown in Figure 3.4 or the main
Figure 3.4: Power Button screen on the monitor.

64 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

Basic Functions performed when a computer
starts
Just as we go about our morning routine without
anyone telling us what to do, a computer automatically
runs a basic program called BIOS (Basic Input/Output
System) as soon as it is switched on or the power button
is pushed on.

Operating System. This means that the computer’s

operating system, for example, Ubuntu, is now ready to
take user inputs.

Login and Logout

Just like we keep our cupboards locked at home we need
to keep our computer locked when we are not working
on it. This will ensure that no unauthorised person
can see or make changes to our information without
taking our permission. To make sure your computer is

password is like a key to the lock which allows you to

use the computer.

and password (as shown in Figure 3.5), the computer

knows that you are an authorised person and allows
you to work on the applications in the computer. Once

no one else can see your work.

Figure 3.5: Login Screen Figure 3.6: Log Out

INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY SKILLS 65

 NOTES Shutting Down a Computer
You can shut down the computer in Ubuntu by clicking
Systems button at the top right and then click Shut

the Operating System will close all the applications and

turn off the computer.

Using the Keyboard

A keyboard is an input device used to type text, numbers
and commands into the computer. It is shown in
Figure 3.7.

Figure 3.7: Parts of a Keyboard

Function Keys
Keys labeled from F1 to F12 are function keys. You

differ from program to program. The function of the F1

key in most programs is to get help on that program.
Some keyboards may have fewer function keys.
(a) Control keys: Keys, such as Control (CTRL),
SHIFT, SPACEBAR, ALT, CAPS LOCK and TAB,
are special control keys that perform special
functions depending on when and where they
are used.
(b) Enter key: The label on this key can be either
ENTER or RETURN, depending on the brand of
computer that you are using. You use the ENTER
or the RETURN key to move the cursor to the
beginning of a new line. In some programs, it is

a computer.

66 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

 (c) Punctuation keys: Punctuation keys include
keys for punctuation marks, such as colon (:),
semicolon (;), question mark (?), single quotation
marks (‘ ’), and double quotation marks (“ ”).
(d) Navigation keys: Keys, such as the arrow keys,

navigation keys. These are used to move up and

down, right and left in a document. The HOME

end of a line of text, respectively. The PAGE UP

up and one page down, respectively.

(e) Command keys: Keys, such as INSERT (INS),

keys. When the INSERT key is turned ON, it

helps you overwrite characters to the right of the

key are used to remove typed text, characters

and other objects on the right and left side of the
cursor, respectively.
(f) Windows key: Pressing this key opens the
Start menu

Using a Mouse
A mouse as shown in Figure 3.8 is a small device that
you can use to move, select and open items on your
computer screen. Let us see some of the functions that Scroll

will behave differently to the mouse actions. Here we use

the File Explorer to see the effect of the mouse action. Figure 3.8: Mouse

Roll Over or Hover

Some actions can be done by simply rolling over
or hovering over an item. When you bring the

Point and Click

As you move the mouse on your desk, a pointer
Figure 3.9 Roll Over
moves correspondingly on your screen. The
mouse allows you to select an item on the

INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY SKILLS 67

 gets selected as shown in Figure 3.10.

To move an item, you need to click it, and

then holding the mouse button down, move
the item to a new location. After you move
Figure 3.10 Point and Click the item to the new location, you release the
mouse button. This is called drag and drop.

can pick it up from the present location and

drop it in a new location where you release
the mouse as shown in Figure 3.11.

Figure 3.11 Drag and Drop

Practical Exercise
The teacher will facilitate these activities by showing you the
http://www.psscive.ac.in/stud_text_book.
html
for the above topics as well as detailed instructions for some
activities below.
Initial Thinking Activity
After watching the initial video write what do you think happens
when you start a computer and enter data using a keyboard
and mouse?

Activity 1

Material required
Pen, notebook, computer
Procedure
Form groups depending on the number of computers
available. One student starts the computer and logs in.

A third student then performs all the functions of the

software and also how they work together to perform a

task on the computer.

68 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

 After you have performed all the activities, another NOTES
student shuts down the computer.
Other students watch and give feedback on what was
done right and which tasks can be improved.

Activity 2
Group Practice: Using the Keyboard
Material required
Computer
Procedure
Form groups depending on
the number of computers
available.
Open a text editor in
Ubuntu by typing ‘editor’ Figure 3.12 Typing
in the search bar and then
selecting the Text Editor. You can also open Notepad in
Windows by typing Notepad on the Windows Search bar
and then selecting Notepad from the search result.
One student positions his or her hands on the keyboard as
shown in Figure 3.12 and types the following paragraph
in the text editor.
“People use computers at work, at school and at home every day.
In factories computers are used to control the manufacturing

Now, another student in the group will check the paragraph

and correct the grammar and spelling mistakes.

Check Your Progress

A. Multiple choice questions
Read the questions carefully and circle the letter (a), (b),
(c) or (d) that best answers the question.

1. Which of the following functions is not performed using

a mouse?
(a) Turn on
(b) Hover
(c) Right click
(d)
2. What is the term used when you press and hold the left
mouse key and move the mouse around?
(a) Highlighting
(b)
(c) Selecting
(d) Moving

INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY SKILLS

 3. Here are the steps that take place when starting a
computer. Rearrange the steps in the correct order.
(a)
(b) Login screen appears
(c)
(d) Operating system starts
(e) Welcome screen appears
B. Subjective questions
1. What is the function of the ENTER key?
2. How will you prevent others from using your computer?

What Have You Learnt?

After completing this session, you will be able to
demonstrate the process of starting a computer.
identify the various keys on a keyboard and their
associated functions.
perform various mouse functions.

SESSION 2: PERFORMING BASIC FILE OPERATIONS

Basic File Operations

cabinet as shown in Figure 3.13 where they keep the

Similarly, information on a computer is stored in

simply copied, moved, renamed or even deleted.

Figure 3.13 File Cabinet
Files and Folders
All information stored in a computer is kept in

and has a

or a ‘dot’. For example, a document (e.g., Neha) created

using Notepad (a type of computer application to create
. There are

an extension .jpg .mp3.

A folder
be stored.
70 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X
Creating a File (Using a Text Editor in Ubuntu)
When a student, Neha, joins a class, the teacher creates

as name, address, phone number, etc. Let us create a

To open , type ‘editor’ in the search

option as shown in Figures 3.14 and 3.15. This

will open a blank document. In Windows, you can
open Notepad and type in the text.
Here you can add text, such as ‘Neha Tiwari

Save. In the Save As dialog

as ‘Neha’ and click Save as shown in Figure 3.16.

Figure 3.14 Opening Text Editor

Figure 3.15 Text Editor Figure 3.16 Saving a File

INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY SKILLS 71
 Creating a Folder (in Ubuntu)

for all the students can be stored.

Let us create a new folder in Ubuntu.
To open in Ubuntu, click Files
option on the left as shown in Figure 3.7.
File explorer opens up as shown in Figure 3.18.
To create a folder:
(a) Choose a location where the folder has to be

(b)
(c)

Figure 3.17: Choose the File Option Figure 3.18: File Explorer

Figure 3.19: Right-click on Desktop and Figure 3.20: Type Demo as the name of
click New Folder the new folder

72 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

 NOTES
Practical Exercise
The teacher will facilitate these activities – by showing you the
http://www.psscive.ac.in/stud_text_book.
html

for some activities below.

Initial Thinking Activity

stored in a computer?

Activity 1
Creating a folder
Material required
Pen, notebook, computer
Procedure
Form groups depending on the number of computers
available. Each member of the group creates a new folder.
Others can watch and give feedback on what was done
correctly and what can be improved.
Open a text editor in Ubuntu or Notepad in Windows

Now delete the folder Test1

Each group can study the following shortcut commands together.
CTRL+z — undo CTRL+c — copy
CTRL+y — redo CTRL+v — paste
CTRL+a — select all CTRL+p — print
CTRL+x — cut CTRL+s — save

what does CRTL+z do? (Answer is Undo) or what is the

shortcut for Copy (CTRL+c). Whichever group answers
correctly gets one point otherwise the next group answers
and so on. Whichever group gets most points, wins.

Check Your Progress

A. Multiple choice questions
Read the questions carefully and circle the letter (a), (b),
(c) or (d) that best answers the question.

1. Which one of the following shortcut keys is used to paste

(a) Ctrl + c
(b) Ctrl + p
(c) Ctrl + v
(d) Ctrl + x

INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY SKILLS 73

 NOTES 2.

(a) .jpg
(b) .doc
(c) .text
(d) .txt
3. What keys do you use to copy something?
(a) Ctrl+x
(b) Ctrl+c
(c) Ctrl+z
(d) Ctrl+y
B. Subjective questions
1.
system in a school?
2.
Ubuntu?

What have you learnt?

After completing this session, you will be able to

SESSION 3: COMPUTER CARE AND MAINTENANCE

Importance of Care and Maintenance
of Computers
Taking care of our things whether it’s our books,
clothes, furniture or gadgets is important. Taking
care of electronic devices, such as computer and
mobiles helps them to work properly. Just as we take
care of our body by taking bath, brushing our teeth
and eating food every day we need to take care of our
machines. A computer is a delicate machine with a lot
of moving electronic parts. We need to protect it from
dust and damage. If we are careless, it will not work

Computers and mobiles are very expensive. When

we take good care of them on a regular basis, we
can use them for a longer time. This will help us
save money as we do not need to buy new devices
too often.

74 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

Basic Tips for Taking Care of Devices
Here are some simple ways that you can follow to take
care of your computer.

Cleaning a device, such as a computer or mobile means

to keep the screen, keyboard and mouse clean. Figure 3.21: Cleaning keyboard
with soft brush
(i) Keyboard: First we should not eat anything over
a keyboard. Crumbs can damage the internal
parts of a keyboard. You can clean a keyboard
with a soft brush as shown in Figure 3.21 to
remove crumbs and dust particles.
(ii) Screen: You can wipe the screen with a soft cloth

(iii) Be careful with food and drinks: Avoid eating Figure 3.22: Avoid keeping food
and keeping glasses of water or cups of coffee near a computer
near a computer as shown in Figure 3.22. Any
liquid spilt over an electronic device can spoil it
beyond repair.
(iv) Handle devices carefully: Handle and move your
laptop carefully and avoid dropping or banging
it against a hard surface. Even a short fall can
damage the screen or the hard disk and make the
Figure 3.23: Avoid dropping
device useless. Using a cover for your mobile and bag containing laptop
a padded case for moving your laptop as shown
in Figure 3.23 protects the device from damage.
(v) Keep the computer cool: If a computer, laptop
or mobile device gets overheated, the internal
parts can be damaged. The CPU has an internal
fan to keep it cool. We should make sure the fan
is functioning. You can also use an external fan
as shown in Figure 3.24. Avoid leaving a device in Figure 3.24: Keep device cool
the sun or in a closed car. We should be careful
when using a laptop while sitting in bed and
make sure that the fan in not covered.
(vi) Do not overcharge your battery: Sometimes
we keep a device plugged in for charging even
after it is fully charged. If we leave the device
plugged in for a long time as shown in Figure
Figure 3.25: Do not over
3.25, it can overheat the battery. This reduces charge your battery

INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY SKILLS 75

 the battery life. Always unplug the device once it
is charged 100%.
(vii) Always plug in devices carefully: Any device
being connected to a laptop or computer such
as a USB drive or headphones, should be done
gently. It should not be forced into the port. If

direction and try instead of trying to force it in.

Figure 3.26: Too many (viii) Do not run too many programs at a time: When
programs running at a time too many programs are running at the same
time as shown in Figure 3.26, the computer can
become slow and even crash. If a program/app is
not being used, it should be closed so that other
programs can work smoothly.

Prepare a Maintenance Schedule

We need to prepare a plan or a schedule for maintenance
to keep the computer running in perfect condition for a
long time. This can include:
(a)
i.
ii.
proper folders
(b) Weekly Maintenance
i. Clean your keyboard
ii. Clean your monitor
iii.
iv. Backup your data to an external drive
(c) Monthly Maintenance
i. Transfer photographs to computer and delete
from drive
ii. Organise photos into folders or albums
iii.
iv. Uninstall unused programs and apps
v.
vi. Run full system virus scan
(d) Yearly/Annual Maintenance
(a) Clean up contacts list on social media
accounts

76 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

 (b)
(c) Update your operating system
(d)
and renew

Backing up data means to save the information present

Figure 3.27: Backup Data
on CD/DVD
drives as shown in Figure 3.28
recovered from here in case the computer stops working
completely. Computers can crash, humans can make

happen. So, it is important for companies, hospitals,

banks, etc., to keep their information safe — so that
their business can continue to function smoothly and
their customers do not face problems.

Sometimes computer viruses can enter a computer

This will prevent any viruses from entering and will also
clean any viruses that may enter our system before they
affect the data.

Increasing Computer Performance

If we have been using a computer for a long time we

down. It is important that we keep cleaning

disk cleaner software, which help us clean up

Removing SPAM from your Computer

Sometimes we get mails from companies
who are advertising a product or trying to
attract you to their website. Such mails are
called SPAM.
We should never respond to SPAM and
delete it on a regular basis. Figure 3.28: SPAM folder

INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY SKILLS 77

 NOTES

have a SPAM folder as shown in Figure 3.28 and

automatically put all such emails into this folder.

Practical Exercise
Activity 1
Making a Chart
Material required
Pen, notebook, chart paper, pictures.
Procedure
Form groups and make a chart to list down all the
ways in which a device can be damaged and how it can
be prevented.
Make sure all students in the group get a chance
to participate.

Check Your Progress

A. Multiple choice questions
Read the questions carefully and circle the letter (a), (b),
(c) or (d) that best answers the question.

1. What happens if you leave a device plugged in even after

it is charged 100%?
(a) It can break.
(b) It can stop functioning.
(c)
(d)
2.
(a)
(b) It can increase its performance.
(c) It can prevent data from getting corrupt.
(d) It can backup data.
3. Which option is not required to keep a device cool?
(a) Keep the device unplugged when in use.
(b)
(c) Make sure computer’s CPU fan is working.
(d) Avoid leaving the device in the sun.
4. Which of the following is essential for maintaining
keyboard?
(a) Turn the keyboard upside down and shake it to
remove foreign material.

78 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

 (b) Blow dust and other particles with help of a blower.
(c) Use a very dilute combination of soap and water

from the keycaps.

(d) All of the above.

B. Subjective questions

1. Explain how to clean a computer on a daily basis.

2. How can you increase the performance of a computer?

What Have You Learnt?

After completing this session, you will be able to
identify the importance of taking care of computers.
list the various ways in which computers can be
damaged.
demonstrate how to prevent damage and take care
of computers.

SESSION 4: COMPUTER SECURITY AND PRIVACY

We store a lot of information on our computers and
electronic devices. For example, we keep our photos
on our mobiles, school computers store personal
information regarding every student and their parents,

of their clients and computers in hospital have important

information about patients. If any of this information
gets lost or leaked and falls into the wrong hands, it can
cause a lot of harm to the people. Figure 3.29: Computer Security

For example, if information stored in a bank’s

computer gets leaked it can cause many people to lose
a lot of money. Hence, it is essential to keep computers
secure and our data safe.

Computer Security Deals with Protecting

Computers
Computer security and privacy deals with the measures
used to prevent loss of data.

Reasons for Security Break

Security break is leakage of information stored in
a computer.

INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY SKILLS

 Personal information can be lost or leaked in
two ways:
1. We are not careful in giving out personal
information over the Internet. For
example, we share our account details
and password on unsecure sites.
2. A person gets unauthorised access to
our computer. This can happen in the

logging out.
Figure 3.30: Security Breach Computer security and privacy is about
measures we can take to restrict access to
personal data stored in a computer.

Threats to Computer
Threats are the ways in which personal
information can be leaked from a computer
without our knowing.
(a) Theft: Theft means stealing of
information or hardware. These maybe
of three types:
Figure 3.31: Physical stealing
Physical: Where a person may
steal your desktop computer or
laptop.
Identity: Where a hacker steals
your personal information and
assumes your identity. Using this
false identity, the hacker can gain
access to your account information
or perform illegal activity.
Software Piracy: This is stealing
of software and includes using
Figure 3.32: Online stealing
or distributing unlicensed and
unauthorised copies of a computer
program or software.
(b) Virus:
damage the data and software programs or steal
the information stored on a computer. Major
types of viruses are Worms and Trojan Horse.
Worms: These are viruses that replicate
Figure 3.33: Worm virus

80 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

 to remove them.
Trojan Horse: A Trojan Horse disguises itself
i.e., it appears to be a useful software program
but once it reaches a computer it starts
behaving like a virus and destroying data.
Online Predator: Online predators are people
who trap you into inappropriate relationships.
They may be older people posing to be your
age, bullying you into doing illegal activities
online and sometimes face to face.
Internet Scams: Sometimes you may receive
very attractive offers saying you have won
a huge money in a lottery and that you can
claim the prize by depositing a certain amount
of money. When you deposit the money
using credit card or online banking, you not
only lose the deposit money but your card /
account information may be misused later.

To protect our data from theft and viruses we

can take the following measures:
(a) Use passwords to login to your
computer: Use passwords that are

to hack if they are a mix of small (For

example ‘a b c d’) and capital letters
(For example, ‘H J E R’), numbers (For
example ‘8 7 6 5’) and special characters
(For example, ’% ^ # $’). This would Figure 3.34: Antivirus
prevent unauthorised people from
using your computer.
(b) Install Anti-virus and Firewall:
and Firewall monitor the data coming in and
out of a computer and prevent and viruses from

viruses that may have entered a computer.

(c) Encrypt Data: This is usually done by banks
and companies in which important customer
information is stored. They can encrypt their
entire hard disk using encrypting feature in Figure 3.35: Data encryption

INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY SKILLS 81

 NOTES Windows (Bitlocker). This would force users to use
a decryption password (or key) before starting the
computer thus preventing unauthorised usage.
(d) Secure sites: Give details of your credit card or
bank account only on secure sites. See in the
address bar of the browser. If the site address
starts with https://and a lock symbol, then it is
safe to give your credit card and bank details.

Practical Exercise
The teacher will facilitate these activities by showing you the
e-learning lesson athttp://www.psscive.ac.in/stud_text_book.
html. This will include videos and e-content for the above topics
as well as detailed instructions for some activities below.
Initial Thinking Activity
After watching the initial video write down the type of risk present
to the data available in different places, for example in a school,
hospital, bank, etc.

Activity 1
Group Chart Making
Material required
Pen, notebook, computer, Chart paper, colours
Procedure
Form groups depending on the number of students
available. Make a chart to show all the different threats
faced by a computer and how you can protect a computer
from such treats.

Check Your Progress

A. Multiple choice questions
Read the questions carefully and circle the letter (a), (b),
(c) or (d) that best answers the question

1. What should you do to ensure secure online transactions?

(a) Lock your computer
(b) Give credit card or bank details only on safe websites
(c) Use anti-virus
(d) Do not use pirated software
2. Which of the following trap small children into
inappropriate relations?
(a) Online predators
(b) Worms
(c) Trojan Horse
(d) Anti-Virus

82 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

 3. What should a strong password consist of?
NOTES
(a) Only letters
(b) Numbers and special characters
(c) Name of a person
(d) Letters, numbers and special characters

B. Subjective questions

1. Explain how Trojan Horse virus works.

2. List the various ways you can use to protect your data.

What Have You Learnt?

After completing this session, you will be able to
identify the importance of securing our computers
and data.
list the various threats to a computer and its data.
list the various ways to protect data.

INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY SKILLS 83

4
Entrepreneurial
Skills

INTRODUCTION
Entrepreneurship is being talked about a lot in the
world today, and especially in India. Entrepreneurship
is the type of self-employment where one is running a
business to satisfy the needs of people and looking for

unit focusses on encouraging students to learn about

entrepreneurship and its functions from the world
around them.
Entrepreneurs are all around us. We would have
spoken to a lot of them through the course of this
module. We also learnt that successful entrepreneurs
have the following qualities.

and their abilities.

business ideas.
SESSION 1: ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND SOCIETY NOTES
We learnt last year that the two ways in which one
can earn a living are through wage employment and
self-employment. Wage employed people are people
who work for a person or an organization and get paid
for that work. Self-employed people are those who
start businesses to satisfy the needs of people. A self-
employed person who is always trying to make his/her
business better by taking risks and trying new ideas is
an entrepreneur.
Example: Ramya and Ramu both own plant shops.
Ramu sits at his shop every day. When customers
come, he sells to them. Ramya walks around and gets

with her plants.

Ramya is working to do more and grow her business.
She has also added a different idea to her business. So,
Ramya is an entrepreneur and Ramu is a businessman.

Practical Exercise
Activity 1
Entrepreneurs I know: Individual Practice
Procedure
In this activity, we will think of the entrepreneurs we know.
Instructions
1.
2. Draw circles and in each circle write the name of that
entrepreneur, what business they run, and one thing
that you really like about their business.
3. After writing, share the details of the entrepreneurs with
your class.

Where do these entrepreneurs do their business?

Entrepreneurs run their businesses in a market.

and people who sell them also. When people are buying
and selling from each other, it is helpful for everyone

entrepreneurs help in growing the area and society they

live in.
ENTREPRENEURIAL SKILLS 85
 Aditi has a store where she sells different types
of shampoos. She has many customers. She buys
the shampoos in large quantities from a woman.

her sell.
Aditi is helping people in her area to make
money. She is also increasing jobs in her area.
Aditi is helping the people in the society around
her to live better.
So, what do entrepreneurs do when they run
Figure 4.1: Customer needs, wants
and demands their business?

Demand means a product or service that people want.

use their creativity to come up with a business idea that

will meet that demand.

Use Local Materials

Entrepreneurs use the material and people available
around them, to make products at low cost.

Help Society
Entrepreneurs have a positive relationship with society.

society. Some entrepreneurs work towards saving the

environment, some give money to build schools and

becomes better.

How do you think entrepreneurs affect the society they

live in? Let’s read.

With the growth of a business, entrepreneurs look for

them. In this way, more people have jobs.

Sharing of Wealth
Wealth means having enough money to live a comfortable
life. As entrepreneurs grow their business, the people
86 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X
working for them and in related businesses also grow.
Hey have more money to live a better quality life.

Lower Price of Products

As more entrepreneurs sell the same product, the price
of the product goes down. For example, when more
mobile phones were getting sold in India, the cost of the
phone became lesser.
Let’s learn about the role of entrepreneurs in society
by reading Bharti’s story.

Bharti is a young woman from Bihar. Many girls in her

area like to wear earrings. She buys jute from a farmer
and makes earrings from that. Her business is called

in her village do not work. So, she hires two women to

help her. As her orders increase, she buys more jute.

and the women working for her now earn more money.

Do you think Bharti is an entrepreneur? Read her

story and tick the correct answer for each question in

Table 4.1
Questions about Bharti’s business Answers
What demand did Bharti identify in Options
her village? (a)
(b) Girls in her area liked to wear earrings
(c)
What is the local resource that Bharti Options
used? (a)
(b) Water
(c) Sand
How is Bharti helping her village grow? Options
(a) By buying jute from the local farmer who
can now earn more money
(b) By providing jobs to local women
(c) Both (a) and (b)
How was she creating more jobs? Options
(a) By selling earrings to women without a job
(b) By buying jute from the local farmer
(c) By providing jobs to local women

ENTREPRENEURIAL SKILLS 87
 NOTES We’ve read how entrepreneurs help in the growth of
the society around them. Let’s try it out ourselves now!

Practical Exercise
Activity 2
Field Work : Let’s be an Entrepreneur
Procedure

campus that can be turned into business opportunities.

Instructions
1. Form groups of 3 each.
2.
3.
Write down some business ideas to solve these problems
in the table given below.
5. Also think about how your business ideas will help the
school. One example has been written for you.
Problem Business ideas How will this help the
school?
For example, 1. Make plant 1.
plastic cola pots out of green and beautiful.
bottles bottles and sell
from the to students and
canteen are parents. 2.
harming the will spend less money
environment 2. Sell cola in on buying glass
glass bottles. bottles because they
can be used again.

Check Your Progress

A. State whether the following statements are True or False

1. Entrepreneurs can create jobs in the market.

2. When many entrepreneurs sell mobile phones in a
market, the prices of phones increase.
3. Entrepreneurs identify a need in the market and build a
product or service for it.

88 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

 B. Subjective question

1. List the ways in which an entrepreneur affects a society.

What Have You Learnt?

After completing this session, you will be able to
identify the role of entrepreneurs and how they help in
the growth of society.

SESSION 2: QUALITIES AND FUNCTIONS OF AN

ENTREPRENEUR
In the previous section, we read how entrepreneurs help

how do they think and behave?

Qualities of an Entrepreneur

Some examples of qualities in people are hardworking,

Qualities of an Entrepreneur

and take business

Figure 4.2

ENTREPRENEURIAL SKILLS 89
 The Story of Zafar
Oops! I made a mistake. But,
THINKING about whether
they are good or bad for
work to make my business.
it better

Figure 4.3

We’ve read about the qualities of successful

qualities that we have!

Practical Exercise
Activity 1

Procedure
In this activity, the students will rate themselves on the
entrepreneurial qualities mentioned below.

I believe in myself and what I can I keep trying new ideas.

I think of different ways to
Problems take time to get solved. solve a problem. I am creative.
I am patient about solving them.
I think before I make a decision.
I take responsibility for my
I do not give up when I face a
actions and mistakes.
problem.
I work hard on every task.

Figure A

EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

 Instructions
NOTES
1. Listed in Figure A are all the qualities of successful
entrepreneurs.
2.
each quality.
3. Give yourself a point for every ‘yes’ answer.
Debrief questions
1. Look at how many ‘yes’ you have. You are good at these

2. Look at the ‘no’ statements. What can you do to learn

these qualities?

Activity 2
Let us Solve a Problem!
Procedure
In this activity, students will try and solve a problem in
their vicinity.
Instructions
1. Similar to Activity 1.2, select a problem in the area

bothers you.
2. Make a 5-step plan for how you will solve the problem.
3. Implement step 1 of your solution!

solution for a week.

5. At the end of the week, rate yourself again on the
entrepreneurial qualities you rated yourselves on in
Activity 2.2.
Questions for Discussion
Are your ratings on your entrepreneurial qualities before doing
the activity and after doing the activity different?
What qualities did you see yourself apply in the activity? You
would have applied some or all of these entrepreneurial qualities
while implementing your solution. You did not implement a
business solution, but you exercised these qualities anyway.

However, any individual who is trying to solve a problem can

be entrepreneurial. If employees of a factory or company work
hard to try new ideas to make their company’s products better

If your mother or father work in a company, ask them if they

show these qualities.
Functions of an Entrepreneur
If you were to become an entrepreneur, you now know how you
would think and act. But, what would you actually be doing in

ENTREPRENEURIAL SKILLS 91
 NOTES Activity 3
Interview an entrepreneur
Procedure
In this activity, students will observe entrepreneurs
at work, and speak to them and their employees about
their work.
Instructions
1. Identify an entrepreneur in your area that you like
or know.
2. On a weekend, spend some time in their shop and note
everything that they do.
3. After that, speak to the entrepreneur and ask them in
detail what activities they do in a day.
Also speak to somebody who works for them. Ask them
what activities they see the entrepreneur do in a day.
Write all your notes in Figure a.
5. After you are back in class, make a list of all the

get repeated.

Figure a

Everyone in class would have spoken to different kinds of

entrepreneurs. But, when you compare the responses you got to
the responses your friends got, you will see that all entrepreneurs

Function means working in a way. Functions of an entrepreneur

92 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

 NOTES
will read the common functions that all entrepreneurs do.

MAKING MANAGING CREATE

DIVIDE TAKING
DECISIONS THE A NEW
INCOME RISK
BUSINESS METHOD,
An An Risk is the IDEA OR
entrepreneur entrepreneur chance of PRODUCT
entrepreneur
makes plans the divides the something An
decisions future of business going entrepreneur
everyday. his or her money wrong. is always
business. to many An trying new
He/she groups. entrepreneur things.
what to
produce or arranges for takes risks He/she
raw material, He/she
sell, how spends does this to
much and hires people lost items increase their
for work money to and theft.
where to sell. buy material, importance
and tells and income.
everyone pays rent of
what to do. the building
and salaries
check if the to people.
plan is being
followed.

Figure b

Check Your Progress

A. Here are some stories of some entrepreneurs. Tick the
option for the quality they are showing.
1. Ravi’s customer comes to his store and starts shouting
at him. He does not get angry. He listens to what his
customer is saying. He is ____________.
(a) hardworking
(b)
(c) patient
(d) prying new ideas
2. Susheela decides to sell her company tyres in Sri Lanka.
It does not sell and she has a loss. She apologises to the
people who work for her. She says she will plan better
next time. She _______________________.
(a) takes responsibility for your mistakes
(b) thinks before making a decision
(c) does not give up
(d) is creative

ENTREPRENEURIAL SKILLS 93
NOTES B. Tick the correct option for the function that the
entrepreneur is doing.
1. Ali has a diamond factory. He pays his employees on the
1st of every month.
(a)
(b) Manages the business
(c)
2.
that bulbs are cheaper in Faridabad. So, she decides to
start buying bulbs from there.
(a) Makes decisions
(b) Divides income
(c)
3. Rehnuma has two people who work for her. Every day,
she spends one hour with them to learn about what
they’ve done that day.
(a)
(b) Divides income
(c) Manages the business

C. Subjective question

1. What do you think is the most important function of

an entrepreneur? Write your answer giving suitable
examples.

What Have You Learnt?

After completing this session, you will be able to
identify the qualities of successful entrepreneurs.
list the functions of entrepreneurs.

SESSION 3: MYTHS ABOUT ENTREPRENEURSHIP

We know that entrepreneurs are all around us. But
even now, how many of us want to be entrepreneurs
ourselves? We connect entrepreneurship with some
thoughts and opinions. Some people think being an
entrepreneur is easy, and some people think it is

meant to be entrepreneurs.
A myth, or a misconception, is a false belief or opinion
about something. For example, if we think tall people
run faster than short people, we have a misconception.

run fast.

EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

 In the same way, here are some misconceptions we NOTES
might have about entrepreneurship. We will also read
about the actual truth.

Misconception 1

The misconception is that every business

idea needs to be unique or special.

common businesses that we see every day. But, each

entrepreneur saw customer demand and brought a
new idea into their business. A person can take an idea
that is already there in the market and do something
different with it.
Ganesh is an entrepreneur who started a car rental
business. He wanted to be different from other car rental
businesses. So, he thought of a new idea of adding
luxury cars like Mercedes and BMW to his business.

cars, of which 75 are luxury cars.

Practical Exercise
Activity 1
Identifying Everyday Heroes
Procedure
In this activity, the teacher will make chits about different

1. a vegetable seller not using plastic bags

2. a businesswoman running a delivery system
3. a chai wala
a gold seller selling gold teeth
Instructions
1.

acts it out for the class.

2. Identify what each person is doing differently in
their business.
Questions for Discussion
1. Are all these people entrepreneurs? Why or why not?
2. Being a vegetable seller, selling chai or selling gold —
How many of these are new business ideas? How many
of these are common business ideas?

ENTREPRENEURIAL SKILLS 95
 NOTES Misconception 2

The misconception we have is that a person

needs a lot of money to start a business.

business does not need a lot of capital to start. In the

activity, you would have seen that every entrepreneur
started with a different amount. Some had a lot of
money, and some did not. But, they are successful
today.
Depending on how much money you have or can
borrow, you can start a business with that much
money. Once you make more money, you can put that
into your business to make it bigger.

Practical Exercise
Activity 2

Procedure
In this activity, students speak to entrepreneurs and learn
about the money needed to start a business and how
to raise money needed for the business. Students should

their business.
Instructions
1. Identify three different types of successful entrepreneurs
in your area.
2. Ask them how much money they started their
businesses with.
3. What are the sources?
How did they raise the money?
5.
Please ask your questions with respect. If someone does
not want to answer, let it be!
6.
Table a
Entrepreneur E.g. Kashish
Name
Type of business Lightbulb shop
Capital

96 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

 Year of starting
NOTES
How does one Borrow money
raise money from your family,
for business? use your own
What are the money, etc.
sources?
How did you do I borrowed money
it? from my family.

Question for discussion

1.
you see?

Misconception 3

A misconception we have is that only a person

having a big business is an entrepreneur.
Sheila is 35 years old. She loved to drive. She worked

wanted to be different from other taxi drivers in the

city. She said ‘hello’ to her customers. She would put
that day’s newspaper in her car, for her customers

watch different channels. She also had a board with the

numbers of the nearby hospitals and hotels. Because of
this, customers would stand in line to take a ride in her
amazing taxi!

Table 4.2
What was Sheila doing?
Why was she doing it?

Many of us may not call Sheila an entrepreneur

because she had a taxi business. However, she was
working for herself, was thinking about what her
customers would want and was adding good things to

entrepreneur. Most businesses start small. It becomes

big with hard work and creativity.

ENTREPRENEURIAL SKILLS 97
 NOTES Misconception 4

A misconception we have is that entrepreneurs

are born, not made.
Before we read on, ask yourself this question — Do
you think you can be an entrepreneur? Answer as yes
or no.

Practical Exercise
Activity 3
Make and sell
Procedure
In this activity, students make an item in class and step
out to sell it to someone.
Instructions
1.
mix of boys and girls.
2.
Put them on your desk.
3. With the materials you’ve collected, make an object.

in school.
Questions for discussion
Were you able to do it? What do you now think — can you be
an entrepreneur?

Sometimes, we think that only some people have the

talent for doing business. An entrepreneur is a person
who does whatever it takes to make the business
successful. In the above activity, you did everything
you could do to sell your product. So, you are already
an entrepreneur!
Being an entrepreneur starts with a way of thinking.
You must believe that anything is possible and it shall
be achieved. It starts with thinking of an idea that you
want to work on, making it different.

about entrepreneurship.

98 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

 NOTES
Check Your Progress
A. Subjective questions

1. What is the difference between a misconception and

reality? Give an example.

B. Match each story below with the misconception about

entrepreneurship.

Story Misconception
Ramu owns a large clothes (a) Every business idea needs
shop. Shamu has a small to be unique or special.
store selling handmade
sarees. Shamu does not call
himself an entrepreneur.
Anna has a great idea for a (b) Entrepreneurs are born,
website. She has ` not made.
is waiting for `
so that she can start it.
In a city of thousands of (c) A person needs to have a
tailoring shops, Gauri is big business to be called an
a tailor who stitches good entrepreneur.
quality clothes and has a
very successful business.

What Have You Learnt?

After completing this session, you will be able to

list the misconceptions around entrepreneurship and
the truth behind them.

SESSION 4: ENTREPRENEURSHIP AS A
CAREER OPTION
So far, we have discussed the effect of entrepreneurship
on society the qualities and functions of an
entrepreneur and misconceptions we might have about
entrepreneurship.
In this section, we shall think about entrepreneurship
as a life choice.

ENTREPRENEURIAL SKILLS 99
 A career is a line of work that a person takes for

1. self-employment
2. wage employment
For example, a doctor who works for a hospital is a
wage employed person. If the same doctor has their own
clinic, he or she is a self-employed person.
A self-employed person running a business to satisfy
a need by trying new ideas is an entrepreneur.
A person who becomes an entrepreneur goes through

ENTER SURVIVE GROW

When an entrepreneur is Once the business is

starting, they are just entering stable, an entrepreneur
the market to do business. has to remain in a competitive thinks about expanding
market. his or her business.
For example, Sanjana is For example, there are many
starting a small grocery store other grocery stores in the area. years, Sanjana has
in a locality. Yet, Sanjana’s store survives opened a chain of four
the competition and does well. more grocery stores in
She also expands the store to the same city. In the next
two years, she plans to
expand to tow other cities.

Practical Exercise
Activity 1

Procedure
In this activity, you will compare entrepreneurship and
wage employment.
Instructions
1. Get into pairs.
2.
pair is wage employed and the other person is an
entrepreneur. Discuss how your lives are similar and
different from each other.
3. Have a debate with your class and your teacher.

EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

 Questions for Group Discussion
NOTES
1.
and wage employment as a life choice? What did you

Activity 1
Presenting about the Power of Entrepreneurship
Procedure
In this activity, students shall prepare and present why
they think entrepreneurship is a good life option for a
person and for the society
Instructions
1. Get into groups of 5 each.
2. Imagine you believe that people should become
entrepreneurs. You are speaking at your school
assembly. You have to talk to the audience about the
power of entrepreneurship. Prepare a presentation for
the same.
3. You can use any way to present - talk, draw, act, sing,
or dance.
You have 15 minutes to prepare. You will have 5 minutes
to present.

Things to remember
1. An entrepreneur does a lot of work in his or her
business. One has to learn and practice these actions

done by either learning them in school and college

or practicing them while working for someone.
2. If you believe in your idea, start your business.
3. Being an entrepreneur can be risky. But if you do
not try, you will not know!

You have read a lot about entrepreneurship. Do you

want to be an entrepreneur? Write your thoughts in the
table below.

Please add your thoughts about entrepreneurship

—————————————————————————————
—————————————————————————————

Go back to the exercise you went through in Session 1.

You thought of some business ideas to solve problems

ENTREPRENEURIAL SKILLS
NOTES a new one. Write down business ideas for the problem
and select one business idea that you want to try out.
Do whatever it takes to run your business. Use the

Remember — if you do not try, you will not know if you

want to be an entrepreneur!

Check Your Progress

A. Write against the option, if the business idea is of
self-employment or wage employment.
(a)
(b) Owning a clothing business
(c) Having a dosa selling stall

B. Match the columns

1. Surabhi opens 5 painting stores a. Enter

across India.
2. b. Survive

He is starting morning batches to

attract more students to his classes.
3. Salma has started her clothing line c. Grow
on the Internet.

What Have You Learnt?

After completing this session, you will be able to

present your opinion about entrepreneurship as a

life option.

EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

 5
Green Skills

INTRODUCTION
The environment around us affects all aspects of our
life; and all our day-to-day activities also affect the
environment. Those who live in cities get their food
supply from surrounding villages and in turn, are
dependent on forests, grasslands, rivers, seashores, for
resources, such as water, fuel wood, fodder, etc. We use
natural resources for food. Everything around us forms
our environment and our lives depend on the natural
world around us.
Over the years, with economic development, there
has been an increase in environmental pollution.
For example, with the introduction of high input
agriculture, we can grow more food by using fertilisers,
pesticides and hybrid crops. But it has led to soil and
environmental degradation. We need to plan the use of
resources in a sustainable manner so that we and our
future generations can enjoy the good environment

SESSION 1: SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

Are we planting more trees or are we only destroying
them for our use? Are we saving the water resources
 NOTES or just polluting them with garbage? Are we using
clean energy or are we burning wood and petrol and
adding to pollution? Are we giving back to nature
so that our future generations may thrive or are we
simply using the air, water and soil available without
leaving anything for the future generations to come? If
the answer to all these questions is yes, then we are
only thinking about our immediate development and
not the long-term development.
What is Sustainable Development?
Sustainable development is the development that

the capacity of future generations, guaranteeing

the balance between economic growth, care for the
environment and social well-being.
Importance of Sustainable Development
Economic development is using up resources of the
world so quickly that our future generations, the young
people of the world, would have serious environmental
problems, much worse than those that we are facing at
present. With increasing population and income, the
consumption of goods is increasing day by day. This has
led to increase in production and utilisation of natural
resources, which are required for producing goods.
Society must thus change its development strategy
to a new form where development will not destroy the
environment. This form of sustainable development
can only be brought about if each individual practices
a sustainable lifestyle. Since most of the natural
resources are scarce, therefore, careful utilisation of
resource is necessary.

that meets the needs of the present without

compromising the ability of future generations to meet
their own needs’ (World Commission on Environment
and Development, 1987). For example, sustainable
agriculture consists of environment friendly methods
of farming that allow the production of agricultural
crops or livestock without damage to human or
natural systems. It also involves preventing the use of

104 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

chemicals so as to avoid adverse effects to soil, water NOTES
and biodiversity.

Problems Related to Sustainable Development

Three major problems related to sustainable
development are:
(a) Food: The amount of rich, fertile land needed to
grow crops, such as wheat, rice, etc., is becoming
less as we are using up more and more land for
other purposes. Soil nutrients are also getting
depleted and lots of chemicals are spoiling the
soil due to use of chemical fertilisers.
(b) Water: We use fresh water from rivers and ponds
for drinking and cleaning but dump garbage into
them. The rivers and ponds are getting polluted.
This way after several years, we will have no clean
water for our use.
(c) Fuel: We are using a lot of wood from trees as
fuels and for construction of homes and furniture.
As more and more trees are being cut, it is
affecting the climate of the place. Extreme weather

are seen in many places, which affect the people

living there.
An environment friendly way for production of power
is using solar energy or energy from the sun which is
unlimited. One major example of large scale production
of solar power is seen in Charanka — Gujarat Solar
Park. This barren land with wild vegetation has a mega
solar power plant of 600 MW. This has reduced the
dependence on non-renewable fossil fuels in Gujarat.

a good source of income and this will also help future

generations in the next 40–50 years to come
Sustainable development includes
reducing excessive use of resources and enhancing
resource conservation;
recycling and reuse of waste materials;

especially bio-resources;
planting more trees;

GREEN SKILLS 105

 green grassy patches and trees to be interspersed
between concrete buildings;
using more environment friendly material or
biodegradable material and
use of technologies, which are environmental

Sustainable Development Goals

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are a
universal call of action to end poverty, protect the
planet and ensure that all people enjoy peace and
prosperity. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
were launched at the United Nations Sustainable
Development Summit in New York in September 2015,
forming the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
It has set targets that the countries have to should work
towards and achieve by 2030.
The 17 SDGs have been made with the aim to take
care of important issues facing businesses, governments
and society. Some of these issues are poverty, gender
equality, water use, energy, climate change and
biodiversity. Countries are now making policies and
regulations that will promote sustainable systems
needed in all economic sectors to provide a secure,
affordable and sustainable economy.

Fig. 5.1 Sustainable Development Goals

106 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

 The core skills required by a person who wants to NOTES
contribute towards environment include environmental
awareness and willingness to learn about sustainable
development. If we are responsible about our life, then we
will do our best at home, in school and at our workplace
to help the environment and the people around us.

Sustainable Development Initiatives

When plastics were banned by the municipal corporation
of Mangalore, an innovator and entrepreneur Mr Avasth
Hedge found an eco-friendly alternative. He made a
100 per cent bio-degradable bag which can dissolve in
hot water and decompose in natural environment. This
is now being used in many countries and is going to
help the environment.
Another innovative idea was to stop the use of
plastics spoons, forks, etc. Narayana Peesapaty made
edible cutlery made out of a grain — these spoons can
be eaten and even if they are not eaten they will easily
decompose in the soil enriching it. <https://www.ibef.
org/Innovations-from-India.aspx>

Sustainable Processes
Some practices, such as organic farming, vermi-composting
and rainwater harvesting are being used to help preserve
the environment.
Organic farming is where farmers do not use chemical
pesticides and fertilisers to increase their production.
They use organic and natural fertilisers, such as cow
dung to help in growing crops. This helps in better
quality chemical free crops while at the same time
maintaining the soil quality for future use. This is a true
example of sustainable developmen where we are not
only using the earth resources but are also preserving
it for our future generations.

Practical Exercise
Activity 1
Create a Garden in School or Plant Trees
Material required
Seeds, garden waste, sprinkler, gardening tools

GREEN SKILLS 107

 NOTES Procedure
Form groups depending on the number of students
available. Ask teacher to allot a piece of land in the
school premises.
Assign different tasks to different groups of students.
The tasks can be ploughing, sowing seeds, making manure
using vermicomposting and setting up a sprinkler system
to water the plants.

Activity 2
Discussion on How to Prevent Wastage.
Procedure
Form groups depending on the number of students
available.
Every student in the group will name way in which wasting
of water and food can be stopped or prevented.
Make a list and share it with the rest of the class.

Check Your Progress

A. Multiple choice questions
Read the questions carefully and circle the letter (a), (b),
(c) or (d) that best answers the question.

1. How many sustainable development goals are given by

the United Nations?
(a) 18
(b) 17
(c) 15
(d) 20
2.
development.
(a) Taking care of future generations
(b) Taking care of only ourselves
(c) Taking care of ourselves and the future generations
(d) Well-being of all
3. Which organisation has made the Sustainable
Development Goals.
(a) United Nations
(b) League of Nations
(c) UNICEF
(d) World Health Organisation

B. Subjective questions

1. What is the meaning of sustainable development?

2. Why do you think the United Nations has made the 17
Sustainable Development Goals?

108 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

What Have You Learnt? NOTES
After completing this session, you will be able to

identify the goals of sustainable development.

SESSION 2: OUR ROLE IN SUSTAINABLE

DEVELOPMENT
Increasing population and development has led to the
increase in consumption of the natural resources. The
more the population, the more food, energy and water
we need. When we grow more crops, the soil’s nutrients
are consumed and slowly the soil becomes unusable.
Similarly, is we continue to use fossil fuels, such as
coal, oil and natural gas, very soon we will run out of
these natural resources.
We use so many resources from nature but what
do we give back to nature? Factories give out smoke
that pollutes the air. Garbage collected from homes

to disease and unhealthy environment. Sewage from

the cities is dumped into the seas and lakes making
it unsafe for marine life. This shows that though we
are using the natural resources, we are doing nothing
to return or give back to nature. Natural resources are
limited and with time they will get over and if we do not
do anything about it, our future generations will not be
able to survive.
One initiative was taken by Ministry of Railways in
Varanasi and Raibareilly where they introduced clay
pots ‘Kulhads’ to replace plastic and paper cups and to
bring back taste of tradition. Three major advantages
gained by using ‘Kulhads’ are to
1. reduce cutting of tree for making paper cups.
2. job creation for potters, which contributes
to economy.
3. reduce plastic waste.
Our Role towards Sustainable Development
United Nations has formed 17 Sustainable Development
Goals (SDGs) so that countries and nations can work
GREEN SKILLS 109
 the world. Countries should form rules and guidelines
to remove poverty and hunger and provide good health
and quality education. These goals have been made so
that all the nations take action to protect our air, water
and land from pollution and provide clean water, air
and energy to all people.
Sustainable development can actually happen
only when each one of us works towards it. We have
to become responsible environment citizens who can
protect the environment through our own efforts.
Here are some basic ways in which people can help
towards Sustainable Development Goals.

Quality Education
Education is the most important factors for sustainable
development. Children who have gone to school will be
able to do jobs so that they can take care of themselves
and their families. Education helps us become aware of
our role as a responsible citizen. We should
1. use the facilities present in our areas.
2. take our friends to school.
3. help friends study.
4. stop friends from dropping out of school.

Clean Water and Sanitation

We must make efforts to make India free of open
defecation by building toilets and creating awareness
towards sanitation.
Industrial pollution
is polluting our
water resources,
which in near future
will cause scarcity of
clean drinking and
usable water. We
must take measurable
steps by promoting
awareness to keep
water sources clean.

110 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

Affordable and Clean Energy
Using solar power i.e., power generated
using the sun does not cause pollution
as it does not require burning of
non-renewable fuels, such as coal. We
are making efforts to increase the solar
power generation so that our electricity
needs are met and at the same time we
do not pollute the environment or use
up natural resources. Use of biogas is
also an eco-friendly alternative to
natural gas.

Decent Work and Economic Growth

We can
(a)
and our families.
(b) work hard and contribute to society.
(c) learn and develop skills so that we get add value
in our community.

Reduced Inequalities
To reduce inequalities we can
1. be helpful to one another.
2. be friendly with everyone.
3. include everyone while working or playing.
4. help others by including everyone whether they
are small or big, girl or boy, belong to any class
or caste.

Sustainable Cities and Communities

Creating Sustainable Cities

1. Save energy by switching off lights and fans when
not in use.
2. Use natural light as much as possible.
3.
and appliances.

GREEN SKILLS 111

 Responsible Consumers and Producers
We can become responsible about our own
environment by
1. reusing paper, glass, plastic, water, etc.
2. taking cloth bags to market carrying fruits and
vegetables.
3. donate things we do not use such as clothes,
books, furniture, food, etc.
4. Buy and eat seasonal fruits and vegetables from
local growers.
5. Repair leaking taps and pipes to avoid
wasting water.
6. Sort and treat garbage before disposing.

Protect Life Below Water

Tons of plastic is found in the seas, which is killing
marine life. Protecting marine life, saving our oceans
from pollution is necessary to preserve the marine life.

Protect Life on Land

Cutting of trees is leading to soil erosion and making
land dry and unusable for cultivation. Planting more
tree to replace the ones that we have cut is an important
step towards sustainable development.

Practical Exercise
Activity 1
Group Discussion
Procedure
Form groups depending on the number of students
available.
Every student will describe one way in which they can
work to conserve and protect the environment.
Make a list and share it with the rest of the class.

Activity 2
Make art project using waste
Material required
Plastic bags, used bottles, papers cups, paper, wire, etc.

112 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X

 Procedure
NOTES
Form groups depending on the number of children
available. Make a list of waste material that is thrown
away. Now think of creative ideas in which you can use
the waste material to make something useful.
If time permits, every student can get some waste material from
home, such as old newspapers, plastic bottles, old cloth, etc.,
and make the best out of waste (a painting, wall decoration or a
bag). Have an exhibition at the front gate of your school.

Check Your Progress

A. Multiple choice questions
Read the questions carefully and circle the letter (a), (b),
(c) or (d) that best answers the question

1. Which of the following sources of energy is from a

renewable source?
(a) Solar energy
(b) Wood
(c) Coals
(d) Petrol
2. Choose the option which is not a sustainable
development goal according to United Nations.
(a) Clean Water and Sanitation
(b) Gender Equality
(c) Population
(d) Reduced Inequalities

B. Subjective questions

1. List some ways in which we can use resources sensibly.

2. Explain the importance of education towards sustainable
development.

What Have You Learnt?

After completing this session, you will be able to
explain the importance of our role in sustainable
development.
identify how we can contribute towards sustainable
development.

GREEN SKILLS 113

 ANSWER KEY
Unit 1: Communication Skills
Session 1: Methods of Communication
A. Multiple choice questions
1. d
2. a
3. c

Session 2: Verbal Communication

A. Multiple choice questions
1. c
2. b
3. a and b

Session 3: Non-verbal Communication

A. Multiple choice questions
1. b
2. c
3. a
4. d

B. Put an X mark against the incorrect actions below

Laughing during formal communication X
Scratching head X
Smiling when speaking to a friend
Nodding when you agree with something
Standing straight
Yawning while listening X
Sitting straight
Maintaining eye contact while speaking
Biting nails X
Firm handshake
Clenching jaws X
Looking away when someone is speaking to you X
Intense stare X

Session 4: Communication Cycle and Importance of Feedback

A. Multiple choice questions
1. d
2. a
3. b and c

Session 5: Barriers to Effective Communication

A. Multiple choice questions
1. c
2. a and b
Session 6: Writing Skills — Parts of Speech NOTES
A. Multiple choice questions:
1. a and c
2. c and d
3. c and d
4. a
B. Fill in the blanks
a. The boy is swimming.
b. The children are playing.
c. The students are writing.
d. Rahim is driving the car.
e. Ms Sen is teaching.
f. The cat is eating.

Session 7: Writing Skills — Sentences

A. Multiple choice questions
1. a
2. d
3. d
4. c

Unit 2: Self-management Skills

Session 3: Self-motivation
A. Multiple choice questions
1. c
2. a and c
3. b

Unit 3: Information and Communication Technology Skills

Session 1: Basic Computer Operations
A. Multiple choice questions
1. a
2. b
3. c>>d>>e>>b>>a

Session 2: Performing Basic File Operations

A. Multiple choice questions
1. c
2. d
3. b

Session 3: Computer Care and Maintenance

A. Multiple choice questions
1. c
2. c
3. a
4. d

ANSWER KEY 115

 NOTES Session 4: Computer Security and Privacy
A. Multiple choice questions
1. b
2. a
3. d

Unit 4: Entrepreneurial Skills

Session 1: Entrepreneurship and Society
A. State whether the following statements are True or False
1. True
2. False
3. True
Session 2: Qualities and Functions of an Entrepreneur
A. Tick the correct option for the quality they are showing.
1. c
2. a
B. Tick the correct option for the function that the
entrepreneur is doing.
1. b
2. a
3. c
Session 3: Myths about Entrepreneurship
B. Match each story below with the misconception about
entrepreneurship.
1. c
2. d
3. a
Session 4: Entrepreneurship as a Career Option
A. a - wage employment
b – self-employment
c – self-employment
B. Match the columns
1. 1.c
2.b
3.a

Unit 5: Green Skills

Session 1: Sustainable Development
A. Multiple choice questions
1. b
2. c
3. a
Session 2: Our Role in Sustainable Development
A. Multiple choice questions
1. a
2. c
116 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X
 GLOSSARY
Backup: this means copying data from a computer onto another
storage device to ensure that no data gets lost or damaged.
Barrier: obstacle
Capital: the money used to start a business is called capital.
Career: a career is a line of work that a person takes for life.
Coherent: logical and consistent.
Concise: giving a lot of information clearly and in a few words
Creative: to have original and different ideas
Demand: is a product or service that people want.
Digital: the information that is stored on a computer is said to be in
a digital form.
Effective: successful in producing a desired or intended result
Entrepreneur: a self-employed person who is always trying to
make his or her business better by taking risks and trying new
ideas is an entrepreneur.
Exchange: an act of giving one thing and receiving another.
Folder:
Function: it is work being done.
Habit: regular tendency.
Helpful: useful, ready to offer help.
Hire: giving work to someone and paying them for it.
Maintenance: it is way we take care of our things on a daily,
weekly, monthly and yearly basis.
Myth: a myth, or a misconception, is a false belief or opinion about
something.
Observe: notice or perceive.
Paralanguage: example intonation, pitch and speed of speaking,
hesitation noises, gesture and facial expression.
Perspective: a particular attitude towards or way of regarding
something.
Quality: a quality is the way a person acts or behaves. For example,
kind, rude, etc.
Resources: a supply of things, such as material, money or natural
resources, such as air, land, water, etc., that people can use in order
to function properly.
Scanning: scanning for virus means using an anti-virus software,

by a dangerous virus.
Self-employed: someone who starts businesses to satisfy the
needs of people.
 NOTES SMS: Short Message Service.
Sustainable: something that can be maintained at a constant level
for a long time.
Verbal: relating to or in the form of words.
Visual: relating to seeing or sight.

118 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS – CLASS X