Employability Skills

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Employability Skills

Textbook for Class IX


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First Edition
August 2018 Bhadrapada 1940
PD 5T BS
� National Council of Educational
Research and Training, 2018
185.00
Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT
watermark
Published at the Publication Division
by the Secretary, National Council of
Educational Research and Training,
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and printed at LPP Print Packeging
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Industrial Area, Sahibabad, District
Ghaziabad (U.P.)
ISBN 978-93-5292-090-7
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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
cooperation. Through work one learns to find one�s place in the society. It is
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
to learners� life outside the school. This also makes a departure from
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.
VET is expected to provide a �preferred and dignified� choice rather than a
terminal or �last-resort� option.
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
Skill Qualification Framework (NSQF) for the country, which was
notified on 27 December 2013. It is a quality assurance framework that
organises all qualifications according to levels of knowledge, skills and
attitude. These levels, graded from one to ten, are defined in terms of
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
recognised qualification system covering Schools, Vocational Education
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
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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
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About the Textbook
Employability skills can be defined as those soft skills which employers
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
deadlines for finishing work and ensuring that you meet the deadlines can
be done through effective self-management training. It can also be done
by working well with other people from different disciplines, backgrounds,
and expertise to accomplish a task or goal. In today�s digital age, employers
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.
This textbook on �Employability Skills� covers communication,
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
Qualification Packs of the different job roles in various sectors under the
National Skill Qualification Framework. The textbook aims to provide learning
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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
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Acknowledgement
The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT)
expresses its gratitude to all members of the Project Approval Board (PAB)
and officials of the Ministry of Human Resource Development (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, Curriculum Development and Evaluation Centre and NSQF
Cell, 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 (A), NCERT,
and Ranjana Arora, Professor and Head, Department of Curriculum
Studies, for their sincere efforts in coordinating the review workshops for
the finalisation of this book.
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, Professor and Head, Department of Agriculture and Animal
Husbandry, Mridula Saxena, Professor, Department of Home Science
and Hospitality Management, P. Veeraiah, Associate 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,
Uadal Singh, Assistant Professor, Department of Agriculture and
Animal Husbandry, and Vipin K. Jain, Associate Professor and Head,
Department of Humanities, Science, Education and Research, for
reviewing this textbook.
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(viii)
The Council also acknowledges the valuable contributions of Monal
Jayaram, Core Team Member, Pratishtha Ingale, Program Manager, Anshu
Dubey, Program Director, Bhaskar Lath, Program Leader from Kaivalya
Education Foundation, and Manisha Date, Director�People Development
and Life Skills and Annette Francis Parakkal, Program Associate�Research,
Pratham Education Foundation, towards the improvement of this textbook.
The Council also extends gratitude to Aakarshan Chauhan, Program
Manager, Wadhwani Foundation, Aakash Sethi, Chief Executive Officer,
Quest Alliance, Aditi Kumar, Project Manager, Quest Alliance, Amit Singh,
Advisor, National Institute for Entrepreneurship and Small Business
Development, Austin Thomas, Vice President, Wadhwani Foundation,
Deepti Bhomra, Curriculum Manager, Wadhwani Foundation, Krishnan S,
Senior Program Manager, Central Square Foundation, Mekin Maheshwari,
Chief Executive Officer, 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, Satya Nagarjan, Consultant, Wadhwani Foundation,
Shivani Gandhi, Program Manager, Udhyam Learning Foundation, Sonal
Jain, Consultant, Wadhwani Foundation, Sonia Kakkar, Consultant,
Wadhwani Foundation Vijay Siddharth Pillai, Project Manager, Central
Square Foundation, for their assistance in compiling this book.
The efforts of Hemlata Baghel, Consultant (Contractual), Sunita Koli,
Computer Operator (Grade III) and Piyush Deorankar, Computer Operator
(Contractual), PSSCIVE, Rahul Rajput, Consultant, and Akash Sharma,
Consultant, Lend-A-Hand India are also duly acknowledged. Reema Nath,
Consultant, Wadhwani Foundation, is duly acknowledeged for providing
illustrations for the textbook. The images used in the texbook have been
sourced from the Creative Commons Licence.
Ashish Kohli, State Project Director, Himachal Pradesh and the
vocational teachers of Himachal Pradesh are duly acknowledged for
the feedback to customise the sessions for providing a better learning
experience to the students. The contributions of the following vocational
teachers are also duly acknowledged � Piyush Sewal, Deepak Kumar,
Radhika Chauhan, Sundeep Sharma, Ankur Chauhan, Praveen Meghta,
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Ravi Kumar, Yadu Sharma, Reetika Gupta, Pooja Devi, Ritu Raj, Chandni
Mahant, and Daya Ram.
The Council also acknowledges the copyediting and valuable
contribution of Shilpa Mohan, Assistant Editor (Contractual), Garima Syal,
Proofreader (Contractual) and Sanjeev Kumar, Copy Holder in shaping
this book.
The efforts of DTP Operators Pawan Kumar Barriar, Publication Division,
NCERT, Naresh Kumar (Contractual), Neha Pal (Contractual), Nitin Gupta
(Contractual) and Haridarshan Lodhi (Contractual) for flawless layout
design are also acknowledged.
Prelims.indd 9 24-08-2018 16:44:34
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Contents
Foreword iii
About the Textbook v
Unit 1: Communication Skills 1
Session 1: Introduction to Communication 2
Session 2: Verbal Communication 7
Session 3: Non-Verbal Communication 11
Session 4: Writing Skills: Parts of Speech 18
Session 5: Writing Skills: Sentences 26
Session 6: Pronunciation Basics 32
Session 7: Greetings and Introduction 36
Session 8: Talking about Self 41
Session 9: Asking Questions I 45
Session 10: Asking Questions II 49
Unit 2: Self-Management Skills 55
Session 1: Introduction to Self-management 55
Session 2: Strength and Weakness Analysis 59
Session 3: Self-confidence 66
Session 4: Positive Thinking 71
Session 5: Personal Hygiene 75
Session 6: Grooming 79
Unit 3: Information and Communication Technology Skills 83
Session 1: Introduction to ICT 84
Session 2: ICT Tools: Smartphones and Tablets � I 87
Session 3: ICT Tools: Smartphones and Tablets � II 92
Session 4: Parts of Computer and Peripherals 95
Session 5: Basic Computer Operations 103
Session 6: Performing Basic File Operations 109
Session 7: Communication and Networking �
Basics of Internet
112
Session 8: Communication and Networking �
Internet Browsing
117
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Session 9: Communication and Networking �
Introduction to e-mail
120
Session 10: Communication and Networking � Creating an
e-mail Account
123
Session 11: Communication and Networking � Writing an
e-mail
126
Session 12: Communication and Networking � Receiving
and Replying to e-mails
130
Unit 4: Entrepreneurship Skills 135
Session 1: What is Entrepreneurship? 135
Session 2: Role of Entrepreneurship 139
Session 3: Qualities of a Successful Entrepreneur 142
Session 4: Distinguishing Characteristics of
Entrepreneurship and Wage Employement
148
Session 5: Types of Business Activities 152
Session 6: Product, Service and Hybrid Businesses 155
Session 7: Entrepreneurship Development Process 159
Unit 5: Green Skills 163
Session 1: Society and Environment 164
Session 2: Conserving Natural Resources 178
Session 3: Sustainable Development and Green Economy 181
Answer Key 194
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Introduction
Communication skills are those skills which are needed
to speak and write properly. A person who is able to
speak appropriately whilst maintaining eye contact with
the audience, uses varied vocabulary and articulate
speech to suit the need of the audience is generally said
to be an effective speaker. Similarly, an effective writer
should be able to use written words in various styles
and techniques to communicate his/her message and
ideas to the readers. One should have the ability to listen
carefully and write and speak clearly in any situation.
Therefore good reading, writing, speaking and listening
skills are essential for effective communication.
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 language you have been exposed to
speaking the language from easly childhood, for example,
your mother tongue. In the present time, a thorough
UnitUnit
Commu nication
Skills
1
Unit 1.indd 1 24-08-2018 15:24:21
2 Employability Skills � Class IX
knowledge of the language with communication skills is
very important in any occupation or to set up a business.
Session 1: Introduction to Communication
You probably hear people talking about communication
all the time. Everyone needs it and wants it, but what
exactly is communication? Let us try to understand it.
The word �Communication� comes from the Latin
word communicare, meaning �to share�. In Figure 1.1,
you can see that communication is the �sharing� of
information between two or more individuals or within
a group to reach a common understanding.
Importance of communication
Your ability to communicate clearly and share thoughts,
feelings and ideas will help you in all your relationships.
For example, you can inform about something or you
can also influence others through communication.
Communication skills are needed to:
� Inform: You may be required to give facts
or information to someone. For example,
communicating the timetable of an exam to a
friend.
� Influence: You may be required to influence
or change someone in an indirect but usually
important way. For example, negotiating with a
shopkeeper to reduce the price or helping a friend
to overcome stress due to exam or any other reason.
Figure 1.1: Communication Process
Where
are you
going?
Asking for
Information
I am
going
home.
Giving
Receiving Information
Information
Unit 1.indd 2 24-08-2018 15:24:21
Communication Skills 3
� Express feelings: Talking about your feelings
is a healthy way to express them. For example,
sharing your excitement about doing well in your
exams or sharing your feelings with your parents
and friends.
Elements of communication
Communication is a two-way exchange of information,
i.e., giving and receiving (Fig. 1.2). Speaking and
writing to someone are examples of giving information.
Reading and listening to someone are examples of
receiving information.
Perspectives in communication
Perspectives are ideas, views, or fixed ways of thinking.
These sometimes affect our communication. For
example, if you have a fixed idea that your teacher or
father is strict, even when they are being friendly, you
may think they are scolding you even though they are
polite. In the same way, others may also have fixed ideas
about you, which affect whatever you say to them.
Figure 1.2: Elements of Communication
Unit 1.indd 3 24-08-2018 15:24:22
4 Employability Skills � Class IX
Factors affecting perspectives in communication
Sometimes, we are not able to communicate clearly
because of barriers that stop us from sharing and
understanding messages. Some of these are summarised
in Table 1.1.
Table 1.1: Factors affecting Perspectives in Communication
Factor How the factor can become a barrier
Language In case of use of incorrect words, unfamiliar language and lack
of detail, language can act as a barrier to communicate what one
wishes to convey. For example, language can act as a barrier
when an Indian who only knows Hindi and Chinese who has the
knowledge of Mandarin only want to interact with each other.
Visual Perception Visual perception is the brain�s ability to make sense of what
we see through our eyes. For example, completing partially
drawn pictures with visual perception whereas they may be
something else.
Past Experience Letting our earlier experience stop us from understanding or
communicating clearly. For example, �This shopkeeper cheated me
last time. Let me be careful or �I scored low marks in my Maths
exam, so I am scared to ask and answer questions in class.�
Prejudice Fixed ideas, such as thinking �No one in my class likes me� may
stop a student from communicating openly in the class.
Feelings Our feelings and emotions, such as lack of interest or not trusting
the other person affect communication. For example �I am not
feeling well, therefore, I don�t want to talk.�
Environment Noise or disturbance in the surroundings may make communication
difficult. Example, talking to a friend in a function where there is
loud music being played by the orchestra.
Personal factors Personal factors include your own feelings, habits and ways
of thinking. For example, fear, and low confidence may make
communication difficult.
Culture Signs� which have a different meaning in different cultures, such
as showing a thumb may mean �good job� done for some people
but may be insulting to others.
Effective communication
Effective communication can happen 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 1.3.
Unit 1.indd 4 24-08-2018 15:24:22
Communication Skills 5
Figure 1.3: 7Cs of Effective Communication
There are different methods of communication, which
include non-verbal, verbal and visual.
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, answer the following question: Why is it important to
communicate clearly and effectively?
Activity 1
Role Play on Communication Process
Procedure
� Form groups with three students in each group.
� Act out a conversation between the three people. The situation
is that you need to sell some items to an old couple who has
come to a shop. One person can act as the salesperson and
the other two as an old man and his wife.
� Discuss what you learned from this.
Activity 2
Group discussion and sharing experience on factors affecting
perspectives in communication
Procedure
� Form groups with three students in each group.
� Ask each group to select any one of the eight factors (as
given in Table 1.1) which act as barriers to communication.
Unit 1.indd 5 24-08-2018 15:24:22
6 Employability Skills � Class IX
� Discuss how it can affect or become a barrier to good
communication with family, friends, in school or at a
retail store. Each group shares their experiences related
to one of the eight factors.
Activity 3
7Cs of effective communication
Materials required
Pen/pencil, notebook
Procedure
� Write down examples of the 7Cs of communication in
their notebook.
� For each of the 7Cs, a student volunteer to give his/her
example of how to communicate well. The other students
(with teacher�s guidance) say if it is correct or incorrect.
Activity 4
Elements of communication
Material required
Chart paper, colours and pencil
Procedure
Make a chart showing the elements of communication in the
communication process cycle.
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 is the purpose of communication?
(a) Inform (tell someone about something)
(b) Influence (get someone to do something you want)
(c) Share thoughts, ideas, feelings
(d) All of the above
2. Which of the following methods are used to receive
information from the sender through a letter?
(a) Listening
(b) Speaking
(c) Reading
(d) Writing
3. How do you receive information on phone?
(a) Listening
(b) Speaking
(c) Reading
(d) Writing
Notes
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Communication Skills 7
After completing this session, you will be able to
� identify the elements of communication.
� draw a communication cycle showing all the elements of
communication.
� identify the factors affecting our perspectives in
communication.
B. Match the columns
Column A:
Communication
Barriers
Column B: Examples
1. Language A. Trying to read a book when
somebody else is watching TV in
the same room.
2. Emotional B. In some cultures, wearing shoes
and walking inside the kitchen is
considered rude and disrespectful.
3. Environmental C. Talking in Hindi when others
know only Tamil.
4. Cultural D. Parent is not talking to the child.
C. Short answer question
1. Write down the seven factors affecting perspectives in
communication.
2. Give an example of the following:
(a) Clear communication
(b) Complete communication
What have you learnt?
Notes
Session 2: Verbal Communication
Verbal communication is the sharing of information by
using words. It is what most people use as a method
of communication. We will learn about non-verbal
and visual communication in the next session. Verbal
communication is important because if you do not
use the right words, you will cause confusion and you
will not be able to communicate what you want. The
important forms of verbal communication are given in
Table 1.2.
Unit 1.indd 7 24-08-2018 15:24:22
8 Employability Skills � Class IX
Table 1.2: Verbal Communication
Type of Verbal
Communication
Examples
Oral or Spoken
Communication:
Communication which
involves talking
Face-to-face conversation: When you can
see the listener.
For example, group discussion, talking to
family member at home, conversation with
public through speeches, etc.
Talking on a phone: This is for personal
and official communication.
Phone conversations should begin with a
greeting (Hello), talking and listening to
each other. The conversation can end with
a �Thank you� and �Bye�.
Classroom teaching, business discussion
and public speeches are other examples
of oral communication, where one person
talks to many others at once.
Written
Communication:
Communication which
involves written or
typed words.
Writing letters, notes, email, etc.
SMS (Short Message Service): These can
be sent through a phone to a person or a
group.
Using email to share news, thoughts,
documents and files (including photos,
videos, music, etc.). Can be used to send
messages to a person or to a group.
Books and newspapers.
Unit 1.indd 8 24-08-2018 15:24:23
Communication Skills 9
Advantages of verbal communication
Verbal communication is easy and quick. You can say
what you want and get a quick response. It is an easier
form of communication when you have to exchange
ideas. You keep changing your communication as per
the other person�s reply.
Disadvantages of verbal communication
The most common disadvantage of verbal communication
is the cultural differences between the sender and
receiver of the information. These differences may be due
to the use of different languages, inability to understand
the colloquial phrases used by the other individual, and
the accent. Since verbal communication depends on
words, sometimes the meanings become confusing and
difficult to understand if the right words are not used.
Public speaking
Speaking in front of a large group makes most people
nervous. You can use the 3Ps (Prepare, Practice,
Perform) method to get over your fears, and become a
confident and effective speaker. These points are shown
in Table 1.3.
Table 1.3: 3Ps of Public Speaking
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.
3Ps of Public Speaking
Prepare Think about your topic
Think about what your listeners need to know about the topic
Think about the best way to make your listeners understand your topic
Write what you plan to say
Practice Practice by yourself first, talk in front of a mirror
Talk in front of your family and friends and ask them what they think
Speak clearly, loudly and at the right speed (not very fast nor very slow)
Perform Take a few deep breaths if you are feeling nervous
Think about what you have prepared and start speaking confidently
Unit 1.indd 9 24-08-2018 15:24:23
10 Employability Skills � Class IX
Initial thinking activity
After watching the video in the e-learning lesson for this
topic write down why do you think Tina�s directions were not
understood? How would you give directions on the phone?
Activity 1
Role play of a phone conversation
Materials required
Notebook, pen
Procedure
� Form groups comprising at least three students in each
group.
� Write a script on a phone conversation, based on a
scenario given by your teacher. For example, the scenario
could be a conversation between a person from the Call
Centre and customer talking about the product that is to
be delivered at the customer�s residence.
� One student acts as a caller and the other as receiver.
� Speak the conversation aloud.
� The third student gives feedback on the effectiveness
of the communication, keeping in mind the 7Cs of
communication.
Activity 2
Public speaking
Materials required
Notebook, pen
Procedure
� Form groups of three students in each group.
� Within the group, choose a topic for a very short speech.
� Use paragraphs.
� Each person uses the 3Ps (Prepare, Practice and Perform)
method and makes a speech to the others in the group.
� Others give feedback � was the person able to
communicate properly?
� One student volunteers to give a 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 question.
1. Choose the correct example of oral communication.
(a) Reports
(b) Newspapers
Notes
Unit 1.indd 10 24-08-2018 15:24:23
Communication Skills 11
After completing this session, you will be able to
� explain the verbal method of communication.
� list the 7Cs of communication.
� speak confidently in public using the 3Ps method.
(c) Face-to-face conversation
(d) Notes
2. When we communicate verbally, we should use _______.
(a) difficult words
(b) simple words
(c) confusing words
(d) abbreviations
3. Why do we send emails?
(a) To reach on time
(b) To share documents and files
(c) To talk to each other
(d) To meet each other
B. Short answer question
1. Write down the different types of verbal communication.
Give an example for each type.
What have you learnt?
Non-verbal communication
is the message we send
to others without using
any words as shown in
Figure 1.4. We send
signals and messages to
others, through expressions,
gestures and body postures.
In this session, you will learn
about the non-verbal method
of communication, its types
and importance. You will
learn to use the correct body
language, like gestures, eye
contact, handshake, etc. Figure1.4: Non-verbal Communication
PARALANGUAGE
EXPRESSIONS
POSTURE
EYE
CONTACT
GESTURES
SPACE TOUCH
NONVERBAL
Session 3: Non-Verbal Communication
Unit 1.indd 11 24-08-2018 15:24:23
12 Employability Skills � Class IX
Importance of non-verbal communication
In our day-to-day communication, it is observed
that most of the communication is done using body
movements (face, arms, movements, etc.) and voice
control (voice, tone, pauses, etc.).
As we can see in Figure 1.5, maximum communication
is non-verbal. We communicate using words, tone of
voice and body language as shown in Table 1.4.
Voice Control
(Non-verbal)
Expressions,
Movements,
Pictures
(Non-verbal and
Visual)
Words
(Verbal)
Figure 1.5: Methods of Communication
Table 1.4: Types of Non-verbal Communication
Non-Verbal Communication Exchanging information without words
Hand movements (gestures)
and body language
� Raising a hand to greet
� Pointing your finger in
anger
Expressions � Smiling to show happiness
� Making a sad face when
you are upset
Non-verbal communication makes our message
stronger. Using the right gestures while speaking
makes our message more effective. Knowing non-verbal
communication helps us understand our audience�s
reaction and adjust our behaviour or communication
accordingly.
Unit 1.indd 12 24-08-2018 15:24:23
Communication Skills 13
Using the right gestures and postures helps us to be
professional at work. If verbal messages are blocked by
noise or distance, etc., we can use hand movements to
exchange our message. Placing a finger on the lips to
indicate the need for silence and nodding the head up
and saying �yes�.
We communicate non-verbally in many ways. Let
us learn about some of these (see Table 1.5).
Table 1.5: Types of Non-verbal Communication
Type What it implies How to make use of non-verbal
communication effectively?
Facial Expression A facial expression many a
times shows the feelings of a
person. For example, when
we are happy, we express it
through a smile or when we
are sad we show a gloomy
face.
� Keep your face relaxed
� Try to match your expression
with what you are saying
� If you agree with something,
you may nod while listening,
which indicates that it has
your assent
Posture
Postures are positions of
the body. They show our
confidence and feelings.
For example, straight
body posture is seen as
confidence. Holding your
head may be taken as
tiredness.
� Keep your upper body relaxed
and, shoulders straight
� Sit straight, rest hands and
feet in relaxed position
� Keep hands by your sides
while standing
Gestures or
Body Language
Gestures describe
movements of parts of the
body, especially hands or
head, to express an idea
or meaning. This includes
waving, pointing and using
our hands when speaking.
For example, raising a
hand may mean asking a
question. Biting nails show
nervousness.
� Avoid pointing at people with
your finger
� Instead of keeping your hands
in pocket while talking, try to
keep your hands on the sides
� Bend your head a little while
talking or listening to show
that you are paying attention.
Unit 1.indd 13 24-08-2018 15:24:24
14 Employability Skills � Class IX
Touch We communicate a great
deal through our touch,
such as shaking hands and
patting on the back. For
example, a firm handshake
shows confidence. Sports
coaches pat on the back of
the players to encourage the
players.
� Shake hands firmly
� Avoid other touch gestures,
such as stroking your hair,
scratching your nose, tugging
on your clothes, etc., during
formal communication
Space The space between
two persons while
communicating, generally
depends on the intimacy or
closeness between them.
� Maintain proper space�
depending on the relationship,
which could be formal or
informal or the closeness with
the person with whom you are
talking
Eye Contact Maintaining an eye contact
with the person you are
talking indicates interest,
whereas, looking away can
make the other person feel
ignored.
� Look at the person who is
speaking
� Keep a relaxed, pleasant look
� Break the look every few
seconds
Paralanguage Paralanguage is the tone
of our voice, speed and
volume that makes a
difference in the meaning
of the communication.
Speaking too fast may show
excitement or nervousness.
Speaking too slow may
show seriousness, sadness
or making a point.
� Use a proper tone and volume
while speaking
� Maintain a moderate rate
(speed) of talking
Visual communication
Another important method of communication is
visual communication, which involves sending
and understanding messages only through images
or pictures. The main advantage of this type of
communication is that you do not need to know any
particular language for understanding it. It is simple,
Unit 1.indd 14 24-08-2018 15:24:24
Communication Skills 15
Table 1.6: Examples of Visual Communication
Visual Communication: Exchanging Information through Images
Traffic symbol which
communicates not to
blow horn
Traffic Lights�Red for
Stop; Yellow for Wait and
Green for Go
Sign for ladies and gents toilet Sign showing railway
crossing
Sign for flammable substances Sign for slippery surface
Sign used to pause a video or
audio file in smartphone or
computer
Sign which communicates
that the area is a no
smoking zone
easy to understand and remains same across different
places. Table 1.6 shows some common types of visual
communication.
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 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
Role play using non-verbal communication
Materials required
Notebook, pen
Unit 1.indd 15 24-08-2018 15:24:24
16 Employability Skills � Class IX
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) Staring hard
(b) Nodding while listening
(c) Wrinkled forehead
(d) Looking away from the speaker
2. What does an upright (straight) body posture convey/
show?
(a) Shyness
(b) Fear
Procedure
� Form groups with three students in each group.
� Prepare the script for the role play, based on the scenario
given by your teacher.
� Act it out in front of your group.
� One of the group volunteers to act before the whole class.
� Discuss how students used non-verbal communication.
Activity 2
Dos and Don�ts to avoid body language mistakes
Materials required
Notebook, pen
Procedure
� In the same group of three students, as in Activity 1,
discuss what things you should do and what you should
not do to avoid mistakes in communication.
� Every student should write down a list of these Dos and
Don�ts.
Activity 3
Comparing methods of communication
Materials required
Notebook, pen
Procedure
� In the same group of three students, as in Activity 1,
discuss the three methods of communication (Verbal,
Non-verbal, and Visual).
� Prepare a list of the advantages and disadvantages of
each method.
Check Your Progress
Notes
Unit 1.indd 16 24-08-2018 15:24:24
Communication Skills 17
(c) Confidence
(d) Intelligence
3. Which of these is not an appropriate non-verbal
communication at work?
(a) Putting arm around a coworker�s shoulder
(b) Shaking hands firmly
(c) Looking at the speaker with a smile
(d) Standing with an upright posture
4. When you are preparing for a presentation, you should
__________________.
(a) focus on the objectives of the presentation
(b) practice your speech in front of a mirror or friend
(c) do rehearsals to time your presentation of slides
(d) All of the above
B. Put a � mark against the actions below which are incorrect
for demonstrating the use of 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
C. Short answer questions
1. Give examples of any four common signs used for visual
communication.
After completing this session, you will be able to
� explain the importance of non-verbal and visual
communication.
� identify different types of non-verbal communication.
� use the right non-verbal communication at work.
� avoid common mistakes in non-verbal communication.
What Have You Learnt?
Notes
Unit 1.indd 17 24-08-2018 15:24:24
18 Employability Skills � Class IX
Session 4: Writing Skills: Parts of Speech
When we talk or write in English, we use sentences to
express ourselves. Sentences are important because if
you do not clearly write sentences then, the meaning of
the same cannot be understood clearly. A sentence is a
group of words that communicates a complete thought
(Example: Raju goes to school). A group of words, which
does not make complete sense, is known as a phrase
(Example: Raju goes). A sentence always begins with
a capital letter, and it always ends with a question
mark, full stop or exclamation mark. Read out aloud
the examples given below.
� Did you work on your project?
� I completed it yesterday.
� That is good!
Using capitals
We know that all sentences begin with capital letters.
Do you know at what other points in a sentence we
should use capital letters?
It is easy to know what to capitalise if you remember
the word �MINTS�. MINTS is a set of simple rules that
help you capitalise words correctly. Each letter in the
word MINTS refers to one capitalisation rule as shown
in Table 1.7.
Table 1.7: Capitalisation Rules
Alphabet M I N T S
What it
shows:
Months The letter Names Titles Starting
letter of
sentences
Rule Capitalise the
first letter in
all the names
of months.
Capitalise the
letter �I� when
it is used to
begin a word.
Capitalise the
first letter in
the names of
people, places
and days.
Capitalise the
first letter in
the titles used
before people�s
name.
Capitalise
the first
letter in
every
sentence.
Example I will go to
college in
June.
I play tennis
with him
every day.
This Tuesday,
Vidya will be
in Rajasthan.
Dr Shah and
Mr Patel work
together.
The cat ran
out of the
house.
Unit 1.indd 18 24-08-2018 15:24:24
Communication Skills 19
Punctuation
It is a set of marks, such as the full stop and the comma,
which help us separate parts of a sentence and explain
its meaning. Like uppercase letters, punctuation is also
a very important part of sentences and has some rules.
Some common punctuation marks and their use have
been given in Table 1.8.
Table 1.8: Punctuation Marks
Punctuation
name
Sign Use Examples
Full stop . Shows the end of a sentence. Also
used to show short form of long
words. For example, �doctor� can
be shortened to �Dr� when we use
it as a title before a name.
This is a sentence. This is
another sentence.
Sanjay is a doctor. His
patients call him Dr Sanjay.
Comma , Sometimes, we use a comma to
indicate a pause in the sentence.
After the waiter gave me a
menu, I ordered food.
We can also use a comma to
separate items when we are listing
out more than two items in a row.
I bought apples, oranges and
grapes.
Question
mark
? We use a question mark at the
end of a question.
What is your name?
How old are you?
Exclamation
mark
! We use an exclamation mark at
the end of a word or a sentence to
indicate a strong feeling, such as
surprise, shock or anger.
What a pleasant surprise!
You are late!
Apostrophe (�) We use an apostrophe followed
by an s to show that something
belongs to someone.
That is Divya�s pen.
Are these Abdul�s books?
We also use an apostrophe to
indicate the shortened form of
some words in informal speech.
Let�s go. (Instead of Let us
go.)
He isn�t here. (Instead of He
is not here.)
Basic parts of speech
There are eight basic parts of speech in the English
language. These are noun, pronoun, verb, adjective,
adverb, preposition, conjunction and interjection. The
part of speech indicates how the word functions in
meaning as well as grammatically within the sentence.
Unit 1.indd 19 24-08-2018 15:24:24
20 Employability Skills � Class IX
A noun is a word for a person, place, thing, or
idea. Nouns are often used with an article (the, a, an),
but not always. A pronoun is a word used in place of
a noun. A verb expresses action or being. An adjective
modifies or describes a noun or pronoun. An adverb
modifies or describes a verb, an adjective, or another
adverb. A preposition is a word placed before a noun
or pronoun to form a phrase modifying another word
in the sentence. A conjunction joins words, phrases,
or clauses. An interjection is a word used to express
emotion. You should be able to use these parts of the
speech in making sentences.
The different types of words we use in sentences
are called parts of speech. Some examples are nouns,
Figure 1.6: Parts of Speech
Unit 1.indd 20 24-08-2018 15:24:24
Communication Skills 21
Table 1.9: Parts of Speech
Parts of Speech What they do Example sentences Example
words
Noun Nouns are words that
refer to a person, place,
thing or idea. These are
�naming words.�
In the sentence, �Reema wrote
a letter.� Both Reema and letter
are nouns.
Dog
Table
India
Sanjay
Pronoun A pronoun is a word
used in place of a noun
In the second sentence,
�Reema wrote a letter.
She is tired.� �She� is used
in place of the noun Reema,
it is a pronoun.
I
They
He
You
Adjectives Adjectives are words
that describe other
words
In the sentence �Reema wrote
a long letter.� Long is an
adjective that describes the
noun �letter�.
Small
Blue
Sharp
Loud
Verbs Verbs are words that
show action
In the sentence: �Reema wrote
a letter.� Wrote is the verb.
It tells what action Reema did.
Run
Eat
Think
Sit
Adverbs Adverbs are words that
add meaning to verbs,
adjectives, or other
adverbs. They answer
the questions � How?
How often? When? And
Where?
In the sentence �Reema quickly
wrote a letter.� Quickly is an
adverb. It tells us how Reema
did the action (writing).
Easily
Always
Inside
Before
Let us now see how these words are used. Read aloud
the sentence given below.
Wow! Reema went to the studio and met a famous
actor.
We already know that Reema, studio and actor are
nouns. Famous is an adjective here because it describes
the noun actor and the words went and met are verbs
because they describe an action.
What about the remaining words in this sentence
wow, to, the, and? What are these words called? We use
such supporting words to join the main parts of speech
together and to add information to the sentences we
make. Let us now look at these supporting words.
pronouns, adjectives, verbs and adverbs, as shown in
Figure 1.6. Let us read more about them in Table 1.9.
Unit 1.indd 21 24-08-2018 15:24:24
22 Employability Skills � Class IX
Along with the main �Parts of Speech�, there are some
more words we need for making a sentence. These are
shown in Figure 1.7. Let us learn more about them
using Table 1.10.
Table 1.10: Supporting Parts of Speech
Supporting Parts
of Speech Use Examples
Articles The words �a�, �an� and �the� are
known as articles. Articles are
generally used before nouns.
An is used before words with a
vowel (a,e,i,o,u) sound
A is used before nouns with a
consonant (all other alphabets)
sound
The is used to refer to specific or
particular words
The car stopped suddenly because
a cat ran in front of it.
A book
An apple
An umbrella
The sun
Conjunctions Conjunctions are words that join
two nouns, phrases or sentences.
Some common conjunctions are
�and�, �or� and �but�.
Instead of, Sheela went to the
market. I also went to the market.
Sheela and I went to the market.
Instead of, �Do you want oranges?
Do you want apples?�
�Do you want oranges or apples?�
Prepositions Prepositions connect one word
with another to show the relation
between them. They usually
answer the questions �where�,
�when� and �how�.
Some common prepositions are �on�,
�at�, �under� and �in�.
The cat is on the roof.
The shop is at the end of the road.
Rahul is standing under the tree.
I live in Delhi.
Supporting parts of speech types
Figure 1.7: Supporting Parts of Speech
Unit 1.indd 22 24-08-2018 15:24:25
Communication Skills 23
Interjections These words express strong
emotions, such as happiness,
surprise, anger or pain. They have
an exclamation mark at the end.
Wow!
Oh!
Oh no!
Thanks!
Help!
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 write down what do you think was wrong with Seema�s
letter?
Activity 1
Identifying parts of speech
Materials required
Notebook, pen
Procedure
Read aloud the paragraph given below.
�on sunday, i have an appointment to meet Dr. Patel in delhi.
my house is near Mr. Patels shop i went to his shop on friday to
buy vegetables I bought potatoes onions carrots and a cabbage
Mr. Patel is a friendly man have you met him�
� 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
mark them.
� Write the paragraph with proper punctuation and
capitalisation.
Activity 2
Constructing sentences
Materials required
Notebook, pen
Procedure
� Form pairs of students.
� List out five parts of speech that you learnt in the lesson.
� Select one of them and create two simple sentences which
use these parts of speech.
Unit 1.indd 23 24-08-2018 15:24:25
24 Employability Skills � Class IX
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 is a sentence?
(a) A group of ideas that form a complete paragraph
(b) A group of words that communicate a complete thought
(c) A set of rules that we must follow to write correctly
(d) A set of words that contains all the basic punctuation
marks
2. Which of these sentences use uppercase letters correctly?
(a) I am Hungry.
(b) Divya and sunil are reading.
(c) The bucket is Full of water.
(d) She lives in Delhi.
3. Which of these sentences are punctuated correctly?
(a) Where are you going.
(b) I have a pen a notebook and a pencil.
(c) I am so happy to see you!
(d) This is Abdul�s house.
4. Underline the noun, pronoun, adjective, verb and
adverb in these sentences.
(a) Sanjay plays football everyday.
(b) Divya gave him new books.
(c) I opened the red box carefully.
� For example, if you have chosen adjectives, create two
sentences that have adjectives.
Activity 3
Identify name, place, animal, thing
Materials required
Notepad, pens
Procedure
� Number yourselves from 1 to 5.
� Each member of a group has to say a word that is either
a name, place, animal or thing; the fifth member has to
do an action.
� Each group gets 30 seconds to think what they are going
to say and do.
Notes
Unit 1.indd 24 24-08-2018 15:24:25
Communication Skills 25
B. Fill in the blanks
Fill correct nouns and verbs from the box to fill in the
blanks given below.
girl, girls, boy, milk, dog, skipping, riding, running, studying,
drinking, barking
a. The ____________ is
_________________.
b. The ____________ is
_________________.
c. The ____________ is
_________________.
d. The ____________ are
_________________.
e. Raju is ____________
_________________.
f. The ____________ is
______________.
C. Short answer questions
1. Identify the conjunctions and prepositions (Remember,
conjunctions join two sentences while prepositions help
answer the words �where�, �when� and �how�.). Choose
the conjunctions and prepositions from the box given
below and list in the correct box.
Under, And, In, At, Or, Up
Conjunction Preposition
Notes
Unit 1.indd 25 24-08-2018 15:24:25
26 Employability Skills � Class IX
What Have You Learnt?
After completing this session, you will be able to
� use capitalisation and punctuation rules for writing
sentences.
� identify the basic parts of speech, such as nouns,
pronouns, adjectives, verbs and adverbs.
� explain the usage of the parts of speech.
� identify the supporting parts of speech, such as articles,
conjunctions, prepositions and interjections.
Session 5: Writing Skills: Sentences
Parts of a sentence
As you have learnt in English classes, almost all English
sentences have a subject and a verb. Some also have an
object. A subject is the person or thing that does an action.
A verb describes the action. Object is the person or thing
that receives the action. For example, read a loud the simple
sentence �Divya reads a book�. Let us see the different parts
of the sentence in Figure 1.8.
Read a loud the example sentences shown in Table 1.11
and understand which is the subject, verb and object.
Table 1.11: Parts of a Sentence
Sentence Subject Verb Object
I ate an apple. I ate an apple.
He cooked dinner. He cooked dinner.
She kicked the football. She kicked the football.
Dia and Sanjay broke the bottle. Dia and Sanjay broke the bottle.
Figure 1.8: Parts of a Sentence
Unit 1.indd 26 24-08-2018 15:24:25
Communication Skills 27
Types of objects
The object in a sentence can be either direct or indirect.
Direct objects are the ones directly �acted on� by the
action word (verb). If the verb is �reads� and we ask
�What does Divya read?� The answer is �book� which is
the direct object. A direct object answers the question
�what?�.
An indirect object answers questions, such as �to
whom� and �for whom�. For example, in the sentence
�Abdul gave a gift to his mother.� The verb is �gave�. As
you can see in Figure 1.9, there are two objects here �
�gift� and �mother�.
What did Abdul give? The gift. To whom did Abdul
give the gift? To his mother. Here, �gift� is the direct object
and �his mother� is the indirect object. Some sentences
only have direct objects while some have both direct
and indirect objects.
Read a loud the examples given in Table 1.12 and
practice finding the direct and indirect objects.
Table 1.12: Direct and Indirect Objects
Sentence Verb Verb + What?
Verb + By
whom/to
whom?
Direct
object
Indirect
object
Sanjay bought
vegetables.
bought Vegetables vegetables
Fatima and Sonia
played Tennis.
played Tennis tennis
He offered me an
orange.
offered Orange me orange me
The teacher gave us
homework.
gave Homework us homework us
Types of sentences
Active and passive sentences
Read a loud the sentence shown in Figure 1.9. What is
the difference between the two sentences?
1. Sanjay broke the glass.
2. The glass was broken by Sanjay.
Unit 1.indd 27 24-08-2018 15:24:25
28 Employability Skills � Class IX
The action (verb) in both
the sentences is breaking of
the glass. But the �subject� of
both sentences is different. In
the first sentence, the subject
(Sanjay) does the action. In
the second sentence, the
subject (the glass) receives
the action.
Read the sentences in
Figure 1.10 again.
Sentences where the subject
does an action are known to
be in the Active voice.
Sentences in which the
subject receives an action are known to be in the Passive
voice.
Read aloud some more examples given in Table 1.13.
Table 1.13: Active and Passive Sentences
Active Voice Passive Voice
She wrote a letter. A letter was written by her.
He opened the door. The door was opened by him.
Mohan played the flute. The flute was played by Mohan.
Types of sentences (according to their
purpose)
Read a loud the sentences in Figure 1.11. How do you
think they differ from each other?
Figure 1.9: Types of Sentences
Figure 1.10: Active and Passive Sentences
Figure 1.11: Examples of types of Sentences
Unit 1.indd 28 24-08-2018 15:24:25
Communication Skills 29
Read the examples in Figure 1.12 to practice the different
types of sentences.
Each of these sentences has a different purpose. Also,
notice how each sentence in Figure 1.12 ends.
Figure 1.12: Different types of Sentences
Table 1.14: Types of Sentences
Types of Sentences
Statement or
Declarative
Sentence
Question or
Interrogative
Sentence
Emotion/Reaction or
Exclamatory Sentence
Order or
Imperative
Sentence
This is the most
common type of
sentence. It provides
information or states
a fact. It always ends
with a �full-stop� (�.�).
This type of
sentence asks
a question. It
always ends with
a question mark
(�?�).
An exclamatory
sentence expresses a
strong emotion, such
as joy, sadness, fear or
wonder. It always ends
with an exclamation
mark (�!�).
These sentences
show an order,
command, request,
or advice. It can
end with a full stop
or an exclamation
mark (�.� or �!�).
Read aloud the examples given below
I go to school.
I like eating
vegetables.
Did you go to
school?
Do you like eating
vegetables?
I came first in class! Go to college today.
Go eat your
vegetables.
It is very cold.
This room is
unclean.
How is the
weather?
Could you help
clean this room?
Oh, it�s so cold! Wear your sweater.
Clean this room.
I completed my
project.
I exercise everyday
Did you complete
your project?
Do you exercise
everyday?
I completed my project! Complete your
project.
Go and exercise
today.
Unit 1.indd 29 24-08-2018 15:24:25
30 Employability Skills � Class IX
Paragraphs
You have learnt about sentences. A group of sentences
forms a paragraph. While writing a paragraph, make
sure the sentences have a common idea. When you
want to write about a different idea, make a new
paragraph. For example, if you are writing about your
school, the first paragraph can be of sentences about
the name, location, size and other such details. In the
next paragraph you can use sentences to describe what
you like about your school.
I go to Government Higher Secondary School, Balachadi.
There are about 100 students and seven teachers in my
school. My school is on the main road, very close to the City
Railway Station and local hospital. I love going to school
and learning new lessons. My school has a playground
where I play cricket with my friends at the end of the day.
There is a library too and I borrow one book every week. I
love my school.
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 write down if you think that Sanjay and Dia were able to
make correct sentences?
Activity 1
Making sentences
Materials required
Notebook, pen
Procedure
� Form pairs of students.
� First, write down three sentences that contain direct
objects. Then, write down three other sentences that
contain both direct and indirect objects.
Notes
Unit 1.indd 30 24-08-2018 15:24:25
Communication Skills 31
� Use different colours to mark the different parts of each
sentence (Subject, Verb, Object).
� One volunteer shows their list to the class, who correct
if needed.
Activity 2
Active and passive voice
Materials required
Notebook, pen
Procedure
� With the same pairs as above, write a paragraph on any
topic.
� 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, if correct.
Activity 3
Types of sentences
Materials required
Notebook, pen
Procedure
� With the same pairs as above, make a list of minimum
eight sentences. These should have at least two 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.
A. Multiple choice questions
Read the questions carefully and circle the letter (a),
(b), (c) or (d) that best answers the question.
1. Identify the subject in the sentence, �The children
played football.�
(a) The children
(b) Children played
(c) Played
(d) Football
2. Identify the object in the sentence, �The children played
football.�
(a) The children
(b) Children played
(c) Played
(d) Football
Check You Process
Notes
Unit 1.indd 31 24-08-2018 15:24:25
32 Employability Skills � Class IX
3. Which of these sentences has both indirect and direct
objects?
(a) I am watching TV.
(b) She bought a blue pen.
(c) The girls played cricket.
(d) He wrote his sister a letter.
4. Which of these sentences is in passive voice?
(a) They are watching a movie.
(b) The clock was repaired by Raju.
(c) He is sleeping in the room.
(d) My pet dog bit the postman.
B. Short answer questions
1. Write one sentence of each type�statement, question,
exclamatory and order.
2. Which is your favourite festival? Write two paragraphs
about your favourite festival. Each paragraph should
have a minimum of four sentences. Make sure you
follow all the rules about sentences and paragraphs
you have learnt.
3. Practice speaking correct sentences with your
classmates. Try and find the parts of sentences which
you use commonly.
What Have You Learnt?
After completing this session, you will be able to
� identify the different parts of a sentence.
� differentiate between active and passive voice.
� identify and compose different types of sentences.
Session 6: Pronunciation Basics
If we do not say (or pronounce) words correctly,
others cannot understand what we are saying
as in the example shown in Figure 1.13. In this
lesson you will learn about the common �sounds�
used while speaking English. You will learn and
practice how to say common words correctly.
Pronunciation is the way you say a word, just as
spelling is how you write a word.
To communicate well when you speak, you
need to know how to pronounce words correctly.
Figure 1.13: Importance of Pronunciation Correct pronunciation will help you
express
Unit 1.indd 32 24-08-2018 15:24:25
Communication Skills 33
yourself in a clear and confident manner. It will also
help others to understand your words easily.
Speaking correctly
Say the following words aloud. Ask your teacher and
friends if you pronounced them correctly.
Your World Chair Wear
Also try saying these words aloud
Sun Son Sail Sale Tail Tale
What did you notice? Sometimes words, which
have similar spellings are pronounced differently.
Sometimes words, which have different spellings may
be pronounced in the same way. The best way to learn
correct pronunciation of words is to listen carefully.
Phonetics
How do we pronounce words? We use sounds to speak.
Every word is made up of one or more sounds. We put
these sounds together to pronounce words. Phonetics is
the study of the sounds that we make when we speak.
For example, the word dog is made of three sounds
put together: d-o-g. Speak the word aloud as shown in
Hindi to help you pronounce it correctly
The word cat is made of three other sounds: c-a-t.
Speak the word aloud as shown in Hindi to help you
pronounce it correctly . The English
alphabet has 26 letters, from A to Z. But each of these
letters can be pronounced in different ways in different
words. We use 26 letters to write in English. But, we
use more than 26 sounds when we speak English.
This is why a word�s spelling does not always match its
pronunciation.
Let us take the letter �a� for example. Read the words
below aloud. The alphabet �a� is pronounced differently
in different words as shown in Table 1.15.
Table 1.15: Different sounds of letter �a�
Words Pronunciation
of the letter �a�
Pronunciation in
Hindi
cat, apple and back ? ???, ????, ???
Notes
Unit 1.indd 33 24-08-2018 15:24:25
34 Employability Skills � Class IX
car, fast and park ? ???, ?????, ?????
call, ball and saw ?? ???, ???, ????
Pay attention to the sound of each word while listening,
you will be able to pronounce it clearly.
Types of sounds
We have now seen how the letters of the alphabet are
not enough to exactly match the many different sounds
we make when we speak. Let us take a closer look at
the sounds we use. All English words are made of three
basic types of sounds as shown in Table 1.16.
Table 1.16: Different Sounds in English
Vowels Diphthongs (combination
sound of two vowels) Consonants
The English alphabet has
five vowels (a, e, i, o and u)
but 12 vowel sounds. This
means most vowels can
be pronounced in different
ways. We make a vowel
sound when we read a vowel
in a word.
We make a diphthong sound
when we combine two vowels.
Diphthongs start as one vowel
sound and go to another.
A consonant sound is any
sound that is neither a
vowel nor a diphthong
sound.
For example, we pronounce
the letter �i� in the word �bit�
by using a vowel sound.
In Hindi it is ???
For example, the sound �ou� in
the word �house� is a diphthong
or a combination.
In Hindi, it is ????
For example, we use
consonant sounds to say
the letters �p� and �t� in the
word Pot. In Hindi is ???
Say the word �bit� aloud and
listen to how you are saying
the vowel sound.
Say the word �house� aloud and
listen to how you are saying the
diphthong.
Say the word �pot� aloud
and listen to how you
are saying the consonant
sounds.
Some more examples are given in Table 1.17. Say these
words aloud (also given in Hindi to assist pronunciation),
listen carefully when others say these words and repeat
what you hear.
Unit 1.indd 34 24-08-2018 15:24:25
Communication Skills 35
Table 1.17: Examples of Different Sounds
Vowel Sounds
long �ee� sound short �i� sound short �u� sound long �oo� sound
Sleep ????? Slip ????? Book ??? Boot ???
Keep ??? Dip ???? Put ??? Group ?????
Feel ??? Fill ??? Foot ??? Two ??
Combination vowel (diphthong�) sounds
�ea� sound
�ae� sound �oa� sound �ou� sound
Near ???? Late ??? Boat ??? Mouth ????
Deer ???? Cake ?? ? Loan ??? Cow ???
Hear ???? Game ??? Most ????? Cloud ???? ??
Consonant sounds
�p ?� sound �t ?� sound �k ?� sound �l ?� sound
Pen ??? Train ????? Book ??? Look ???
Report ??????? Story ???? ?? Cold ????? Place ???? ?
Stop ???? ? Put ??? Music ??????? School ?????
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.
Activity 1
Pronouncing words
Materials required
Notebook, pen
Procedure
� Form groups of four students in each group.
� Make a list of five things in the classroom.
� Identify the vowels, diphthongs and consonants in the
listed words.
� Each student speaks each word aloud in the group and
the others say if it is the right pronunciation.
Unit 1.indd 35 24-08-2018 15:24:26
36 Employability Skills � Class IX
Activity 2
Pronouncing words
Materials required
Notebook, pen
Procedure
� Form pairs of students. Your teacher will give you a list
of words.
� Practice saying these words aloud with your partner, who
says if it is correct or not.
� A volunteer reads out two words for the whole class who
will give feedback on the correctness of the pronunciation.
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 is phonetics?
(a) It is the study of how we write words in English.
(b) It is the study of how people understand sentences.
(c) It is the study of how many words the English
language has.
(d) It is the study of the sounds we make when we speak.
2. What are the different types of sounds used in English
pronunciation?
(a) Vowel sounds
(b) Diphthong sounds
(c) Consonant sounds
(d) All of the above
What Have You Learnt?
Notes
After completing this session, you will be able to
� describe what pronunciation is.
� pronounce (speak correctly) simple words used in your
conversations.
Session 7: Greetings and Introductions
We use certain words called �greetings� before we start
talking to friends, people familiar to us, or people whom
we are meeting for the first time. Also we use certain
sentences to tell about ourselves or others, to people
who do not know us. This is called an Introduction.
Unit 1.indd 36 24-08-2018 15:24:26
Communication Skills 37
Greetings
There are many ways to greet a person. The greeting and
reply to a greeting at work is different from the greeting
and reply given to a friend. Similarly, there are many
ways to say goodbye when you depart.
The greetings change depending upon who we are
talking to and even according to the time of the day.
Greetings help us start a conversation nicely as shown
in Figure 1.14.
Types of greetings
There are two ways of greeting as shown in Figure 1.15.
Say the greetings below a loud.
Formal greetings are used if you do not know the
person. It is used to greet senior, elderly people or people
with whom we have formal relations like teachers or
customers. This is used more often in schools, colleges
and offices.
Figure 1.14: Greetings and
Introductions
Figure 1.15: Formal and Informal Greetings
Say a loud the formal greetings and replies given in
Table 1.18.
Table 1.18: Formal Greetings
Greeting Reply
Good morning everybody! Good morning, Ma�am!
Good morning, Sir! Good morning, everyone!
Hello Sir. How are you? Very well. Thank you! How are
you?
How are you Tina? I�m doing well. How are you, Sir?
Unit 1.indd 37 24-08-2018 15:24:26
38 Employability Skills � Class IX
Informal greetings are used when you talk to
friends, family or a known person.
Say out loud the informal greetings/replies given in
Table 1.19.
Table 1.19: Informal Greetings
Greeting Reply
Hey! Hello or Hi!
Hey! How are you doing? Hi! I am doing great!
Hi! Good to meet you.
We can also greet people according to the time of the
day when we meet them. Say out loud the greetings
given in Table 1.20.
Figure 1.16: Introducing Yourself
Table 1.20: Greetings According to Time
Time Greeting
From early morning to 11.59 am Good morning
12 pm to about 5 pm (afternoon
hours)
Good afternoon
5 pm to midnight Good evening (We usually do not greet people by saying
Good night even if it is night. We say Good night at the
end of conversation.)
Introducing yourself and others
When you are meeting someone for the first time, or if
others want to know about you, you need to �Introduce�
yourself. You can do this by telling your name and some
general information like about your hometown, your
job or subjects as a student, your interests, etc. When
introducing yourself, remember to look at the other person
and smile. Some examples are shown here in Figure 1.16.
Unit 1.indd 38 24-08-2018 15:24:26
Communication Skills 39
We can introduce someone to others by telling their
name, what they do, how we know them, or even by
describing something interesting about them. One
example is shown here in Figure 1.17.
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
Have you come across such a situation? Based on the initial
videos in the e-learning lesson for this topic, write down how do
you think we start talking to friends and neighbours? How can
we start a conversation politely?
Activity 1
Formal and informal greetings
Materials required
Notebook, pen
Procedure
� Form pairs of students.
� Each pair should write about two conversations�one
with formal greetings and one with informal greetings and
act it out.
� One volunteer pair acts this out in front of the class.
� The class says if the formal and informal greetings have
been used correctly.
Activity 2
Introducing someone
Materials required
Notebook, pen
Procedure
� Use same pairs of students as above.
� Each pair should write a conversation to introduce
someone to their friends and family and act it out.
� One volunteer pair demonstrates it for the class.
� The class says if the introductions have been made
correctly.
Figure 1.17: Introducing
Others
Unit 1.indd 39 24-08-2018 15:24:26
40 Employability Skills � Class IX
A. Multiple choice questions
Read the questions carefully and circle the letter (a),
(b), (c) or (d) that best answers the question.
1. You say �Good Morning� when it is _______________.
(a) 11 am (b) 9 am
(c) 8 am (d) All (a), (b) and (c)
2. You may say �Hi� when you meet _______________.
(a) your teacher in class (b) a senior in the office
(c) your Principal (d) your friends at a shop
3. You say �Good Afternoon� when it is ______________.
(a) 10 am (b) 11.59 am
(c) 6 pm (d) 1 pm
4. You say �Good Evening� when it is ______________.
(a) 11 am (b) 9 am
(c) 2 pm (d) 7 pm
B. Short answer questions
2. Write two to three lines you would use to introduce
yourself.
Notes Activity 3
Greetings
Materials required
Notebook, pen
Procedure
� Imagine that you are at home. The doorbell rings and you
open the door. Write down.
� What would you say when you see your uncle
standing at the door?
� What would you say when you see your friend
standing at the door?
� One volunteer acts it out in front of the class. The class
(with teacher) discusses
� What is the difference in the way you greet your
friends and teachers?
� Which method will be used in the following situations:
(a) While talking to teacher in the classroom, and (b)
While talking to your friends in the playground.
� What are the different phrases used when greeting
friends?
� What are the phrases used when greeting elders,
teachers, colleagues at work or in office?
Check Your Progress
Unit 1.indd 40 24-08-2018 15:24:26
Communication Skills 41
What Have You Learnt?
Session 8: Talking about Self
You may need to talk about yourself on many occasions
especially when you meet new people. You may also
need to fill forms with information about yourself. In this
session you will learn how to describe (or �introduce�)
yourself and write about yourself.
Talking about yourself
When you meet someone for the first
time, they may want to know more
about you. You will need to �introduce�
yourself by telling them about yourself
as shown in Figure 1.18.
You usually start by telling your
name. Then you can talk about other
things, such as what you do, your age,
where you live, or even about the things
or activities that you like or dislike. For
all these sentences, you will use nouns
and verbs.
A noun is a �naming� word that is
used for a person, place, thing, or idea.
Some examples of nouns are Ali, Delhi, football and
music.
A verb is a �doing� word that tells us what the noun
does. Some examples of verbs are play, like, eat and
write. Note that some verbs with an �ing� ending can also
act as nouns. Swimming is an example. We can talk about
likes and dislikes using nouns as well as verbs that end
with �ing�. For example, cycling and swimming.
Table 1.21 represents talking about oneself. Read
a loud.
Figure 1.18: Talking About Self
My
name is
Amit.
I like
History.
I don't
like
Maths.
I study
in
Class IX.
After completing this session, you will be able to
� greet people formally and informally.
� introduce yourself to other people.
� introduce other people to your friends.
Unit 1.indd 41 24-08-2018 15:24:26
42 Employability Skills � Class IX
Table 1.21: Talking About Yourself
Name I am Harish Sethi. My name is Anu. I am Lucy Peter. My name is Ali.
What they
do
I am in high
school.
I am a student. I play cricket. I practice karate.
Age I am 15 years old. I am 16 and a
half years old.
I am nine. I will be 17 soon.
Hometown I stay in Agra. I live in Mumbai. I am from Goa. I�m from Patna.
Likes I like playing
chess.
I like swimming. I like carpentry. I like music.
Dislikes I dislike summers. I do not like dolls. I dislike loud
noise.
I do not like playing
football.
Strengths I can write stories
very well.
I am a good
public speaker.
I can solve
crossword
puzzles quickly.
I am a good team
player.
Weaknesses I leave tasks
incomplete .
I get angry easily. I cannot
manage my time
properly.
I am nervous to
speak in front of a
large group.
Filling a form
Sometimes, instead of talking, you will have to write
about yourself in a form. A form is a typed or printed
page with blank spaces for information.
Each form is different, so you should read it properly
before filling. Write neatly taking care to use the correct
spellings. A form usually has the following fields for
personal information as shown in Table 1.22.
Table 1.22: Some fields a form
Name Here you enter your name. Sometimes you may need to
write the first, middle (if any) and surname.
Date of birth This is the date on which you were born. It is usually
written as the day, followed by the month, followed by
the year in numerals.
Address This is the postal address which includes your house
number and the details of the street, area and the city.
PIN code This is a group of numbers used by the post office to
identify a region. It is an important part of an address.
Signature (or Sign) This is your name or initials written by hand, in a
specific way (which is difficult for anyone else to copy).
Unit 1.indd 42 24-08-2018 17:03:27
Communication Skills 43
Example
Harish Sethi was born on 5 December 1999. He lives in
Agra, in a house named Sukh Nivas. His house number
is 13 in Raja Nagar. His postal code is 282001. Harish
filled a form asking for personal information like this.
First Name Harish
Last Name Sethi
Date of Birth 5 December 1999 (or 05-12-1999)
Address Sukh Nivas, No. 13, Raja Nagar, Agra
Pin Code 282001
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 write down how would you talk about yourself?
Activity 1
Introducing yourself and filling forms
Materials required
Notebook, pen
Procedure
� Form pairs of students.
� Ask the students to introduce themselves to their partner,
giving the details necessary to fill a form like above. Their
partner should fill in the form with their details in his or
her notebook.
� When he/she has finished, the other partner to read the
form carefully and add his/her signature if the details are
correct. Repeat this process for the other partner as well.
Activity 2
Talk about yourself
Materials required
Notebook, pen
Notes
Unit 1.indd 43 24-08-2018 15:24:26
44 Employability Skills � Class IX
A. Multiple choice questions
Read the questions carefully and circle the letter (a),
(b), (c) or (d) that best answers the question.
1. Use the following words to complete the form given
below.
football and swimming, seven-years-old, Hassan,
Yasmin, in Bengaluru.
(a) My first name is ______________.
(b) My surname is _________.
(c) I am ________.
(d) I live _________.
(e) I like _________.
2. A postal code is ______________.
(a) a group of numbers or letters used to identify a
government building.
(b) a code used to indicate the door number of a house.
(c) a group of numbers or letters used by the post office
to identify a region.
(d) a code used to identify different post offices.
Check Your Progress
Procedure
� Form groups with four students in each group.
� Ask the students to take turns and one by one, introduce
themselves to the others in the group. Use the steps and
expressions they learnt in the lesson. The students to
present their likes and dislikes as well! Each person has
one minute to talk about himself/herself.
� When one person talks, the others should correct and
guide him/her.
� One of the group volunteers to speak in front of the class,
who will give feedback on what is right and what is wrong.
1. Maintain a diary and show your progress to your teacher.
2. In the next two days:
� Introduce yourself to the new people you meet.
� Tell your friends about your likes and dislikes.
3. In the next 14 days:
� Ask your family members to show you some forms
they have filled in
� Think and create a signature for yourself
5. In the next one month:
� Create a simple form
� Give copies to your friends and ask them to fill in
the form
� Guide them if they do not know how to fill it
Notes
Unit 1.indd 44 24-08-2018 15:24:26
Communication Skills 45
What Have You Learnt?
Figure 1.19: Asking Questions
Figure 1.20: Example of Asking Questions
After completing this session, you will be able to
� answer questions that others ask about you.
� talk about your likes and dislikes with your friends.
� fill out a form with some basic personal details.
Session 9: Asking Questions I
Are you sometimes scared
of asking too many
questions as shown in
Figure 1.19. What happens
if you do not ask questions
at the right time? Why do
we need to ask questions?
In this session you will
learn about the importance
of asking questions and
how to get information
by asking the correct
questions.
Need for asking questions
A question is a request for information as shown in
Figure 1.20. It could be any type of information, such
as an answer to a question in the textbook, information
about a person or a place or about how to do a task.
Unit 1.indd 45 24-08-2018 15:24:26
46 Employability Skills � Class IX
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, write down if you think Rahul was able to ask correct
questions?
Asking questions helps us to
� gain new knowledge, get information,
� make sure that what we know is correct,
� avoid doubts, confusion, misunderstanding, and
� start talking to people by asking about them and
their ideas.
How to make sure we have complete information?
If you do not have information about how to reach a
place, you will not be able to reach it. If you do not know
how to do some work, you will not be able to complete it,
unless you ask questions and get information. Asking all
the correct questions at the right time is also important.
You can follow the simple method of �5W+1H�
shown in Table 1.23 to make sure that you have all the
information you will need for a particular work. Read
out the examples aloud.
Table 1.23: 5W+1H Method for Asking Questions
5W+1H Method for Asking Questions
Question Word Usage Example
Who �Who� is used to ask about people Who is the new student in the
class?
Where �Where� is used to ask about a
place
Where does she live??
When �When� is used to ask about time When did she join school?
What �What� is used to ask about a
thing, an idea or an action
What is her favourite subject?
Why �Why� is used to find the reason Why is she not talking to anyone
in the class?
How �How� is used to find the method How can I help her make friends?
Unit 1.indd 46 24-08-2018 15:24:26
Communication Skills 47
Activity 1
Framing questions
Materials required
Notebook, pen
Procedure
� Form groups of four students in each group.
� Tell the students about a situation. Use the 5W+1H
method to make a list of questions that should be asked
to get complete information.
� One volunteer group reads out the list to the class. The
rest of the students give feedback if these were right
questions.
Activity 2
Framing questions
Materials required
Notebook, pen
Procedure
� Form pairs of students.
� Your teacher will tell you about a situation for which you
have to make plans.
� Make a list of questions you will ask. Also, think and write
why you need to ask that question. (What is the purpose
of the question?).
� Read out your list to your partner and discuss if each
other�s questions were right.
Activity 3
Let us guess!
Procedure
� Divide the class into five groups.
� Each group discusses and decides on one famous
personality.
� All groups will take turns to ask other group questions
and guess the person.
� Every group gets to ask one question each to other groups.
In total, each group can ask three questions. If they are
not able to guess within the first three questions, extend
the number of questions to five per group.
� If you run out of questions, tell each team to give the
teams a CLUE.
� For example, for Mahatma Gandhi, the clue can be:
� He is called the Father of the Nation
� He was a lawyer from Gujarat
� His picture is on Indian rupee notes
� After spending about five minutes preparing in their
groups, give the teacher examples of the kind of questions
prepared.
Notes
Unit 1.indd 47 24-08-2018 15:24:26
48 Employability Skills � Class IX
A. Multiple choice questions
Read the questions carefully and circle the letter (a),
(b), (c) or (d) that best answers the question.
1. Raju is the class monitor. He wants to know why
Ramesh is coming late every day. Which of the following
is a question that Raju can ask Ramesh?
(a) Do you come on time?
(b) Are you late?
(c) Why are you late every day?
(d) Will it not be easier to complete your work if you
come on time?
2. If you have not understood a task given to you, which
question should you ask?
(a) Where are the reports of this task?
(b) Can you repeat the instructions for this task?
(c) Can you give me an example of this task?
(d) Why are you doing this task?
3. Sheela does not have time so she decides to delay a
task. Which question should he ask before ignoring the
task?
(a) What is this task?
(b) When does this task need to be completed?
(c) Is this task important?
(d) No need to ask any question.
4. Renuka is joining a new school. Which of the following
questions will help her become comfortable with her
new classmates?
(a) How long have you been studying here?
(b) Would you like to share my lunch?
(c) What do you all do in your free time?
(d) All the options are correct.
Check Your Progress
� The questions have to be indirect and anyone from the
other group can answer.
� The team that guesses the other team�s famous person
first, wins!
Discussion
� Were you able to frame questions?
� Were you able to identify the right kind of question?
Practice work
Whenever you are starting with a new work think of all the
information you would need. Use the 5W+1H method to make a
list of questions to get all this information. If you keep practicing
on you will be able to frame questions.
Notes
Unit 1.indd 48 24-08-2018 15:24:26
Communication Skills 49
B. Short answer questions
1. Re-arrange the words to form questions.
a) she/like/sing?/Does/to b) waiting/What/are/you/for?
c) play/like/football?/Do/
you/to
d) fighting?/they/are/Why
What Have You Learnt?
After completing this session, you will be able to
� ask questions to get correct information from other
people.
� ask the questions according to a situation.
Session 10: Asking Questions II
A question is a sentence, phrase, or word that either
asks for information or is used to test someone�s
knowledge. We always use a question mark (?) at the
end of a question. In our day-to-day interactions with
others, we often have to ask and answer questions to
get information. Asking the correct questions can help
us get the information we want as shown in Figure 1.21.
Types of questions
There are two basic types of questions: close-ended and
open-ended.
Figure 1.21: Questions and
Information
Unit 1.indd 49 24-08-2018 15:24:26
50 Employability Skills � Class IX
Questions that can be answered with a �yes� or a
�no� are called close-ended question. That is because
the answer options are limited or closed. For example,
when we ask �Do you have a TV at home?�, the answer
could be either �Yes� or �No� (see Figure 1.22).
Sometimes, when we ask a question, we expect an
answer with more details. For example in Figure 1.23
when we ask �What do you like to watch on TV?�, the
answer could be �I like to watch movies on TV.� These
are called open-ended questions because their answer
options are not limited or closed. In this case, the person
could have also said sports, news, or anything else.
Framing (or forming) questions
Framing close-ended questions
We can form close-ended questions by adding helping
verbs (called auxiliary verbs) like Be, Do and Have. These
convey additional information, such as time and mood.
Besides these, there are other auxiliary verbs (called modal
verbs), such as Can, Shall, May, Should, Could which
show possibility or necessity. One method of framing
close-ended questions is to take a sentence without the
above words and place such words before the subject.
For example, the sentence �I like it� can be changed
into a close-ended question by adding the word �do�
before the subject �I�. This creates the close-ended
question: �Do I like it?�
Read aloud the other examples are shown in Table 1.24.
Table 1.24: Close-ended Questions
Sentence Close-ended questions after adding helping verbs
They talk on the phone every day. Do they talk on the phone every day?
You share your lunch with your
friends.
Could you share your lunch with your friends?
Please Note: The helping verb changes based on the
subject, but the main verb remains unchanged. For
example, in the sentences and the questions below, the
main verb (cook) remains unchanged, but the auxiliary
verb (do) changes based on the subject. Read aloud the
other examples are shown here in Table 1.25.
Figure 1.22: Open-ended
Question
Figure 1.23: Close-ended
Question
Unit 1.indd 50 24-08-2018 15:24:26
Communication Skills 51
Table 1.25: Close-ended Questions with Helping Verbs
Sentence Close-ended Questions after adding helping verbs
I cook dinner. Do I cook dinner?
She can cook dinner. Can she cook dinner?
They cook dinner. Do they cook dinner?
Framing close-ended questions
In some cases, we exchange the positions of the
subject and the verb to create a close-ended question.
We can follow a similar method for sentences that
already have auxiliary verbs. Read aloud the other
examples given in Table 1.26.
Table 1.26: Close-ended Questions (Subject/Verb exchanged)
Sentence Close-ended questions after exchanging positions of
the subject and the verb
He is there. Is he there?
They were cleaning their room. Were they cleaning their room?
You can help me. Can you help me?
Framing open-ended questions: Using question
words
Some questions are called open-ended because their
answers are not limited or closed. They have to be
answered with more information than just a �yes� or
a �no�. We can form open-ended questions by using
question words, such as What, Why, Who, How, When
and Where. Read aloud the other examples are shown
here in Table 1.27. Notice how these questions CANNOT
be answered with a �yes� or a �no�.
Table 1.27: Open-ended Questions with Question Words
Open-ended questions Answer sentence
What did you do? I went to the park.
Why did you go there? I went to meet my friend.
How did you go? I cycled.
Unit 1.indd 51 24-08-2018 15:24:27
52 Employability Skills � Class IX
A. Multiple choice questions
Read the questions carefully and circle the letter (a),
(b), (c) or (d) that best answers the question.
1. What are close-ended questions?
(a) Questions that can have any answer
(b) Questions that do not have answers
(c) Questions with yes/no answers
(d) Questions that have many answers
Check Your Progress
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.
Activity 1
Pair-work: Framing open-ended and closed-ended questions
Materials required
Notebook, pen
Procedure
� Form pairs of students. Each pair writes five open-ended
and five closed-ended questions along with the answers
for all 10 questions.
� When all pairs have completed the activity, one volunteer
pair reads out their questions and answers to the whole
class.
� The class gives its feedback on whether the questions are
framed correctly or not.
Activity 2
Group-practice: Framing questions
Materials required
Notebook, pen
Procedure
� Form groups of four students each.
� Write a conversation between four people, with at least six
questions (including closed- and open-ended questions).
Act it out aloud.
� One group volunteers to act it in front of the class. The
other students say if the questions were framed correctly.
Notes
Unit 1.indd 52 24-08-2018 15:24:27
Communication Skills 53
2. Which of these are open-ended questions?
(a) Where do you live?
(b) Are you hungry?
(c) How do you feel?
(d) Did you meet him?
3. Which of these are question words?
(a) What
(b) Want
(c) Which
(d) How
4. Which of these is the correct way to convert the sentence
�You are studying� into a question?
(a) You are studying?
(b) Studying you are?
(c) Are you studying?
(d) Studying are you?
B. Short answer questions
Make a note of five questions your friends asked you.
How many were open-ended questions? Make a list of five
close-ended questions you asked other people in one day.
Glossary
Auxiliary verbs: verbs used along with a main verb to convey
additional information, such as time and mood. There are three main
auxiliary verbs �Be, Do and Have�
Coherent: making sense, related to the main topic
Communication: sharing of information between two or more
people to reach a common understanding
Concise: using simple words and saying only what is needed, not
extra
Concrete: using exact words and facts
Courteous: showing respect, polite, friendly
Exclamation: a sudden cry or remark expressing surprise, emotion,
or pain
What Have You Learnt?
After completing this session, you will be able to
� ask simple questions to solve your doubts.
� identify close-ended and open-ended questions.
� use the correct question words to ask open-ended and
close-ended questions.
Notes
Unit 1.indd 53 24-08-2018 15:24:27
54 Employability Skills � Class IX
Instead: as an alternative, another option
Modal Verbs: these are other auxiliary verbs, such as �Can, May
and Should�
Modify: make partial or minor changes to something
Paralanguage: the other parts of spoken language (besides words)
tone, rate, loudness, etc.
Posture: the position of the body when standing, sitting or working
Precise words: exact, most suitable words
Similar: looking same in appearance, character, or quantity, but
not identical
Specific words: special, correct name
Studio: a place where films are made or produced
Title: a name that describes someone�s position or job
Further Readings
Session 1: Introduction to Communication
� https://bit.ly/2yrCswn
� https://bit.ly/2GPRn8A
Session 4: Writing Skills 1 � Parts Of Speech
� http://www.thepunctuationguide.com/top-ten.html
� https://bit.ly/2ImnVUS
Session 5: Writing Skills2 � Sentences
� https://bit.ly/2EepS38
Session 6: Pronunciation Basics
� https://bit.ly/1HkctUu
Session 7: Greetings and Introductions
� https://www.thoughtco.com/greeting-people-inenglish-
1212039
� https://reallifeglobal.com/23-different-ways-greetsomeone-
english/
Session 8: Talking About Self
� https://bit.ly/2H3UjML
Session 9: Asking QuestionsI
� http://www.englishlearnsite.com/grammar/wh-questions/
� https://bit.ly/2IklgeA
Notes
Unit 1.indd 54 24-08-2018 15:24:27
Introduction
Self-management, which is also referred to as �selfcontrol�
or �self-regulation�, is the ability to regulate
one�s emotions, thoughts, and behaviour effectively
in different situations. This includes motivating
oneself, and setting and working towards personal and
academic goals. Students with strong self-management
skills are able to do different activities effectively,
including managing their timelines, focusing on their
tasks, cooperating with others in school and at home
and perform better in their studies. It helps in future
studies, work and life.
Session 1: Introduction to Self-management
After writing an exam, have you ever felt that you should
have studied more? Do you think that you could manage
your hobbies, interests, and studies better if you could
manage your time well?
Self-management involves understanding yourself,
understanding what your interests and abilities are,
UnitUnit
Self-Ma nagement
Skills
2
Unit 2.indd 55 23-08-2018 17:04:01
56 Employability Skills � Class IX
Self-awareness
Knowing yourself
as an individual �
your values, likes,
dislikes, strengths
and weaknesses
Self-control
Ability to control
your behaviour,
discipline, etc.
Self-confidence
Believing in
yourself that you
can do any task
that is given to you
and not scared of
taking risks
Problem solving
Understanding
a problem and
finding a solution
using step-by-step
method
Self-motivation
Doing tasks on
your own without
any external
motivation
Personal hygiene
and grooming
Keeping oneself
clean, healthy and
smart
Positive thinking
Expressing
certainty or
affirmation even in
tough situations
Team work
Working together
with people to
accomplish shared
goals.
having a positive attitude and grooming
yourself in order to develop self-confidence
(See Figure 2.1).
Self-management can also help in:
� developing good habits
� overcoming bad habits
� reaching your goals
� overcoming challenges and difficulties
Being able to manage yourself helps you
to avoid stress and provides opportunities to
get involved in fun activities.
Self-management skills include the
following:
Figure 2.1: Who Am I?
Fig. 2.2: Self-awareness Fig. 2.3: Self-control
Fig. 2.4: Self-confidence
Fig. 2.6: Self-motivation
Fig. 2.7: Hygiene and
grooming
Fig. 2.8: Positive Thinking Fig. 2.9: Teamwork
Fig. 2.5: Problem Solving
Unit 2.indd 56 23-08-2018 17:04:02
Self-management Skills 57
The practical activities will be facilitated by the teacher and
necessary feedback will be provided by the teachers to the
students.
Activity 1
Self-management skills
Materials required
Student textbooks, pen
Procedure
Read the following paragraph. Write in class. One volunteer can
read what he/she wrote and other students can discuss.
�Manish got admission to a new school. His clothes were not
clean, shoes were not polished and laces were not tied. He did
not smile at anyone and looked sad. He did not look confident.
What are the qualities of self-management that you think are
missing in Manish?�
Activity 2
How self-aware are you?
Materials required
Student textbooks, pen
Procedure
� Form pairs of students who are friends or know each other
well.
� The students to rate each other on the scale of �Good�,
�OK� or �Bad�, on self-management skills given in the table
below.
My name
�������
My friend�s name
��������
Self-management skill My rating of
my ability
My friend�s rating
of my ability
Time
management
Achieving tasks on
time and according
the plan
Goal setting
Planning concrete
goals to be
accomplished
within a set
timeframe.
Fig. 2.10: Time management Fig. 2.11: Goal setting
Unit 2.indd 57 23-08-2018 17:04:03
58 Employability Skills � Class IX
Confident (Selfconfidence)
Positive and Cheerful
(Positive Thinking)
Neat and Clean
(Personal Hygiene and
Grooming)
On-time (Punctuality)
� Rate your partner on the same rating scale and skills.
� Compare what you thought of yourself and what your
partner thought of you. If it is the same, than it means
that you are aware of your skills. If the ratings are
different, you can discuss why the partner thought
about you differently.
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 is not a self-management skill?
(a) Problem solving
(b) Bargaining
(c) Understanding self
(d) Confidence building
2. Grooming is a term associated with
(a) time management
(b) problem solving
(c) neat and clean appearance
(d) self-management
B. Short answer questions
1. Write a short note on the factors influencing selfmanagement.
2. List any 05 self-management skills.
3. Draw an outline of your right hand and label each finger
with different factors that influence you in managing
yourself.
Notes
Check Your Progress
Unit 2.indd 58 23-08-2018 17:04:03
Self-management Skills 59
Examples of strength
� I am good at
understanding other
peoples emotion.
� I am confident in
dealing with strangers
while keeping myself
safe from any harm.
� I help my parents in
household chores.
� I play cricket very well.
Examples of weakness
� I am unable to resist
junk food when my
friends suggest.
� I would like to
learn more about
computers.
After completing this session, you will be able to
� describe self-management in your own words.
� describe the importance of self-management.
� list the various self-management skills.
What have you learnt?
Session 2: Strength and
Weakness Analysis
Have you ever wondered why
you get good marks in one
subject and not so good in
another subject? Knowing
what you do well or not so well,
will help you in converting your
weaknesses into strengths and
strengths into an exceptional
performance. The strength and
weakness analysis helps you
in this process. Strength and
weakness analysis begins with
knowing yourself first.
Knowing yourself
It means understanding who you are, what you like,
what you do not like, what are your beliefs, what are
your opinions, what is your background, what you do
well and what you do not do well? It is important to
know who you are, because only then can you measure
your strengths and weaknesses (See Figure 2.12).
Strength and weakness analysis
Being �self-aware� or understanding �Who am I?� means
looking outside our usual characteristics, such as our
name, qualifications, and the relationship we have with
others. It actually means knowing our inner strengths,
hidden talents, skills and even weaknesses. Let us look
at what could be our strengths and weaknesses.
Figure 2.12: Knowing Yourself
Unit 2.indd 59 23-08-2018 17:04:04
60 Employability Skills � Class IX
Identifying strengths
� Take time off to think about what you
do well
� Think of anything that you are always
good at
� Think about what others appreciate
about you
Identifying weaknesses
� Point out the areas where you struggle
and what you find difficult to do
� Look at the feedback you receive from
others
� Be open to feedback and accept your
weaknesses without feeling small about
it. Look at it as an area of improvement.
Fig. 2.14: Identifying Strength and
Weaknesses
Strengths are
what we do well
and are good at.
Everyone has
some strengths.
Weaknesses, also known
as 'areas of improvement'
are what we do not do
well and are not good
at. Everyone has some
weaknesses too.
Fig. 2.13: Strength and Weakness
By understanding
ourselves we can
� know what we can
and cannot do
Based on that
information, we can
� plan what and how
we can improve
ourselves
By improving
we will
� feel confident
about ourselves
Unit 2.indd 60 23-08-2018 17:04:06
Self-management Skills 61
Here are few questions that can help you find your
strengths and weaknesses (Figure 2.15).
Difference between interests and abilities
Interests are the things that we enjoy doing. Interests
may include:
� Activities you like to do at school and in your free
time that make you happy.
� Activities you are curious about or would do even
if no one asked you to do it.
� Activities you want to learn or would like to do in
the future.
Ability, on the other hand, is an acquired or natural
capacity that enables an individual to perform a
particular job or task with considerable proficiency.
Sometimes interests may not match abilities. In those
cases, you can either improve your abilities or follow
some other path. For example, you may like cricket
(interest), but you may not be able to play due to the
necessary power or skill (ability) required to play the
game. In that case, it is not necessary to try to become
a cricketer!
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.
� 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 struggle?
� Where, how and why do others
perform better than me?
� What advice for improvement
do I often receive from others?
Figure 2.15: Finding Strength and Weakness
Unit 2.indd 61 23-08-2018 17:04:07
62 Employability Skills � Class IX
After watching the initial video 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
Aim in life
Materials required
Pen/pencil, notepad or sheets of paper
Procedure
� Form pairs of students. Make a list of tasks/activities you
can do well.
� Write your main aim in life.
� Share your notes with your partner and discuss your
personal characteristics.
� Fill in the table given below
List what you believe as a person
by starting the sentences with
�I am� (I am a sensitive person).
List all you can do well by
starting the sentences with
�I can� (I can identify safety
aspects and seek support when
witnessing or experiencing
violence and abuse).
List what you plan to do by
starting the sentences with �I
will� (I will train myself in yoga).
State your aim in life. Start
the sentence with �My aim
is� (My aim is to become an
accomplished sportsperson).
Activity 2
Interests and abilities
Materials required
Student textbooks, pen, worksheets
Procedure
Each student has to complete two worksheets, each containing
a list of statements. First worksheet is for interests and the
second is for abilities. Each student has to be real and honest
when marking the statements in the two worksheets if he/she
is not real and honest, they will get incorrect results about their
own interests and abilities.
Notes
Unit 2.indd 62 23-08-2018 17:04:07
Self-management Skills 63
Worksheet 1: What are my Interests?
S.No.
Group 1: Interests
Yes No
1. I enjoy working with a group of people.
2. I love to make new friends.
3. I feel comfortable around new people.
4. I like listening to people who have thoughts
different than mine.
5. I like to report the problems in my locality
to the Municipality/Panchayat.
6. I like responding to people enthusiastically.
7. I like organising events.
8. I want to resolve conflicts between people.
S.No.
Group 2: Interests
Yes No
1. I like working with tools.
2. I enjoy making things with my own hands.
3. I like to move around a lot.
4. I like to use gestures and non-verbal cues
when I communicate.
5. I like to learn by doing.
6. I like playing sports everyday.
7. I like assembling parts of instruments or
machine using instructions.
Notes
Unit 2.indd 63 23-08-2018 17:04:07
64 Employability Skills � Class IX
S.No.
Group 3: Interests
Yes No
1. I enjoy learning about numbers.
2. I like to do experiments at home.
3. I want my things to be organised.
4. I like to see a pattern or logic in things that
happen around me.
5. I like to save out of my pocket money.
6. I enjoy collecting coins/stamps.
7. I like to make and follow a plan.
S.No.
Group 4: Interests
Yes No
1. I like giving directions to people.
2. I want to learn new concepts and express
my ideas visually.
3. I enjoy creating new product designs.
4. I prefer pictures over text in a magazine.
5. I enjoy drawing.
6. I like solving jigsaw/visual puzzles.
7. I like redecorating the room for fun.
8. I enjoy working with different colours.
Notes
Worksheet 1: What are my abilities?
S.No.
Group 1: Abilities
Yes No
1. I can resolve problems between friends.
Unit 2.indd 64 23-08-2018 17:04:07
Self-management Skills 65
2. People seek my advice.
3. I am good at organising events.
4. People call me a good listener.
5. I make new friends easily.
6. I can work with a group of people.
S.No.
Group 2: Abilities
Yes No
1. I am good at athletics/sports.
2. I am physically active.
3. I learn better by doing.
4. I have a sense of balance and coordination.
5. I can assemble parts of an instrument or
machine by following instructions.
6. I work well with tools.
7. I use a lot of gestures and non-verbal cues
to communicate.
8. I can make things using my hands.
9. I move around a lot.
S.No.
Group 3: Abilities
Yes No
1. I plan my activities for the day.
2. I keep my things in an order.
3. I see logic in things that happen around
me.
4. I save some percentage of my pocket money.
5. I conduct a variety of experiments at home.
6. I can quickly calculate the total of a list.
7. I follow a step-by-step approach to solve
problems.
Notes
Unit 2.indd 65 23-08-2018 17:04:07
66 Employability Skills � Class IX
S. No.
Group 4: Abilities
Yes No
1. I am good at solving jigsaw/visual puzzles.
2. I can give clear and precise directions.
3. I draw well.
4. I look at pictures in the magazine than
reading the text.
5. I learn concepts and express my ideas
visually.
6. I can arrange a room for various occasions.
7. I can make models.
Check Your Progress
What have you learnt?
After completing this session, you will be able to
� list your own strengths and weaknesses.
� list your interests.
� list your abilities.
Session 3: Self-confidence
Self-confidence is a sense of trusting own�s abilities
and self. If you are an intelligent, hardworking and
Notes
Fill in the table given below which can help you to prepare
an action plan to overcome your weakness. Identify and
list the activities that you would like to undertake to
improve upon your weaknesses and continue to build your
strengths.
Strengths Weaknesses Action plan to overcome
your weaknesses
For example,
I can speak
many
languages
For example,
I do not
understand
computers
Improve on computer skills
by attending extra classes
after school.
Unit 2.indd 66 23-08-2018 17:04:07
Self-management Skills 67
talented person, but lack confidence, and avoid taking
initiative, then it may be difficult for others to recognise
your talent. Self-confidence can be developed through
changes in attitude and practice.
Self-confidence is a quality we build when we believe in
our strength to succeed in anything we do in life. People
who are confident believe that they can do anything given
to them in any situation.
Qualities of self-confident people
Self-belief
Thomas Edison
made thousands of
prototypes of the
incandescent light
bulb, before he
could finally invent
the bulb. Inspite
of struggling with
repeated failures,
his resilience and
belief in self gave
the world one of
the most amazing
product, i.e., bulb.
Hard Work
Dipa Karmakar,
despite having a flat
foot at the age of six
worked hard to become
the first Indian
female gymnast
ever to compete in
the Olympics.
Positive Attitude
Positive attitude
is nothing but
focusing on the
positives even in the
time of adversity.
For example, the
situation of losing
a game can be
perceived as losing
something or as
an opportunity to
review the game
strategies and
improve to win in
the future.
Commitment
Mahatma Gandhi,
the leader of Indian
Independence
Movement, was
highly committed
to the cause of
making India free
from the British
Raj. He employed
non-violent civil
disobedience to get
India independence.
Figure 2.16: Examples of confidence and lack of confidence
Niraj had difficulty
in speaking English.
He, therefore,
avoided talking to
his classmates. He
believed that he
can learn English
by joining English
speaking classes and
in few days he was
able to speak english
fluently.
Shalini, was
preparing for her final
board exams. She
feared that she will
not get good marks
in English because
of her poor memory.
This made her
nervous before the
exam and she actually
got poor marks in the
exam.
Unit 2.indd 67 23-08-2018 17:04:08
68 Employability Skills � Class IX
Building self-confidence
The three steps to building self-confidence are as follows:
Figure 2.17: Building Confidence
Given below are some factors that decrease selfconfidence.
(a) When we think we cannot do a particular work.
(b) When we keep thinking of our past mistakes and
feel bad about it, instead of learning from them.
(c) When we expect to be successful at the first
attempt itself and do not try again.
(d) When we are surrounded by people who have
a negative attitude, which is reflected in their
speech.
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 �Becoming Self-confident� in the
Unit 2.indd 68 23-08-2018 17:04:08
Self-management Skills 69
e-learning lesson. Discuss how Ranjith developed confidence Notes
before his interview day.
Activity 1
Role-Play: Building self-confidence
Materials required
Pen/pencil, notepad or sheets of paper
Procedure
� Form groups of four students in each group. Choose from
one of the below given situations. List the steps you would
take to handle the situation confidently.
� One group volunteers to present in front of the class.
� Discuss and ensure that the three steps above are followed.
Choose from one of the below given situations.
� You have to deliver a speech on health, hygiene and
cleanliness. As this is the first time you may be doing this,
how will you build your confidence?
� Two of your classmates often get into fight and damage
school tables. As you are the class representative, you
need to talk to them to make them realise their mistake
and learn how to improve upon them. What qualities and
abilities do you need to do this?
� You have to a model of the school with your team in five
days. How will you build confidence in your team?
Activity 2
Building confidence through positive words
Materials required
Pen/pencil, notepad or sheets of paper
Procedure
Make a list of feel-good sentences that you will say to
yourself every day when you wake up in the morning and
before you go to bed. For example, you can think of
(a) something that you are really proud of,
(b) a compliment you have received from someone that
day or the previous day,
(c) a learning that you had after reflecting upon your
failure.
Activity 3
Practice activity: Self reflection on becoming more confident and
goal driven
Unit 2.indd 69 23-08-2018 17:04:08
70 Employability Skills � Class IX
A. Multiple choice questions
Read the questions carefully and circle the letter (a),
(b), (c) or (d) that best answers the question.
1. What steps should one take to build confidence?
(a) Set goals in life
(b) Appreciate oneself for all the achievements
(c) Always think positively
(d) Talk to people who are confident
2. Which of the following is a quality of a self-confident
person?
(a) Patient
(b) Compassionate
(c) Committed
(d) Passionate
B. Short answer question
1. What are the factors that affect self-confidence?
Notes Materials required
Pen/Pencil, note pad or sheets of paper
Procedure
Write down three qualities about yourself, your goals in life
and your plan to achieve them.
My qualities My goals My plans
For example, I have
the ability to run
100 metres race.
For example, I
want to become
a nationally
recognised
sportsperson.
For example, I will
start my day by
exercising and eating
a balanced diet. I will
regularly run in a
stadium under the
guidance of coach.
Check Your Progress
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Self-management Skills 71
What have you learnt?
After completing this session, you will be able to
� describe the meaning of self-confidence.
� list the qualities of self-confident people.
� identify ways in which you can build your selfconfidence.
� list factors that influence self-confidence.
Session 4: Postive Thinking
What would happen if ants, one of the smallest creatures
of nature, thought that they are so small that they
cannot do anything? They would probably be extinct by
now. But ants have never considered being small as a
weakness, instead they work really hard to get through
each day. An ant can lift up to 20 times its own body
weight. A positive attitude to life can help us succeed like
ants. Similarly, if an individual has a positive attitude
towards life and its challenges, he/she can overcome
them and grow positively in life and work.
Positive thinking and its importance
A person�s attitude can be considered either �positive� or
�negative�. Positive thinking requires a person to look at
the good in things, observe, understand and patiently
work towards improving them rather than worrying
and/or looking for the bad in things.
Positive thinking leads to good results for you like
� overcoming challenges,
� making you do well or making you an energetic
individual,
� helping you get better at work, and
� making you and people around you happy.
How to keep your thinking positive?
There are few simple steps to cultivate a positive
attitude in life. Let us understand this with the help of
the abbreviation �SMILE�.
Figure 2.18: Positive Thinking
Examples of negative
thinking
� I did not get enough
marks to choose the
Science stream. My
life is ruined.
� My team lost the
match because of me.
Examples of positive
thinking
� I did not get enough
marks to choose
the Science stream,
but that�s not the
end of my life. I can
consider options in
other streams.
� My team lost the
match today, but we
can see how we can
do better next time.
Unit 2.indd 71 23-08-2018 17:04:09
72 Employability Skills � Class IX
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, write down what went wrong in the video?
Activity 1
Story telling:
Procedure
� Form a circle around the teacher.
� Discuss a story about
� Positive attitude
� How does the story connect to positive attitude? What role
does attitude play in our lives? If you would have been in
similar situations what would have been your attitude/
approach towards the situation? What kind of approach
will help you come out of this situation?
Figure 2.19: SMILE model
Unit 2.indd 72 29-08-2018 11:21:13
Self-management Skills 73
Activity 2 Notes
Follow the Class rules
Materials required
Pen/pencil, notepad or sheets of paper
Procedure
� Form groups of three students.
� Each group prepares a role-play on the situation given
below. Two people in each group act out the situation and
the third member observe and makes notes on questions,
such as what went well in terms of dealing with the
situation positively? What could have been better?
� A volunteer group presents in front of the whole class
which would be followed by discussion.
Situation
You are the monitor of your class. Some of your classmates do
not follow the class rules. You have to talk to them and ask
them to follow the rules.
Activity 3
Using positive words:
Materials required
Pen/pencil, notepad or sheets of paper
Procedure
� Use same groups as above. Look at the below statements
and make them positive by using positive words/thinking,
such as �I can� instead of �I cannot�
(a) I cannot give speech in school assembly.
(b) I made a lot of errors in my computer work.
(c) I did not like the school project.
� Once written in notebook, discuss within your group.
Activity 4
Self-reflection on how you will follow positive attitude practices
Materials required
Pen/pencil
Procedure
� Make a list of things you will do from today to start thinking
positively in your daily life.
Start your day in a positive way
Make time to relax
Imagine the best in any situation
Learn to take criticism in a healthy way
Express gratitude
Unit 2.indd 73 23-08-2018 17:04:09
74 Employability Skills � Class IX
A. Multiple choice questions
Read the questions carefully and circle the letter (a),
(b), (c) or (d) that best answers the question.
1. What is the best way to start our day positively?
(a) Think about all that can go wrong.
(b) Think about the difficult test you will face during
the day.
(c) Think about all your accomplishment so far and
feel good about it.
(d) Think about the traffic on the road and feel stressed.
2. Rahul gets feedback on his project work from his class
teacher. Which of these options demonstrates positive
attitude in this situation?
(a) Rahul ignores the feedback.
(b) Rahul takes the feedback but does not use it.
(c) Rahul tells others that the teacher is wrong.
(d) Rahul learns from the feedback and makes his
project work better.
3. What can you do to get rid of negative thoughts or
feelings?
(a) Meditate to calm down and feel positive.
(b) Ignore them and move on in life.
(c) Act based on the negative thoughts or feelings.
(d) Talk to a friend and share all your negative feelings.�
After completing this session, you will be able to
� define positive attitude.
� list the benefits of having a positive attitude.
� identify ways in which you can develop a positive
attitude.
What have you learnt?
Notes Activity 5
Home activity: Helping others/working for the community
Social work makes you feel good and happy and helps you to
be positive. Think of a situation that you see every day in your
neighbourhood
� Dirty streets or
� A hungry cow or
� A big hole on the road
Go home and do something to help in that situation. Write what
you did in your notebook and submit it to your teacher in the
next period for review.
Check Your Progress
Unit 2.indd 74 23-08-2018 17:04:09
Self-management Skills 75
CARE
� Keep your hair free of
dandruff
� Rub oil/cream to take
care of your skin
� Brush your teeth daily
� Change your toothbrush
as soon as it deshapes
� Cut your nails every week
WASH
� Wash your hands
frequently
� Take bath every day
� Wash your clothes
regularly
� Wash your hair at least
every second day
� Wash your feet often
AVOID
� Blow your nose/cough
into a handkerchief to
avoid spreading germs
� Keep your feet dry and
change your socks every
day
Session 5: Personal Hygiene
It is the habit or practice of keeping ourselves clean.
Cleanliness helps us to maintain our health and
well-being. Being healthy allows you to be regular at
school, college or work.
Personal hygiene is important because, it helps us
� stay healthy.
� create a good image of ourselves.
� avoid feeling ashamed in public due to our bad
breadth, body odour, etc.
Three steps to personal hygiene
Figure 2.20: Examples of Personal Hygiene
Rashmi is a beautician and takes special care
that she does not have a bad breath, because
she works closely with customers.
Prashant is a receptionist at a four-star hotel.
He makes sure his clothes are always clean
with no sweat or food stains.
Unit 2.indd 75 23-08-2018 17:04:10
76 Employability Skills � Class IX
Wet hands with water
Right palm over left dorsum
and vice versa
Rotational rubbing of left
thumb clasped in right palm
and vice versa
Rinse hands thoroughly
with water
Use towel to dry Your hands are
now clean.
Rub inner surface
of palms
Rub inner surface
using the thumb
Palm to palm with fingers
interlaced
Back of fingers to opposing
palms with fingers interlocked
Apply enough soap to cover all
hand surfaces
Rub hands palm
to palm
Essential steps of hand washing
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.
Unit 2.indd 76 23-08-2018 17:04:10
Self-management Skills 77
Initial thinking activity
After watching the initial video �Importance of Personal Hygiene�
in the e-learning lesson, write down your advice to a restaurant
staff on CARE, WASH and AVOID.
Activity 1
Using personal hygiene steps
Materials required
Pen/pencil, notepad or sheets of paper
Procedure
� Form groups of three. Each group prepares a role-play on
any one of the following situations.
� Within each group, two members act out the situation and
the third member observes and makes notes on what went
well, what could have been better and what parts of CARE,
WASH and AVOID were displayed in the role-play.
Situations
(a) One of your classmates often gets left out from
activities and games in school. He/she has body
odour (bad smell) issues, so other classmates avoid
including him/her in classroom activities and
games. You have decided to help by talking to him/
her about personal hygiene and grooming.
(b) You have recently gone through the lesson
on personal hygiene and sanitation and have
understood its importance. You have a neighbour
who often throws garbage in public areas and you
decide to teach him/her about the importance of
health, hygiene and sanitation.
(c) You are the class monitor. One of your classmates is
very sick and sometimes ends up spreading the germs
in the class. You have to talk to your classmate about
his/her personal hygiene and cleanliness practices.
Activity 2
Personal Hygiene Practices
Materials required
Pen/pencil, writing/notepad
Procedure
� Answer the statements with a �Yes� or a �No�. If your
answer is �Yes�, you are already following personal hygiene
standards. If your answer is �No�, then you have to start
following the personal hygiene standard immediately.
� Write your plan to improve for all the �No� answers in the
space provided.
Notes
Unit 2.indd 77 23-08-2018 17:04:10
78 Employability Skills � Class IX
Statements Yes/No My plan for
improvement
I wash my hands with soap every
time I use the toilet.
I do not bite my nails. They are
always clean and clipped.
I cover my mouth every time I cough
or sneeze in public places.
I regularly take bath to avoid body
odour.
I do not have dandruff or dirt in my hair.
I never wear dirty clothes.
My feet are smooth and not dry.
My hair is clean, non-greasy/not oily
and it smells fresh all the time.
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. Do you think people living in hill stations can skip
taking a bath for many days?
(a) No, irrespective of the climate, one should take a
bath regularly.
(b) Yes, not taking bath for many days is acceptable for
people staying in cold climate.
(c) Yes, if they wipe themselves with a wet cloth, then it
is fine.
(d) None of the above
2. Radha wants to grow her hair and she applies a lot
of hair oil. She does not wash her hair for days and
sometimes it smells bad too. What would be your
suggestion to her?
(a) She can leave the oil in her hair, after all it helps
her hair to grow.
(b) She can leave it on at night and wash her hair every
day before leaving home.
(c) She should not apply the oil at all.
(d) She can apply the oil and pour a little water on her
hair before leaving home to reduce the smell.
B. Short answer question
1. List three things you will do for personal grooming in
each of CARE, WASH and AVOID to keep clean.
Notes
Unit 2.indd 78 23-08-2018 17:04:10
Self-management Skills 79
After completing this session, you will be able to
� list the benefits of maintaining personal hygiene.
� list the habits you need to avoid to maintain a good hygiene.
� demonstrate the techniques to wash your hands
effectively.
What have you learnt?
Session 6: Grooming
Grooming and its Importance
Dressing is the action of putting on clothes. Grooming
is the process of making yourself look neat, tidy and
smart. The way you dress, and groom can either send
the message that you are confident, smart and sincere
or possess opposite qualities.
Dressing and grooming are important because they
help us
� look smart
� feel confident about ourselves
� make a good impression of ourselves
Guidelines for dressing and grooming
Examples of good
dressing and grooming
� Clean clothes
� Clean face, short hair
for boys and neatly
tied hair for girls
� Minimum or no
flashy things in your
dress to school
CLOTHES
� Clothes should be
clean, neat, and
ironed
� Shoes should be
clean and polished
� Change socks
everyday and always
wear clean socks
� Keep accessories like
belts, jewellery, etc.,
simple
� In certain jobs
display of bodily
tatoos and piercing
is not accepted
HAIR
� Hair should be
washed regularly to
keep clean
� Simple hair styles
and well combed
hair gives a
smart look
FACE
� Face looks clean if
you shave regularly
� Moustache should
be neatly trimmed
� Teeth should be kept
clean, without any
stains
� Brush the teeth
twice a day to
maintain dental
hygiene
� Avoid eating Paan or
chewing betle.
Unit 2.indd 79 23-08-2018 17:04:11
80 Employability Skills � Class IX
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 �A dressing disaster� in the e-learning
lesson for this topic, write down what went wrong in the video.
Activity 1
Role-play: Using dressing and grooming standards
Materials required
Pen/pencil, notepad or sheets of paper
Procedure
� Form groups of three.
� Each group prepares a role-play on any one of the following
situations. Within each group, two members act out the
situation and the third member observes and makes notes
on what went well, what could be better and the dressing
and grooming displayed in the role-play.
Situations
(a) You have to participate in an interschool debate
competition. Discuss with your friend what all will
you do to create a good first impression.
(b) You have noticed that your classmate does not wear
appropriate clothes to school. You have to educate
him about the dressing and grooming standards.
Activity 2
Self-reflection on dressing and grooming well
Materials required
Pen/pencil, notebook
Procedure
� Answer the statements with a �Yes� or a �No�. If your answer
is �Yes�, you are already following the desired norms of
grooming. If your answer is �No�, then you have to start
working on the various aspects of personal grooming.
Statements Yes/No My plan for
improvement
Wear clothes that fit you
Make sure your clothes are neat and
ironed
Hair is clean and always combed
Notes
Unit 2.indd 80 23-08-2018 17:04:11
Self-management Skills 81
Teeth are always clean and brushed
every day
Wear shoes that are clean and
polished
� Write your plan to improve for the �No� answers in space
After completing this session, you will be able to
� list the benefits of personal grooming.
provided.
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. Dressing and grooming are important because they
help us to look_____________________.
(a) smart
(b) untidy
(c) shabby
(d) All of the above
2. The following image is an example of _________________
shirt.
(a) informal
(b) formal
(c) Both of the above
(d) None of the above
3. The following image is an example of _________________
T-shirt.
(a) informal
(b) formal
(c) Both of the above
(d) None of the above
What have you learnt?
Glossary
Ability: a special skill or talent that a person has
Attitude: a way of thinking or feeling about something
Beautician: a person whose job is to give people beauty treatment
Compassion: feeling the other person�s pain
Notes
Unit 2.indd 81 23-08-2018 17:04:11
82 Employability Skills � Class IX
Compliment: a polite way of saying something good about someone
Express: to show
Goal Setting: a way of finding out what we want to achieve in life
Gratitude: being grateful towards something or someone
Grooming: the things that you do to make your appearance clean
and neat
Guidelines: a general rule, principle or piece of advice
Imagine: forming a picture of or about something in your mind
Impression: an idea, a feeling or an opinion about something or
someone
Presentable: clean, smart and decent enough to be seen in public
Qualities: a distinctive attribute or characteristic possessed by
someone or something
Receptionist: a person who is employed to receive and help the
guests in a hotel
Notes
Unit 2.indd 82 23-08-2018 17:04:11
Introduction
ICT stands for Information and Communication
Technology. It includes a diverse set of technological
tools and resources used to communicate, create,
disseminate, store, and manage information. ICT
includes computers, the Internet, broadcasting
technologies (radio and television) and telephony.
In digital technology, translation of information is
into binary format (zero or one) where each bit is a
representative of two distinct amplitudes, whereas
in analog technology, information is translated into
electric pulses of varying amplitude. UNESCO defines
informatics as the science dealing with the design,
realisation, evaluation, use, and maintenance of
information processing systems, including hardware,
software, organisational and human aspects, and the
industrial, commercial, governmental and political
implications of these.
People use technology every day at home and at
workplace. ICT tools enable anytime, anywhere access
to information and resources. The various ICT tools that
are used include computers we use at work, smartphones
UnitUnit
Information a nd
Commu nication
Technolog y Skills
3
Unit 3.indd 83 23-08-2018 16:20:35
84 Employability Skills � Class IX
through which we talk, Internet for getting
information, communicating with others
through e-mail and social networks,
watching movies and TV shows, etc. For
example, to find a job you may have to
search the Internet for job openings, create
a resume on a computer, use e-mail to
send the resume, send messages through
your phone to communicate appear for
telephonic interview and get your offer
letter through e-mail.
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).
Session 1: Introduction to ICT
Information can be recorded or stored in many ways. It
can be hand-written on paper, typed using a typewriter
or a computer and so on. When information is stored
and recorded on electronic devices, it takes on a �digital�
form. ICT devices are tablet, smartphones and laptops�
as shown in Figure 3.1. As a student you should be
able to identify and understand the functions of
Figure 3.2: ICT Devices
the main components of a typical information and/
or communication system as well as the functions
Figure 3.1: ICT technology
Unit 3.indd 84 23-08-2018 16:20:36
Information and Communication Technology Skills 85
of various computer peripherals. It will help you to
effectively utilise the knowledge and skills of ICT. The
basic ICT skills that you need are
� knowing how to operate computers; and
� knowing how to browse the Internet for collecting,
storing and disseminating information.
ICT at Workplace
ICT has become part of our workplace in all sectors of
economy, right from carrying out money transactions
through the online banking system to development of
textbooks or research papers in educational institutions.
At workplace, we use different computer software
and applications to complete tasks like making
documents, calculations, tables, graphs, etc. We
can also use applications to do every day work, like
buying things, booking train or bus tickets, Internet
banking and making online payments. Modern ICT
employs a variety of media forms, which includes
text, graphics, animation, audio and video, etc. It
also involves creating, curating, managing images
and documents; gathering and processing data and
presenting them; working with audio and video tools
to create media rich communications, etc. Therefore,
employees are expected to possess a sound knowledge
of all these to work independently on various software
and computers.
ICT at Home
These days most of the people uses television for
entertainment and phones for calling up other people.
New devices, such as smartphones with an Internet
connection are now being used to stay connected
with family and friends on a regular basis through
social media networks, such as Facebook, Instagram
and Twitter. We use computers and mobile phones
for talking to each other, sending and receiving
information, watching videos and news, listening to
music and playing games. You can visit the following
sites and know about the ICT activities which are
being carried out in various sectors.
Notes
Unit 3.indd 85 23-08-2018 16:20:36
86 Employability Skills � Class IX
Sector ICT used for Website
Agriculture Various activities related to research,
development and training in agriculture
and allied fields
http://dare.nic.in/ https://bit.
ly/2H3DJfU
Retail Training programmes in the retail sector http://rasci.in/
Beauty and
Wellness
Training programmes in beauty and
wellness sector
http://www.bwssc.in/
Banking
and Finance
Training programmes in banking,
financial services and insurance sector
http://www.bfsissc.com/
Apparel Training programmes in Apparel sector http://sscamh.com/indexHome.php
Logistics Training programmes in Logistics sector http://lsc-india.com/
Health Care Training programmes in Health Care
sector
http://www.healthcare-ssc.in
The above-mentioned sites are suggestive. You may
visit various other sites related to the sectors for
more information about the activities being organised
in the sector and understand the benefits of ICT
in searching, collecting and using information for
different purposes.
These activities will be run under guidance and with feedback
from vocational teacher.
Activity 1
Past, present and future use of ICT
Materials required
Diagrams or models of the basic computer components, actual
samples or illustrations of peripheral devices, chart sheets
sketch pens and pencils
Procedure
� Form groups of five students each
� Each group will divide the chart paper into three columns.
� Each group will choose one topic related to the past present
and future use of ICT
Activity 2
Application of ICT
Materials required
Poster and newspapers cutting, pens, etc.
Unit 3.indd 86 23-08-2018 16:20:36
Information and Communication Technology Skills 87
Procedure
� Form groups of three students
� Discuss the role and importance of ICT in personal life and
in workplace.
� List at least five points in each area.
� Prepare a poster depicting five ways each in which ICT is
modifying:
(a) personal life
(b) workplace
� Make a mention of an activity using ICT (e.g., train
reservations), the technology (e.g., online ticket booking
through railway website), how ICT has affected the activity
(e.g., getting train tickets sitting at home) and how the
activity was conducted before the technology (e.g., queuing
at railway stations)
� You can use newspaper cuttings, or other material that
you can get from outside.
Check Your Progress
A. State whether the following statements are True or False
1. The full form of ICT is Information Commuting
Technology.
2. Live sports and news can only be shown using ICT.
B. Short answer questions
1. Give any two uses of ICT at home.
2. What are the emerging skills in ICT?
3. What are the key skills one should possess to use ICT?
What have you learnt?
After completing this session, you will be able to
� identify the importance of information and
communication technology.
� list the various tools that are being used for ICT.
� demonstrate the knowledge of application of ICT in our
daily life
Session 2: ICT Tools: Smartphones and
Tablets � I
Smartphones and tablets are becoming more and more
important as most people carry them around and
Notes
Unit 3.indd 87 23-08-2018 16:20:36
88 Employability Skills � Class IX
use them in daily activities like sending e-mails and
messages, sharing pictures, etc. Without these, most
people cannot work with others. The spreading of an
idea, or of news occurring somewhere in the world is
now possible through social sites on the internet. As
long as one person is able to connect to the internet and
express their view about a situation or simply about
an idea, then the information that individual will want
to share, will get out into the world. Smartphones are
now being used to stay connected with social media and
exchange information.
Smartphones
Mobile phones are ICT tools for talking to people but
smartphones are more advanced. With a simple mobile
phone you can only make phone calls and receive calls.
With a smartphone (Figure 3.3), you can make calls
and do things that you normally do using a computer,
such as browsing the web, sending e-mails, making
video calls, playing games, listening to music, watching
movies and much more.
Smartphones are also called mobile phones as you
can use them anywhere � at home, in office or on the
road (Figure 3.4). They do not need a telephone line.
They use wireless (mobile) networks to make calls and to
connect to the Internet. Some of the popular operating
systems for smartphones are Android OS, Apple iOS
and Windows Mobile.
Tablets
For some activities, such as reading a book for a
longtime, the screen of a mobile may be too small. For
such activities, we can use a tablet (Figure 3.4).
A tablet is a mini computer with input, output
and processing functions that are all combined
into one �touchscreen�, where you can do various
tasks just by touching its screen. It is bigger
than a smartphone and you can perform all the
functions that one can perform on a computer or
Figure 3.4: A tablet a smartphone.
Figure 3.3: A smartphone
Unit 3.indd 88 23-08-2018 16:20:37
Information and Communication Technology Skills 89
TV and Radio
TV and radio are being used as an ICT tool since a long
time. Radio is used to broadcast audio while TV is used
to broadcast audio-visual information to many people.
Radio and TV are used for both entertainment and to
learn new things. You can hear news, songs, stories,
speeches, cricket commentary, etc., on radio, while TV
is used for watching movies, news, weather forecast,
songs, cartoons and educational lectures.
Applications or apps
How does a smartphone perform so many functions? It
does so with the help of software applications (Apps). On
the screen of a Smartphone or Tablet, you see a lot of
small pictures (or �icons�). If you touch these, they start
programs or functions required for watching movies,
playing games, using camera, etc.
Apps are software programs (a set of instructions, or
a set of modules or procedures, that allow for a certain
type of computer operation) that perform different
functions. Some of the apps are already present on the
phone or tablet. These are called �default� apps. Besides,
there are hundreds of other apps that can be purchased
and downloaded or downloaded free of cost from online
stores. There are several online stores, including Google
Play Store for Android and Apple App Store for Apple
(Figure 3.5).
Commonly found applications
Some of the default apps installed on all smartphones/
mobiles are given in Table 3.1.
Figure 3.5: App. Stores
Table 3.1: Some of the default Apps installed on smartphones and
simple mobile phones
Phone: This app is used to
make calls. It also stores the
names and phone numbers of
people you know.
Camera: Connects to the camera
in the phone and takes photos and
videos.
Calendar: Shows a calendar
and you can also enter
appointments, reminders, etc.
Mail: An e-mail app to send and
receive e-mails using your E-mail
account in Gmail, Yahoo, Outlook,
etc.
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Photos: This helps you store
all your photos and video and
arrange them into albums.
Clock: This shows the time and
also sets alarm, timers, etc.
Maps: This app helps you find
directions to where you want
to go. It uses GPS (Global
Positioning System)
Messages: This is for sending and
receiving SMS messages.
Web Browser: This allows you
to open a browser to search
and visit different websites.
Music: This allows you to play and
listen to songs and music.
Google Play store: This is the
Google store from where you
can get apps like Facebook,
WhatsApp, etc. Some apps
are free while some are paid
ones.
Apple Store: As Android
smartphones have a Google
Playstore, similarly, Apple devices
have an Apple store where you can
download and use various apps.
Table 3.2: Smartphone vs. Tablet
Smartphone Tablet
Main usage As a phone but with some additional
features, such as camera. The
majority of smartphones run on
Apple iOS or Google Android but
others use Windows Phone or
BlackBerry OS.
As a wireless portable personal
computer with a touchscreen
interface which makes it more
useful than the notebook computer.
Some tablets use Android OS, others
useApple iOS or Windows OS.
Screen size Screen size is smaller Has a bigger screen
Photos and
videos
Watching a movie or making changes
to a picture is difficult
Watching videos and making
changes to a photo is better and
easier due to bigger screen size
Battery life You need to charge phones more often Usually have a longer battery
life
Storage Comes with different storage
capacities, but phones with high
storage are costly
Usually have higher storage
capacity, i.e., they can store more
pics, videos and Apps
Difference between a smartphone and a tablet are
given in Table 3.2.
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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.
Activity
Getting started with mobile devices
Materials required
Pen/pencil, notebook, smartphone, tablet
Procedure
� Form groups depending on the number of smartphones and
Tablet available. For example, if you have 2 smartphones
and 3 tablet, form 5 groups.
� The group studies the basic features of smartphone or
a tablet. Note down the names of the Apps or icons you
see in the smartphone/tablet. Compare the differences
between tablet and smartphones.
Check Your Progress
A. Short answer questions
1. Identify the following symbols and write the name in
the blank space.
2.
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
Write any two differences between a smartphone and a
tablet.
Notes
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92 Employability Skills � Class IX
What have you learnt?
After completing this session, you will be able to
� demonstrate the knowledge of the uses of ICT tools,
such as smartphones and tablet.
� differentiate between smartphones and tablets.
Session 3: ICT Tools: Smartphones and
Tablets � II
To operate your smartphone, you need to know about
basic controls and functions and their uses.
Mobile Device Layout
Some of the basic controls you see on mobile device are
as follows: (Figure 3.6):
Figure 3.6: Basic Controls of
a Mobile
� Power button: This is used to start and
shut down a mobile device.
� Screen: A screen on which we perform
functions by touching with our fingers.
� Back button: You use the Back Button
to go back to the previous screen in an
application.
� Microphone: This is present at the bottom
of the mobile and we speak into the
microphone when we talk to someone.
� Menu button: This is used to show the
options available in a particular app. This
may not be present in all mobile devices.
� Home button: This brings you back to the
Home Screen from wherever you are in your
mobile, whether you are on another page or
using an App.
� Earpiece: This helps you to listen to voice calls.
� Volume button: This helps you to increase or
reduce the sound of your mobile.
Basic features of a mobile device
Some of the basic features present in all mobile devices
are as given in Table 3.3.
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Figure 3.7: Home Screen of a Mobile
Table 3.3: Basic Features of a Mobile Device
Bluetooth: This is a short-range wireless technology which helps you connect
with other devices that are within 30 feet of where you are. Once connected, you
can send messages and songs.
Chargeable Battery: This is a portable power pack which can be recharged. It
allows you to use the device anywhere.
Wi-Fi: This is a wireless network technology that helps you connect to the local
area network. This is used to connect to the Internet and work with e-mails,
social media and anything to do which requires internet.
Touch Screen: The output display of a mobile device is a touch screen. This
helps you to run apps and type anything into the mobile by simply touching
different areas of the screen with your finger.
Camera: Smartphones and Tablet have a front and back camera to capture
pictures and videos.
Clock: Every mobile device has a clock which can be set according to the time
in your country.
Cellular network connectivity: This provides the network through which you
can make calls.
Global Positioning System: It is a navigation (direction finding) system that
helps you to navigate, find direction and maps to specific locations.
Home screen of a mobile device
The home screen is the first (start) screen of a mobile
device (Figure 3.7). There are three main parts of the
home screen.
Basic gestures used
Gestures are used to interact
with the touchscreen of your
mobile device. For example,
instead of clicking a mouse to
open an App, you tap on the
touchscreen. Some of these
gestures� as shown in Figure 3.8
are as follows:
� Tap: Touch the screen
with your finger, once, to
click.
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� Tap and hold: This is similar to right-clicking
your mouse.
� Drag: To tap, hold and move your finger across
the screen.
� Swipe: To slide finger to the right, left, up or down
of the screen like turning a page.
� Double tap: To tap twice quickly-this is to
zoom out (increase the size of) of something. For
example, to make a word appear bigger.
� Pinch: To bring thumb and finger together on the
screen-to zoom in (reduce the size). For example,
to make a picture appear smaller.
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.
Activity
Getting familiar with a mobile device
Materials required
Pen, notebook, smartphone, tablet
Procedure
� Form groups� depending on the number of mobile devices
available. For example, if you have 3 smartphones and
2 Tablet, form 5 groups.
� Each member starts the device and notes down the names
of icons in the status bar and the dock. One group of
volunteers shall come in front of the class and read aloud
what they have noted.
� The class then discusses the various features of the icons.
Check Your Progress
A. Multiple choice questions
1. What is a short-range wireless communication
technology called?
(a) Wi-Fi
(b) Internet
(c) Bluetooth
(d) PS
Figure 3.8: Basic gestures
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Information and Communication Technology Skills 95
2. Which part of the home screen is visible on all pages?
(a) Status bar
(b) Main icon area
(c) Dock
(d) Clock
3. What does GPS stand for?
(a) Global Positioning System
(b) Global Payment System
(c) Global Program System
(d) Global Pointing System
What have you learnt?
After completing this session, you will be able to
� identify various parts of a mobile device and list their
functions.
� list the important features of a mobile device.
Session 4: Parts of a Computer and
Peripherals
Parts of a computer
A computer system is a programmable machine
designed to store and retrieve information and perform
arithmetic and logical operations to produce meaningful
results in desired format. It consists of three main
units: Input Unit, Central Processing
Unit (CPU) and Output Unit. Different
computers have different ways in which
the input, processing and output units
are connected. In desktop computers,
as shown in Figure 3.9, all three
units are separate devices. It has: (i)
a keyboard, which is the input unit,
(ii) a box with the Central Processing
Unit, which is the processing unit and
(iii) a monitor, which is the output
unit. Input unit helps the user to enter
raw data and instructions into the
computer system, central processing
unit performs the required operations Figure 3.9: Desktop Computer
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96 Employability Skills � Class IX
as per given instructions and the output unit produces
meaningful results in the desired format for the
user. The CPU is further divided into three parts:
(i) control unit (CU), (ii) arithmetic and logic unit (ALU),
and (iii) memory unit (MU). Control unit acts as a
receptionist and a manager of a company. It receives
each and every instruction from user and coordinates
between different parts to perform various operations.
Arithmetic and logic unit acts as an accountant of a
company, which performs all the mathematical and
logical calculations and the memory unit acts as a
temporary store of a company, where small amount
of data is stored while other operations are being
performed.
In a laptop, all three units, input, processing and
output are combined into one device. Input and output
devices are also called �peripherals�. These are plugged
into the computer using connection ports.
Input devices
An input device is used to enter information into the
computer. A keyboard, as shown in Figure 3.10, is
an input device used to enter letters, numbers and
control functions. Microphone is an input device that is
connected to the computer to record sound. A web camera
is a device used to record videos. Many computers come
with built-in microphones and webcams. Another input
device is a scanner that copies physical documents and
stores them in a computer in digital (computer-readable)
format. For example, if you fill an admission form for a
college, you can scan it and then e-mail it to the college
instead of sending the actual form by post.
Output devices
Output devices bring information from the computer
to the user. If you want to calculate the percentage
marks, you input all your marks using a keyboard, the
computer calculates using the formula and you see the
results on a monitor screen. This monitor, as shown in
Figure 3.11, is the output device on which the computer
displays the output information. In the same way, a
Figure 3.10: Keyboard
Figure 3.11: Monitor
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Information and Communication Technology Skills 97
printer is an output device which gives us the hard copy
of the information processed by the computer. If you
want to hear the song you have recorded, you can use
speakers to play them. Just like input devices, output
devices can also be either separate or built-into the
computer.
The commonly used peripheral devices are given in
Table 3.4.
Other peripheral devices and their functions
In large retail stores, a peripheral device commonly
found is the barcode reader or barcode scanner. It is
used for recording the items purchased in order to
create the receipt/bill. In offices and homes, we use a
peripheral device known as scanner, and it is used to
convert the information on a paper document into a
digital information document.
Table 3.4: Common Peripheral Devices
Keyboard: It is used
to provide input to the
computer on what to do,
which could be in the
form of typed letters,
numbers, and symbols.
Mouse: We use it to
go to different parts
of the screen on the
monitor.
Microphone: It
is used to record
voice on the
computer, and
communicate.
Projector: It is used
to project images or
video from computer
on a screen.
Monitor: It displays all
the visual output that
CPU produces after
processing the input.
Speakers: It plays
back all the soundbased
output.
Scanner: It is a
device that scans/
captures a paper
image, document
and converts it
to digital file on
computer.
Printer: It helps to
print out the visual
output on the paper,
as displayed on the
monitor.
Figure 3.12: Barcode scanning
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Central Processing Unit
The Central Processing Unit (CPU) of the computer
as shown in Figure 3.13, is like our brain. How does
our brain work? Our eyes see (input) a mathematical
problem and sends the details to the brain. The brain
thinks (processes) and gets the result while the hand
writes it on paper (output). In a similar way, the CPU
also processes information received from the keyboard
and gives the output to the monitor or the printer. Just
as our brain can understand arithmetic and logical
information, the CPU can also solve mathematical and
logical problems.
There are 3 main parts of the CPU.
� Control unit: It acts like a receiver and a manager
of a company. It receives inputs from user and
controls different parts to do the operations
required.
� Processing unit: It acts as an accountant of a
company and performs all the mathematical and
logical calculations.
� Memory unit: It acts as the storage room of a
company, where data is stored temporarily (RAM)
as well as for a long time (ROM).
Understanding RAM and ROM
Let us take the example of a kitchen to understand
the meaning of RAM and ROM. If you are a cook, what
would you keep on the kitchen counter? And what
would you store away in the kitchen shelves? Well,
all the things you need immediately and regularly will
be on the counter. And things that you do not access
often will be in the shelves. Random Access Memory
(RAM) is like the kitchen counter to a computer that
is switched on, and Read Only Memory (ROM) is like
the storage shelf. Flash memory is usually an external
device which is a mix of both RAM and ROM. Some
key differences between various storage devices are
given in Table 3.5.
Figure 3.13: Central
Processing Unit
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Figure 3.14: Storage Devices
Compact Disc USB Flash Drive DVD External Hard Disk
Table 3.5: Types of Memory Storage Devices
RAM ROM Flash Memory
� When you are
doing tasks on your
computer, you use
RAM
� Permanently stores
information
� Can permanently store
information
� Temporarily stores
information
� Information is lost
when computer is
switched off
� Information can be
changed easily.
� Information is stored
when computer is off
� Information cannot be
changed easily
� It is mainly used when
starting the computer.
� Information is not lost when
computer is switched off
� Information can be changed
on easily. It is mainly used
in removable storage devices
(like USB), and its usage is
based on user�s needs.
Motherboard
Motherboard, also referred to as a system board, is the
main circuit board inside a computer. It connects input,
processing and output devices.
Some other important parts of a computer system
are storage devices, ports and connections.
Storage devices
In order to transfer files from one computer to another
one, you need smaller storage devices which you can
carry easily from one place to another. These storage
devices are used to store digital information. The
commonly used storage devices are USB flash drive,
hard disk, CD, DVD, etc., as shown in Figure 3.14. They
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100 Employability Skills � Class IX
mainly differ in their storage capacity (how much data
they can store).
You may have heard of a computer with data storage
capacity of 500 MB or 2GB. What does that mean?
Data is stored in the form of bits and bytes. Bit (Binary
Digit, represented by 0 or 1) is the smallest storage unit.
Eight bits combined together form a byte, which in turn
represents a character (numerals/letters/symbols).
� 8 bits make a byte and 1024 bytes make a kilobyte
(KB).
� 1024 KB make 1 megabyte (MB)
� 1024 megabyte make 1 gigabyte (GB)
� 1024 gigabyte make 1 terabyte (TB)
Very simply, more the number of bytes, larger and more
number of files can be stored.
Ports and connections
How do you think we connect our keyboard or mouse to
the CPU? We do it with the help of wires. Where do you
think the wires go in the CPU? The slots or channels
into which we connect the mouse/keyboard/external
hard disk wires are called ports. Thus, ports help us
connect input, output and storage devices in a computer
system.
There are several types of ports that you can use to
connect a computer to an external devices and networks.
These are:
� Universal serial bus or the USB port (as shown in
Figure 3.15) which connects peripheral devices,
such as a mouse or a keyboard or a printer to a
computer using the cable.
� Display port (as shown in Figure 3.16) which
connects the monitor, or any display unit, to
the computer using the cable. These can be of
different types, like Video Graphics Array (VGA)
and High Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI),
depending on the requirement.
� Audio ports (as shown in Figure 3.17) help to
connect microphone, speakers, and headphones
to a computer system. Often, the speaker and
Figure 3.15: USB Port
Figure 3.16: RGB Display port
(Left) and HDMI port (Right)
Figure 3.17: Audio Ports
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Information and Communication Technology Skills 101
headphone port is called the line out port, i.e., it
is meant for sound output.
� Ethernet port (as shown in Figure 3.18) is used for
connecting the system to high speed Internet cable.
� Power port (as shown in Figure 3.19) is used for
connecting the computer system to the power
supply.
Figure 3.18: Ethernet Port
Figure 3.19: Power Port
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 write why do you think it is
important to know the different parts of a computer?
Activity 1
Knowing your computer
Materials required
Pen/pencil, notebook
Procedure
� Form groups of 5 students each group.
� List the basic input output devices you need in a computer.
� Draw a diagram of a computer system showing all the
devices connected to it. Label the diagram and mention
the uses of the various devices.
� One volunteer from the group presents the illustration to
the class and explains it to the students.
Activity 2
Connecting devices to a computer
Materials required
Pen/pencil, notebook, computer
Procedure
� Form groups of 5 students in each group.
� Each member of the group connects one of the parts of the
computer, such as printer, monitor, keyboard, mouse and
the speakers to the central processing unit.
� Fit the cables into the correct ports as explained and check
if each device is working properly.
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102 Employability Skills � Class IX
A. Multiple choice questions
1. Which of the following units make up the CPU? Choose
and tick all the correct options.
(a) Processing Unit
(b) Input Unit
(c) Memory Unit
(d) Control Unit
(e) Output Unit
2. Which of the following are names of ports in a computer?
Choose and tick all the correct options.
(a) HDMI
(b) Input
(c) VGA
(d) USB
(e) Ethernet
3. There is a talent contest in your town. For participating
in the audition, you have to send a recording of a song.
What would you connect to your computer to record
your song?
(a) Keyboard
(b) Microphone
(c) Scanner
(d) Mouse
B. Short answer questions
Write the purpose of the I/O devices
Input/Output device Purpose
Mic/microphone
Scanner
Camera
Barcode Reader
Printer
Speaker
What have you learnt?
After completing this session, you will be able to
� identify the basic parts of a computer.
� list the use of input and output devices.
� list the functions of the CPU.
� differentiate between RAM and ROM.
� identify the different ports and connections on a
computer.
Notes Check Your Progress
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Session 5: Basic Computer
Operations
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 the
hardware. It is the machinery of a
computer. These are the keyboard,
monitor, CPU, etc. The software that we cannot see
makes the hardware work the way we want. For example,
as shown in Figure 3.20, the monitor is a physical
device or the hardware. When we start a program, it is
displayed on the monitor. This is done by the software
which displays things on monitor. Hardware would not
be of any use without the software.
The most important software in any computer is the
Operating System (OS). This is the software that starts
Figure 3.21: Ubuntu Desktop
Figure 3.20: Hardware and Software
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 (as shown in Figure 3.21), Microsoft Windows
and Mac OS.
Mobile devices also have operating system that
helps them perform their functions. Some of the mobile
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104 Employability Skills � Class IX
operating systems are Apple iOS and Google Android
(as shown in Figure 3.22).
All the computer applications, such as browsers,
games, Office tools, etc., are also software programs
that perform a particular function.
Starting a computer
What is the first thing you do after you wake up in
the morning? What if your father tells you to do your
homework immediately? Can you do it? Maybe, but
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 Windows operating system
and display the Windows desktop on the monitor.
Basic functions performed when a computer
starts
Just as we go about with 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.
The BIOS first does a self-test. If the self-test
shows that the system is fine, the BIOS will load the
Operating System. This means that
the computer�s operating system, for
example Ubuntu, is now ready to take
inputs from the user.
Login and logout
When multiple people use the same
computer, each person has his/her
own files and applications. To make
sure nobody else sees your work, you
have login-IDs and passwords. A login
and password is like a key to the lock
which allows you to use the computer.
Figure 3.22: Mobile Android OS
Figure 3.23: Starting a Computer
Figure 3.24: Sign-in in Windows
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Information and Communication Technology Skills 105
When you login to the computer with your login-ID
and password (as shown in Figures 3.24 and 3.25), the
computer knows that you are an authorised person and
allows you to work on the applications in the computer.
Once you finish working, you must log out or sign out
so that no one else can see your work.
Shutting down a computer
You can shut down the computer in Ubuntu by clicking
�Systems� at the top right and then click on Shut Down
as shown in Figure 3.25. When you click Shut down,
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, as
shown in Figure 3.26.
Function keys
Keys labelled from F1 to
F12 are function keys.
You use them to perform
specific functions. Their
functions 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.
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.
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
Figure 3.25: Sign-in in
Ubuntu
Figure 3.26: Parts of a Keyboard
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106 Employability Skills � Class IX
cursor to the beginning of a new line. In some programs,
it is used to send commands and to confirm a task on
a computer.
Punctuation keys
It includes keys for punctuation marks, such as colon
(:), semicolon (;), question mark (?), single quotation
marks (� �), and double quotation marks (� �).
Navigation keys
Keys, such as the arrow keys, HOME, END, PAGE UP,
and PAGE DOWN are navigation keys. These are used
to move up and down, right and left in a document. The
HOME and END keys move the cursor to the left/right
end of a line of text, respectively. The PAGE UP and
PAGE DOWN keys are used to move one page up and
one page down, respectively.
Command keys
Keys, such as INSERT (INS), DELETE (DEL), and
BACKSPACE are command keys. When the INSERT key
is turned ON, it helps you overwrite characters to the
right of the cursor. The DELETE key and the BACKSPACE
key are used to remove typed text, characters, and
other objects on the right and left side of the cursor,
respectively.
Windows key
Pressing this key opens the Start menu.
Using a mouse
A mouse, as shown in Figure 3.27 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
can be performed using a mouse. Different application
will behave differently to the mouse actions. Here we use
the File Explorer to see the effect of the mouse action.
Roll over/hover
Some actions can be done by simply rolling over or
hovering over an item. When you bring the mouse
Figure 3.27: Mouse
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Information and Communication Technology Skills 107
over a file in File Explorer, it will show
the details of that file as shown in
Figure 3.28.
Point and click
As you move the mouse on your desk, a
pointer moves correspondingly on your
screen. The mouse allows you to select
an item on the screen. When you click a
particular file, it gets selected as shown
in Figure 3.29.
Drag and drop
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 the item to the new
location, you release the mouse button.
This is called drag and drop. When you
drag a file in File Explorer, you can pick
it up from the present location and drop
it in a new location where you release
the mouse as shown in Figure 3.30.
Double-click
It means to quickly click the left mouse
button twice. When we double-click the
file icon, it will open the file.
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 write what do you think happens
when you start a computer and how do you enter data using a
keyboard and mouse?
Figure 3.29: Point and Click
Figure 3.30: Drag and Drop
Figure 3.28: Roll Over
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108 Employability Skills � Class IX
Activity 1
Use of computer
Materials required
Pen/pencil, notebook, computer
Procedure
1. Form groups depending on the number of computers
available.
2. One student starts the computer and logs in. Another
student identifies the keys on the keyboard. Another
student then performs all the functions of the mouse,
such as hover, click, double-click, etc.
3. After the students have performed all the activities, they
will shut down the computer. Other students watch and
give feedback on what was done right and which tasks
can be improved.
Activity 2
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� 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.
� Each student types the following letters on the text editor.
Position your hands on the keyboard, as given in the
Figure 3.31 and type the given letters and words. After one
student is done, the next student practices the same until.
All student should get a chance.
Letters in the home: rowasdf; lkjhj; asdfgf; lkjhj;
Letters in the top row: qwerty poiuy trewq yuiop
Letters in the bottom: rowzxcvb nm,./bvcxz.,mn
� Now, each student types five words using the keyboard.
For example, add, all, ask, sad, gas, dad, lad, had, hall,
fall, row, tow, top, out, pot, rot, wire, tire, type, write, cab,
nab, man, can, van, ban. All students in the group should
get a chance to practice.
Figure 3.31: Typing
Notes
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Information and Communication Technology Skills 109
After completing this session, you will be able to
� start and shut down a computer.
� identify the various keys on a keyboard and their
associated functions.
� use a mouse.
� type simple words.
Session 6: Performing Basic File Operations
Need to perform basic file operations
In any school (or office), each teacher has a separate
cabinet, as shown in Figure 3.32 where they keep the
files of different students/classes on separate shelves.
Similarly, information on a computer is stored in Figure 3.32: File Cabinet
A. Multiple choice questions
1. Which of the following functions are performed using a
mouse. Choose and tick all the correct options.
(a) Turn on computer
(b) Typing
(c) Right click
(d) Drag and Drop an Icon
2. What is the term used when you press and hold the left
mouse key and move the mouse around?
(a) Highlighting
(b) Dragging
(c) Selecting
(d) Moving
3. Rearrange the steps for starting a computer in the
correct sequence.
(a) Desktop appears after login ( )
(b) Login screen appears ( )
(c) Power on Self-Test (POST) starts ( )
(d) Operating system starts ( )
(e) Welcome screen appears ( )
B. Short answer questions
1. Describe the functions of at least 5 types of keys.
2. Describe the functions of a mouse.
Check Your Progress
What Have You Learnt?
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110 Employability Skills � Class IX
Figure 3.33: Opening Text Editor Figure 3.34: Text Editor
electronic files, which can be put into separate folders.
It is easier to manage the electronic files as they can be
simply copied, moved, renamed or even deleted.
Files and folders
All information stored in a computer is kept in files.
Different types of files store different types of information.
Each file is given a file name and has a file name
extension that identifies the file type. (The file name and
file name extension are separated by a period or a �dot�.)
For example, a document (e.g., with the name Neha)
created using Notepad (a type of computer application
to create simple text files) will have the extension .txt.
There are other types like .doc, .xls, etc. An image file
usually has an extension .jpg, while a sound file usually
has .mp3. A folder is a location where a group of files
can be stored.
Creating a file (using a text editor in Ubuntu)
When a student, Neha, joins a class, the teacher creates
a file on the computer to store Neha�s information, such
as name, address, phone number, etc. Let us create a
new file using a text editor in Ubuntu.
� To open a text editor, type �editor� in the search
dialog box. Then double-click the text editor
option as shown in Figure 3.33 and 3.34. This
will open a blank document. In Windows, you can
open Notepad and type in the text.
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Information and Communication Technology Skills 111
The teacher will facilitate these activities by showing you the
e-learning module for this lesson viahttp://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 it�s important to know how files are
stored in a computer?
Activity 1
Create a file
Materials required
Pen/pencil, notebook, computer
Procedure
� Form groups, depending on the number of computers
available. Each member of the group creates a file. 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.
� Type details, such as name, class, address, parent�s name,
etc., for a student
� Save the file on the desktop.
Each student studies the shortcut given below:
CTRL+z undo
CTRL+y redo
CTRL+a select all
CTRL+x cut
CTRL+c copy
CTRL+v paste
CTRL+p print
CTRL+s save
The first group asks the other groups a questions (e.g., what
does CRTL+Z do? or what is the shortcut for Copy).
Figure 3.35: Saving a File
� Here you can add text, such
as �Neha Tiwari, Shakti Nagar,
New Delhi. M: 7856453451�
� To save the file click Save.
In the Save As dialog box,
browse to the Desktop folder,
type the name as �Neha�
and click Save as shown in
Figure 3.35.
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112 Employability Skills � Class IX
A. Multiple choice questions
1. Which one of the following shortcut key is used to paste
a file? Tick mark the correct answer.
(a) Ctrl + C
(b) Ctrl + P
(c) Ctrl + V
(d) Ctrl + X
2. Which of the following is a valid file extension for
Notepad file? Tick mark the correct answer.
(a) .jpg
(b) .doc
(c) .text
(d) .txt
3. Which key do you use to copy something? Tick mark
the correct answer.
(a) Ctrl+X
(b) Ctrl+C
(c) Ctrl+Z
(d) Ctrl+T
What Have You Learnt?
After completing this session, you will be able to
� demonstrate the knowledge of the computer files and
folders.
� open a new file in a text editor, type in the details and
save the file.
Session 7: Communication and Networking
� Basics of Internet
The Internet is a huge network of computers around the
world. Using the Internet you can get any information
that is stored in a web page on the World Wide Web.
You can do all this by connecting your computer to the
Internet.
If your computer is connected to the Internet, you
say that your computer is online. With the help of the
Internet, you can gather a lot of knowledge which is
available on it. The knowledge is stored in a big library/
storehouse, called the World Wide Web (WWW) or the
Web. It is a collection of different websites that you can
view if you are connected to the Internet. You can also
Check Your Progress
Figure 3.36: the Internet
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Information and Communication Technology Skills 113
use these websites to buy something, watch movies,
read books, learn new skills, educate yourself, find the
best colleges to study further, etc.
Uses of the Internet
There is no limit to what you can do online, but some of
the most common uses are given in Table 3.6.
Table 3.6: Common uses of Internet
Search information: You can
get the latest information about
anything that is uploaded on
the web, whether it is result,
news about an earthquake, a
cricket match or the election
details.
Shopping: You can buy and sell
products, such as books and
electronic goods over the Internet.
You can also pay for these products
via digital modes of payments,
such as wallets, plastic cardsor
through e-banking.
Entertainment: You can listen
to music, play games, watch
movies or share pictures.
Online booking: You can book
movie tickets, hotels, bus/train/
plane tickets, etc., online.
E-mail and chatting: You can
talk or send messages to people
all around the world quickly
and easily. The messages you
send over the Internet can
reach any part of world in just
a few seconds. For example,
Gmail and Outlook.
Online learning: There are a
number of courses available
online-some are free while others
are not. You can do a course on
a topic you like or want to know
more about.
Social networking: You can
share your interests, knowledge
and stories with your family
and friends around the world.
For example, Facebook and
Twitter.
Online banking: You can do
banking operations, like checking
details of your bank account
or transferring money from one
account to another through mobile
banking/NEFT/RTGS.
Connecting to the Internet
As shown in Figure 3.37, to connect to the Internet, you
need:
(a) A device, such as a computer, laptop or mobile.
(b) A connection device, i.e., a modem.
An Internet Service Provider (ISP)-i.e., the telephone
company which provides the Internet connectivity using
the phone lines or a wireless network.
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114 Employability Skills � Class IX
Types of connections
(a) Wired connections: When our
computer is connected to the
Internet using a wire, it is called
a wired connection (as shown in
Figure 3.38). We use Ethernet
cables (cables used for connecting
to the Internet) to connect to the
modem which connects to the ISP
using a phone line.
(b) Wireless connection: You can
also connect your computer to the
Internet using wireless technology
as shown in Figure 3.38A. Laptops
need a wireless Internet card to
connect to a modem with using any
cables.
Bandwidth
Bandwidth is the amount of data that
can be transmitted over a network in a
certain amount of time. To understand
Figure 3.37: Connecting to the Internet
Figure 3.38: Wired connection
bandwidth, Let us take the example of a pipe, the amount
of water flowing through a pipe depends on its thickness.
Similarly, the amount of data that your network can
receive or send depends on its bandwidth. In case of
digital devices, the bandwidth is usually expressed in
bits per second (bps) or bytes per second and in case
Figure 3.38A: Wireless connection
Unit 3.indd 114 23-08-2018 16:20:41
Information and Communication Technology Skills 115
of analog devices, the bandwidth is expressed in cycles
per second, or Hertz (Hz).
Data transfer speed over the networks (including the
internet) is calculated in terms of bits per second.
1 Kbps (kilo bits per second) = 1000 bits per second
1 Mbps (mega bits per second) = 1000 kilo bits per second
1 Gbps (giga bits per second) = 1,000 mega bits per
second
Internet browser
To see the information on the various websites, you
need an Internet Browser. An Internet Browser is an
application or a software program on your computer
or laptop which helps you visit the various websites.
Some examples of browsers are Google Chrome, Mozilla
Firefox and Internet Explorer.
(a) Searching for information: Do the steps below to
search for information on the Internet.
Open an Internet browser, as shown in Figure 3.40.
� Type the topic, on which you want information, in
the search box and hit the Enter key.
Figure 3.39: Some Internet
Browsers
� The search results having the required
information will be displayed.
� In Ubuntu, click Firefox icon as shown in Figure
3.41 to open Firefox Mozilla browser and search
for information.
Figure 3.40: Internet Explorer Figure 3.41: Firefox in Ubuntu
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116 Employability Skills � Class IX
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, write down why do you think the first person did not have
enough information about available jobs.
Activity 1
Uses of the Internet
Materials required
Pen/pencil, notebook
Procedure
� Form groups depending on the number of computers
available.
� Discuss the various uses of the Internet. Every member
gives one use and what he/she would do using an Internet
connection. Rest of the group should give feedback on
whether it is correct and not. One group volunteers and
presents to class. Students give feedback.
Check Your Progress
A. Multiple choice questions
1. To connect to the Internet, the computer has to be
connected to the ____________________________.
(a) Internet Society
(b) Internet Architecture
(c) Internet Service Provider
(d) Large Area Network
2. What is the Internet?
(a) Phone connections
(b) Collection of computer networks
(c) Network of computers in an office
(d) None of the above
B. Short answer question
1. Write a short note on the uses of internet.
Notes
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Information and Communication Technology Skills 117
What have you learnt?
After completing this session, you will be able to
� search information on the Internet.
� identify the various uses of Internet.
Session 8: Communication and Networking �
Internet Browsing
World Wide Web
The World Wide Web (WWW) or simply the Web is a
huge collection of information as shown symbolically
in Figure 3.42. It is a vast network of linked hypertext
files, stored on computers throughout the world, that
can provide a computer user with information on a
huge variety of subjects. Thus, it serves as a platform
through which users can use or share information.
It is made up of
� A web page
� A web browser
� A system to transfer information between the web
browser and the web pages
Web page
A web page is a document present on a computer that
is connected to the Internet. There are hundreds of web
pages. Each web page has a unique address/location
like the address of a house. We can use the address to
see a particular web page. For example, the address of
NCERT is http://ncert.nic.in as shown in Figure 3.43.
To view a web page you need a web browser on your
computer.
Web browser
A web browser (commonly referred to as a browser) is a
software application for using and sharing information
on the World Wide Web.
Figure 3.42: Symbolic
Representation of World Wide
Web (WWW)
Figure 3.43: Web
Address
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118 Employability Skills � Class IX
The most popular web browsers
that are used today are shown in
Figure 3.44.
If you want to see a web page that
gives information on plants, you type
that address in the web browser in the
address bar as shown in Figure 3.45.
Then the web page on plants will be
displayed in the browser.
(a) Hyperlinks: Very often, there are hyperlinks
(highlighted and underlined words) present on web
pages. If you click a hyperlink, it will take you to another
part on the same page or to a
different page.
(b) Important parts of a
web browser (as shown in
Figure 3.46):
(i) Address bar
(Alt+d): You can type the
address/URL of a web page
in this box and press Enter.
The browser will display the
page linked to that URL.
(ii) Tabbed browsing (Ctrl+T): Tabbed browsing
allows a user to view multiple pages in the same
window. So if you want to compare two types of
plants, for example, trees and shrubs, you can
open the two in two different tabs.
(iii) Back and forward buttons (Alt+Left or right arrow
keys): These buttons allow you to go back to the
last page viewed, or go forward to the next page
viewed. For example, in the previous example, if
you click �Back� arrow on the �Flowers� page it will
take you back to the �Table of Content�.
Mozilla Firefox Google Chrome Internet Explorer Apple Safari Opera
Figure 3.44: Web browsers
Figure 3.46: Parts of a Browser
Figure 3.45: Web browser
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Information and Communication Technology Skills 119
(iv) Refresh button (F5):
Sometimes, you do not
see the complete page
correctly. You can reload
the page by clicking the
Refresh button.
(v) Steps to browse a
web page: Open a
web browser, such as
Internet Explorer or
Google Chrome. To
search for information,
follow the given steps: Figure 3.47: Searching for Information
� Type http://google.co.in in the address bar
� Type �best hill station in India� in the Google
search bar
� Press Enter
� Scroll the screen and click on the link for the
page you want to see.
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, write why do you think the second person told her friend
that she neither needs books or someone else to get information
about anything?
Activity
Web browsing
Materials required
Pen/pencil, notebook, computer with an Internet connection
Procedure
1. Form groups depending on the number of computers
available.
2. One member does the steps while the other watches and
give feedback on what was done correctly and what can
be improved.
Unit 3.indd 119 23-08-2018 16:20:42
120 Employability Skills � Class IX
Do the following
� You are planning to go to your relative�s place who lives in
another city.
� Use Internet (IRCTC, etc.) find out which trains are going
there, their timings and ticket fare.
� Find out about two cities you want to visit and places you
can visit in these cities.
� Use Internet (IRCTC) to find out which trains connect
these two cities, their timings and ticket fare.
Check Your Progress
A. Multiple choice questions
1. What do I need to get information from the World Wide
Web?
(a) Computer
(b) Browser
(c) Internet Connection
(d) All of the above
2. Which of the following is a web browser?
(a) Internet
(b) Chrome
(c) Windows
(d) None of the above
B. Short answer questions
1. List the steps to search for information using a web
browser.
What Have You Learnt?
After completing this session, you will be able to
� use a web browser to search for information on the
Internet.
Session 9: Communication and Networking �
Introduction to e-Mail
Electronic mail or e-mail is a quick way of sending
messages to people using the Internet. Electronic mail
is a message sent over the Internet from one person
to another. It consists of lines of text and images.The
invention of e-mail has influenced our lives and they
have become a popular means of communication.
Notes
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Information and Communication Technology Skills 121
How does the e-mail work?
Files containing videos, documents, spreadsheets,
etc., can be sent along with the e-mail as attachments.
E-mail is fast and easy to use and it can be sent to
multiple people at the same time.
Let us compare the way a postal mail and an e-mail
is sent as shown in Table 3.7.
E-mail ID or Address
The general format of an e-mail address is local_
part@domain. An example of an e-mail address is
[email protected].
� An e-mail address is made up of two parts
separated by the @ symbol. The part before the @
Table 3.7: Comparing Postal mail vs. e-mail
Postal Mail e-mail
Address
Postal mail address is a street,
city, etc., of a geographical location
while an e-mail address is a digital
location on a mail computer
where you can send or receive an
electronic message.
[email protected]
Written on
Postal mail is written with paper
and pen.
An e-mail is written on a computer
or mobile device.
Sent via
Postal mail is sent by bus, air, train
while an e-mail travels in a digital
format over an Internet connection.
Received in
Postal mail is brought by the
postman and dropped into the
letterbox outside our house.
E-mail comes into the Inbox of the
receiver�s e-mail account.
Unit 3.indd 121 23-08-2018 16:20:42
122 Employability Skills � Class IX
symbol is created by the user and is usually the
name of the person, for example, ashokrastogi_1.
This is different for every user. One might need to
add numbers or any other prefix or suffix in case
someone else has already taken that mail address
before him. One person can only have a specific
e-mail address.
� The part after the �@� symbol is the domain name
of e-mail service provider, i.e., the company that
provides the e-mail service. Here gmail.com is the
domain name of Google. For example, Gmail by
Google, Outlook.com by Microsoft and yahoo.co.in
by Yahoo!
Advantages of e-mail
E-mails can be sent to multiple users along with the
attachments. They are fast as they reach anyone
around the world immediately, free as most services do
not charge money and it is environment friendly, as no
paper is used.
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 where the boy he is going to send a post card, what
suggestion did his friend give?
Activity 1
Advantages of using e-mail
Materials required
Pen/pencil, notebook
Procedure
� Form groups of 5 students each.
� Discuss how writing e-mail is better than sending a letter
through postal mail. Every student says whether he/she
prefers to send an e-mail or post a letter and why.
Notes
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Information and Communication Technology Skills 123
Check Your Progress
A. State whether the following statements are True or False
1. Email cannot be sent to more than one person at a time.
2. Email is an electronic message sent over the Internet or
a computer network.
3. Pictures, videos, audio files, and spreadsheet files
cannot be attached with an e-mail.
What have you learnt?
After completing this session, you will be able to
� differentiate between postal mail and electronic mail.
� write an e-mail message.
� list the benefits of an e-mail account.
Figure 3.48: Email service providers
Sessi on 10: Communication and Networking �
Creating an e-Mail Account
Creating an e-mail account
To set up an e-mail account, there are a number of
popular providers to consider
(a) Gmail (run by Google)
(b) Outlook mail (run by Microsoft)
(c) Yahoo mail (run by Yahoo)
Here we will learn how to create an e-mail account
using Gmail. All e-mail hosting sites will have similar
procedures.
Notes
Unit 3.indd 123 23-08-2018 16:20:42
124 Employability Skills � Class IX
Steps to open an e-mail account on Gmail
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 the person could not send an e-mail?
1. Go to www.gmail.com and click �Create
an account�.
2. The sign up form will appear. You will
need to fill your name, username,
password and other details in a signup
form. A password should be at least
8 characters long and contain letters,
numbers and special characters (e.g.,
$%#). This will make it more secure.
3. Fill in other details as your phone
number, country, etc. Review the Terms
of Service and Privacy Policy, click the
check box, and then click Next step.
4. Google welcome page will appear. Click
on the �Continue to Gmail�. This will
display your Gmail account page.
Unit 3.indd 124 23-08-2018 16:20:42
Information and Communication Technology Skills 125
Activity
Creating an e-mail account
Materials required
Pen/pencil, notebook, computer with Internet connection
Procedure
� Form groups, depending on the number of computers
available.
� Each student takes turns to:
(a) create an e-mail account using gmail.com (or any
other free service). NOTE: make careful note of your
e-mail address and password.
(b) sign out and sign in the e-mail account. Do not
share password with others.
Check Your Progress
1. Multiple choice questions
1. Here are the steps to sign in to your Gmail account.
(i) Type username (ii) Go to www.gmail.com
(iii) Click Sign in (iv) Type password
Choose the option with the correct order.
(a) i > ii > iv > iii
(b) ii > i > iii > iv
(c) ii> i > iv > iii
(d) ii > iii > i > iv
2. Which one of the following statements is false?
(a) You need to create an account before you can send
an e-mail.
(b) You should sign out of your account when you are
not using the computer.
(c) You do not need an Internet connection to use your
Gmail account.
(d) You must not share your password with others.
3. Which of the following is an e-mail service?
(a) WhatsApp
(b) WeChat
(c) Gmail
(d) Facebook
Short answer questions
1. What characters should the password have in e-mail
address, to make it more secure?
Notes
Unit 3.indd 125 23-08-2018 16:20:42
126 Employability Skills � Class IX
Sessi on 11: Communication and Networking�
Writing an e-Mail
Gmail is a free e-mail application. Let us learn how to
use it.
After completing this session, you will be able to
� create an e-mail account.
� sign in and sign out an e-mail account.
What have you learnt?
Figure 3.49: Sign in page
Figure 3.50: Compose email
1. To write a new e-mail, connect to the
Internet and open Gmail.
2. Type �gmail.com� in the address bar of
Internet Explorer.
3. To start using Gmail, you need to sign in.
Type your e-mail ID and password in the
given areas and click on the Sign in button
as shown in Figure 3.49
4. Click on the COMPOSE button on the
Gmail home page.
This will open a New Message window. Let us
understand this with an example. Mohan Padra
wants to send Diwali greetings to his sister, his
wife and daughter. He wants do this by writing an
e-mail using the Gmail account he just created.
In the To: section he types the e-mail ID of his
sister, i.e., [email protected]
� In the Cc: section he types the e-mail
IDs of his wife, [email protected] and
her daughter [email protected]. In this
way he is able to send the same message
to all three at once instead of writing it
three times.
� In the Subject: section, he writes �Happy Diwali�
which is the main topic of the e-mail message.
� He starts the main body of the message with
a greeting �Hello everyone�. This can change
depending on whom you are writing the mail to.
Then he writes the complete message. He ends
Unit 3.indd 126 23-08-2018 16:20:42
Information and Communication Technology Skills 127
the e-mail message with �best wishes� and his
name (Mohan).
� When he click the Send button, the e-mail will
reach the recipients.
Follow the given steps to write an e-mail
1. In the To section, write the e-mail-id of the
person you are sending the mail to.
2. In the Cc section, write the e-mail-ids of all the
people to whom you want to send copies of the
message.
3. In the Subject, write the topic of the mail. For
example, Happy Diwali.
4. In the main body, type the message you want
to send. This will include the salutation in the
beginning, main message in the middle and
signature at the end.
5. After you type the message, click Send.
The mail will be sent to all the people whose e-mail
addresses you have given in the To and Cc sections.
Figure 3.51: Attach a file
Attaching a file to an e-mail
An attachment is a type of file such as a photo or
document that you can send along with your e-mail.
To add an attachment you need to click on the Attach
button.
� The Attach button often has a paperclip as its
symbol
� When you click on the Attach button it opens up
a new window
Unit 3.indd 127 23-08-2018 16:20:42
128 Employability Skills � Class IX
� The window shows you files and folders on your
computer
� Find and then click on the file you want to attach
and press OK
� The file will now show as an attachment in your
e-mail
� The name of the file will be shown next to a paper
clip symbol
Managing Folders
There are different folders that could help you manage
and organise your e-mails.
� The Inbox holds e-mails that people have sent
to you
� The Sent folder holds e-mails that you have sent
to people
� The Drafts folder holds all the e-mail you have
started writing, but not yet sent
� The Junk/Spam folder holds e-mails that may
not be useful
� The Trash can or folder holds e-mails that you
no longer need and have deleted. To delete an
e-mail, you select an e-mail and then click on the
Delete button for it to be moved from inbox to
trash folder (see Figure 3.52).
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 what do you think is the first thing you will do after
creating your e-mail account.
Figure 3.52: Folders
Unit 3.indd 128 23-08-2018 16:20:43
Information and Communication Technology Skills 129
Activity 1
Writing an e-mail
Materials required
Pen/pencil, notebook, computer with an Internet connection
Procedure
� Form groups, depending on the number of computers
available.
� Each student writes an e-mail to two of the other group
members using their newly created e-mail address wishing
them for a future festival. Other members watch and guide
the student.
Check Your Progress
A. Multiple choice questions
1. What do you type in the �To� field?
(a) The topic of the e-mail
(b) The main message of the e-mail
(c) Email address of the person to whom you want to
send a copy of the e-mail
(d) Email address of the person you are sending the
mail to
2. You want to send an e-mail message to your friend
Sushil. In which order will you perform the given steps
to write and send an e-mail to him?
(i) Type Sushil�s e-mail address, subject and message
(ii) Click on the Compose button (iii) Click Send (iv) Open
your e-mail account.
(a) (iv)>(ii)>(i)>(iii)
(b) (iv)>(i)>(ii)>(iii)
(c) (iv)>(i)>(iii)>(ii)
(d) (iii)>(i)>(ii)>(iv)
B. Fill in the blanks
1. In �To:� section _________________ is typed for sending a
message through e-mail.
2. The Attach button in e-mail often has a ______________
as its symbol.
3. In the ____________________ section of the e-mail, the
topic of the mail is written.
4. After typing the message in the main body of the e-mail,
you need to click on __________ button to send the
e-mail.
Notes
Unit 3.indd 129 23-08-2018 16:20:43
130 Employability Skills � Class IX
Sessi on 12: Communication and Networking �
Receiving and Replying to e-mails
Figure 3.53: Reply to an email
What have you learnt?
After completing this session, you will be able to
� identify the various elements of the e-mail message.
� compose and send an e-mail message.
� attach files in an e-mail.
Receiving an e-mail
Imagine your friend sends you an
e-mail. The e-mail will appear in
your Inbox. It shows the name of the
sender, subject and a title of the main
message. It will remain bold till you
open it.
1. Click on the mail to open it.
2. Once you have read the e-mail,
you can reply, forward or delete
the mail.
3. If the invitation was sent to many
people, you get another option,
i.e., Reply to All. When you
click this, the reply will be sent
to all the people who received a
copy of this mail.
Replying to an e-mail
To reply to this e-mail:
1. Click on the Reply option at the
bottom. This will open a space
where you can write your reply.
The e-mail address of the person
to whom this e-mail will be sent
is already present at the top.
2. Type your reply and click Send.
Unit 3.indd 130 23-08-2018 16:20:43
Information and Communication Technology Skills 131
Forwarding an e-mail
You can also forward this e-mail to your
parents to inform them about the invitation.
1. When you click on �Forward�, a
space is displayed with the old
message copied to it.
2. You can give the e-mail address of Figure 3.54: Forward an email
Figure 3.55: Delete an email
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.
Activity 1
Receiving and replying to an e-mail
Materials required
Pen/pencil, notebook, computer with an Internet connection
Procedure
� Form groups depending on the number of computers
available.
� The teacher sends an e-mail to a student in each group
informing them about a group dance competition.
the person(s) you want to forward to and write
anything extra you want to add.
3. Then click on the
�Send� button.
Deleting an e-mail
You can delete the mail by
clicking on the delete icon.
This will remove the e-mail
from your inbox and move it
to the �Trash� folder. It will
remain there for a few days before it is removed from
the system.
Unit 3.indd 131 23-08-2018 16:20:43
132 Employability Skills � Class IX
A. State whether the following statements are True or False.
1. By choosing the �Reply� option, the e-mail address of the
sender of the original message will appear in the �To� field.
2. Email is an electronic message transmitted over the
Internet or computer network from one user to another.
3. You can forward the e-mail by clicking on the delete
icon.
What have you learnt?
After completing this session, you will be able to
� identify a new mail in your inbox.
� reply or forward an e-mail.
� delete an e-mail.
Glossary
Applications/Apps: software programs on a mobile device which
perform specific tasks
Attachment: adding a file to an e-mail
Barcode: a machine-readable code in the form of numbers and a
pattern of parallel lines of varying widths, printed on a commodity
and used especially for stock control
Bytes: a group of binary digits or bits (usually eight) operated on as
a unit, a byte is considered as a unit of memory size
Digital: the information that is stored on a computer is said to be in
a digital form
Drag: pull an icon or something on the screen with a mouse
E-Commerce: it is a process of buying and selling goods online
Email: a way of sending messages over the Internet
Ethernet: a system for connecting a number of computer systems
to form a local area network
All details about the date, time, venue, etc., is described
in the mail.
� The leader reads the e-mail and then forwards it to all his
group members to inform them about the details of the
dance competition. The leader discusses with the group
whether they want to take part or not and then sends a
reply to the teacher.
Check Your Progress
Notes
Unit 3.indd 132 23-08-2018 16:20:43
Information and Communication Technology Skills 133
File: a document on a computer. There are different types of files
Folder: a location on the computer. It may contain many files or
sub-folders
Gestures: the actions you do with your fingers to interact with a
touch screen
ICT: it is an abbreviation of Information and Communication
Technology
Internet Browser: it is a software which helps you search for
information online
Internet: a number of computers connected together to provide
information
Junk: the location for storing unwanted e-mail as determined by a
spam filter
Messaging: sending text, audio and video messages over an
Internet connection
Motherboard: a printed circuit board containing the principal
components of a computer or other device, with connectors for other
boards to be slotted into
Navigation: the action of moving around a website, the Internet, etc.
Operating/operate: control the functioning of (a machine, process,
or system)
Peripheral: a device that you are able to attach to and use with a
computer, though it does not form an integral part of it
Port: a socket in a computer network into which a device can be
plugged
Privacy: the state of being free from public attention
Reply to all: an option present when we want to reply to all the
recepients, if we choose Reply to all, the reply will be sent to all the
people the mail was sent to or received from
Scanner: a device that scans documents and converts them into
digital data
Smartphone: a mobile device that is used to make calls, connect to
the Internet and run applications that do a variety of functions
Tablet: a mobile device like a smartphone but with a bigger size
Web Browser: a software used to browse information on WWW
using Internet
Web Page: it displays information in the form of text, graphics,
audio or video
Wi-Fi: a wireless connection to the Internet
World Wide Web (WWW): it is a collection of information located on
computers around the world
Notes
Unit 3.indd 133 23-08-2018 16:20:43
134 Employability Skills � Class IX
Further Readings
Session 1: Introduction to ICT
� https://bit.ly/2pYKPKF
Session 2: ICT Tools � Smartphones and Tables � 1
� https://bit.ly/2zolM6d
Session 3: ICT Tools � Smartphones and Tables � 2
� https://bit.ly/2vvtqdN
Session 4: Parts of a computer and peripherals
� https://bit.ly/2w3GL0J
Session 5: Basic Computer Operations
� https://bit.ly/2EbIl0o
Session 6: Performing basic file operations
� https://bit.ly/2oPHluK
Session 7: Communications and Networking � Basics of Internet
� https://bit.ly/2vkoUS4
Session 8: Communications and Networking � Internet Browsing
� https://bit.ly/2vikTix
Session 9: Communications and Networking � Introduction to Email
� https://bit.ly/2GpsNfm
� https://bit.ly/1C4PJDi
Session 10: Communications and Networking � Creating an
Email Account
� https://bit.ly/2GpsNfm
� https://bit.ly/2vwslCD
� https://bit.ly/1C4PJDi
Session 11: Communications and Networking � Writing an Email
� https://bit.ly/2xGttUQ
Session 12: Communications and Networking�Receiving and
Replying to Email
� https://bit.ly/2wWjrln
Notes
Unit 3.indd 134 23-08-2018 16:20:43
Introduction
Business is an economic activity which is related with
continuous and regular production and distribution
of goods and services for satisfying human wants.
Businesses can be for-profit entities or nonprofit
organisations. Businesses cater to the needs of the
society. But sometimes we find that there is a gap
between what is needed and is available. This gap can
be used as an opportunity by some people who are
ready to take risk and fill the gap by providing necessary
products and services. Such people are entrepreneurs.
An entrepreneur is a person who is self-employed,
is willing to take a calculated risk and brings in a new
idea to start a business. It is, however, important to
understand that all self-employed persons are not
entrepreneurs, for example, a shopkeeper cannot be
called an entrepreneur unless he/she introduces a new
method or idea in the business.
Session 1: What is Entrepreneurship?
Does your mother ask you to buy things from the market
near your house? Do you buy things for yourself from
UnitUnit
Entrepreneurship
Skills
4
Unit 4.indd 135 23-08-2018 16:59:24
136 Employability Skills � Class IX
shops near your house? Maybe you have bought milk,
vegetables, fruits, books and pencil from a shop, icecream,
etc., which of those shops you buy these items
from? Visit the market and make a list of things you
buy from the market and categorise them as food items,
vegetables, fruits, stationery, confectionery, etc.
What are the things you
buy?
What shops do you buy
from?
Does the seller work for self
or for someone else?
Food items: Dal, rice, spices Kirana shop Yes, for self
Readymade clothes Big store in a mall No � the sales person is an
employee of a chain
Did you notice that while some people are the owners
of businesses, others are employed and get a salary/
wage? The owners are self-employed while the employees
are wage earners (work for others and get a salary).
New ideas with which an entrepreneur adds value to
a business can be of many kinds, including new kinds
of products � like adding varieties, new services like
home delivery or credit services, new marketing ideas,
new cost reduction ideas and many more.
Entrepreneurship
The process of developing a business plan, launching and
running a business using innovation to meet customer
needs and to make a profit is entrepreneurship.
Enterprise
An enterprise is a project or undertaking that is bold
and fulfills a need of the society which no one has ever
addressed.
Let us read the story of Sowmya. Her story will help
us understand a little more about entrepreneurship.
The Story of Sowmya, the Entrepreneur
Sowmya grew up in a village in Karnataka. Her parents
came to Bangalore in search of a better job. While
growing up, Sowmya saw her parents working very
hard. Her father started working in a small shop which
Unit 4.indd 136 23-08-2018 16:59:24
Entrepreneurship Skills 137
sold clothes and her mother started working as a cook
in someone�s house.
Sowmya wanted to support her family. She
was now going to college and wanted to start
making money. When she turned 18, Sowmya
thought �What can I do, which will help me
make more money and where people will keep
buying from me again and again?� (Need)
She noticed that the girls in her college cared
about their health and did not want to eat
chips and other unhealthy food (Recognising
opportunity). She started making healthy
snacks and sold them to her friends in college (Idea
and start of a business).
Her friends loved it, because not only was snack
healthy, it was also very tasty. She then started selling
her tasty-healthy snacks to people in her area.
As the demand for her snacks increased, Sowmya
asked her parents and friends to give her some money
to buy a small machine which would help her in making
more snacks. She started making 5 times the snacks. She
started giving a small commission to her friends to sell these
snacks in their own societies (Growing the business).
After 2 years, Sowmya now sells her snacks in every
small shop.
She continued studying while doing the business and
was able to pay her college fees from her own earning!
How do you think Sowmya identified an
opportunity?
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
Opportunities are everywhere. You need to look for
them/spot them. Do you have any ideas/have you seen
any opportunity in your surrounding that you too can
use to start a business? Write your idea below.
__________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
Unit 4.indd 137 23-08-2018 16:59:24
138 Employability Skills � Class IX
The teacher will facilitate these activities and give additional
feedback as needed.
Activity 1
Guess the entrepreneur
Materials required
Notebook, pen
Procedure
Form teams of 5 students each. So, if there are 30 students
in class, there would be 6 teams of 5 students in each team
and select a leader who will be responsible for running it. Each
member in the group will do the following:
� Make a list of all people you see while coming to school
and what they are doing.
� Make 2 lists � one of people working for themselves and
one of people who work for others.
� Make a list of different kinds of businesses around you.
� Now think of all the items that you cannot buy in your
neighbourhood and people have to go far to buy them.
� Do you see this as a possible opportunity for a good
business idea?
� How will you innovatively fill this gap?
� Members of the group discuss their ideas within the group.
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. Business is a (an) _____________________ activity.
(a) social
(b) economic
(c) hazardous
(d) selling
2. What is the aim of entrepreneurship?
(a) Earn a profit
(b) Solve customers� need innovatively
(c) Both of the above
(d) None of the above
B. Short answer question
1. List three businesses seen around you. Share details of
what the business does, and how they run it ?
Notes
Unit 4.indd 138 23-08-2018 16:59:24
Entrepreneurship Skills 139
C. Read the following statement and write �Yes� or �No� as
to whether the person is an entrepreneur or not.
Statement Yes/No
1. Ravi made tea for his friends in the office.
Everyone liked the tea very much and told him
that he is very good at making tea.
2. Savita, a house wife, needs extra money for her
kids� tuition. She notices that in the afternoon,
the children coming out of a nearby college
look tired and hungry. She makes refreshing
Neembu Pani and samosas and sells them to
the students.
3. Rahul loves dogs. He plays with dogs of his
friends� family. One day when they were going
out-of-station, they asked Rahul to take care of
their dog. Rahul thought that this was a good
idea, �taking care of dogs when the owner is
traveling�. He started his own company which
is like a �hotel for dogs�. When the dog-owners
travel, they leave their dogs at this hotel and
pay the company money for each day they take
care of the dog. Is Rahul an entrepreneur?
4. Monica noticed that her neighbours used to
face a problem. They had to leave their young
baby behind when they went for work. Monica
started going to this house in the evening to
take care of the baby for them. Her neighbours
were very happy and used to give her chocolates
for doing that.
What have you learnt?
After completing this session, you will be able to
� demonstrate the knowledge of entrepreneurship.
� identify the characteristics of an entrepreneur.
Session 2: Role of Entrepreneurship
If you were an entrepreneur, how do you think you
will help your country? Countries which encourage
entrepreneurship have grown fast. It is, therefore,
important to broadly define the role and benefits
of entrepreneurship.
Notes
Unit 4.indd 139 23-08-2018 16:59:24
140 Employability Skills � Class IX
soap from the city and sold it to the villages the people
started using the soap for handwashing, is a result of
which these uses less incidences of people falling sick.
Economic Development �
Money in Circulation
As entrepreneurs create value by
making available better and cheaper
products and services for customers,
the economy grows. As entrepreneurs
grow their business, investors put
money into their businesses and
expect good returns. As more and
more entrepreneurs create business
opportunities, the economy grows.
Social Development � Creation
of Jobs
A business started by an entrepreneur
is usually a very small business in the
beginning. If it becomes successful
and grows, the entrepreneur expands
the business.
As the business grows, it needs
more work to be done and so creates
more jobs. Good quality jobs lead to
more people earning money and having
a good life.
Improved Standard of Living �
More things available to live a
comfortable life
When entrepreneurs sell products like
a tractor, a mobile phone or a mobile
service, it helps people live a more
comfortable life. For example, a small
village did not have good quality soap
because of which the villagers used
to fall sick. An entrepreneur started
going to the city collected antibacterial
Unit 4.indd 140 23-08-2018 16:59:24
Entrepreneurship Skills 141
Optimal Use of Resources
There are various natural resources present around
us renewable and non-renewable. Entrepreneurs keep
working to find the most optimal ways of using the
resources to reduce costs and increase their profits.
More Benefits at Lower Prices Products and
Services at Competitive Prices
As entrepreneurs compete in the market, prices of
products come down. For example, a phone which
used to cost at least Rs. 20,000 when phones were first
launched can now be bought even for Rs 4,000.
The teacher will facilitate these activities and give additional
feedback as needed.
Activity
A world without Entrepreneurs
Materials required
None
Procedure
� Form groups of 45 students in each group.
� Each group thinks about which entrepreneurs benefit or
help us the most.
� Now imagine that this entrepreneur, and his business
does not exist. How will my life get affected?
� Each group shares with the class, their example of which
entrepreneur helps them the most and what will happen if
she/he was not there.
� One volunteer student writes down the examples given by
each group on the board.
� The class discusses the importance of entrepreneurs.
Check Your Progress
A. Short answer question
Answer the following questions in your own words.
1. Gulab lives in a small village in Rajasthan. She noticed
that all the women in her village were good at making
Notes
Unit 4.indd 141 23-08-2018 16:59:24
142 Employability Skills � Class IX
Glossary
Confidence: quality of believing in oneself and not having fear of
what will happen or what others would say
Experimental: someone who likes to try new things and learn from
it to get better
Grit: a person�s quality of not giving up and keep trying
Hybrid business: hybrid business is a mix of product and service
business
Patience: a person�s quality of not getting angry or emotional during
stressful time and staying calm
Positivity: a person�s quality of seeing the good in every situation
and person
Product business: a business where a seller and buyer exchange
a thing, which can be seen and touched, is called a product based
business
Service business: a business where a seller a helps the buyer
to finish some work, which cannot be seen or stored for example
plumbing, teaching, hair dressing, etc., are is called as service based
businesses
Session 3: Qualities of a Successful
Entrepreneur
In the last chapter, we learnt how entrepreneurship is
different from wage employment. We also learnt different
features of entrepreneurship. In this session, we will
learn about qualities of a successful entrepreneur.
What Have You Learnt?
After completing this session, you will be able to
� explain the importance of entrepreneur and its role in
country�s and society�s growth.
paintings and handicraft product. She collected money
and started a business. Gulab would help the women
to get material from cities and support them in making
latest designs. She would then arrange for these
paintings and handicraft products to be sold in big
cities. How do you think Gulab, is helping her society
as an entrepreneur?
2. Give examples of three entrepreneurs you know who
live around you. Write how they are helping your city?
Notes
Unit 4.indd 142 23-08-2018 16:59:24
Entrepreneurship Skills 143
Can you think about business persons from whom
you buy things? What are some qualities of these people?
List all the qualities, with examples in your notebook.
Who Quality Example
1. Milk-man Hard-working Wakes up at 3:00 AM and comes to the customer�s house
at 5:00 AM to give fresh milk.
2.
3.
4.
5.
There is a thin line that distinguishes an entrepreneur
from a traditional business person.
Ramu is chai wala selling tea near a busy bus stop.
He earns a lot and makes a good profit. He is a traditional
business man.
Now, Rani also started a tea stall on the road side.
She decided to sell different flavours of tea, just like
expensive tea parlours in the mall, at a reasonable
price. Her clients vary from daily wage earners to actors
and politicians because of her unique idea. She is an
entrepreneur.
Now, let us read a story of another entrepreneur to
understand all the important qualities of a successful
entrepreneur, so that when you think about
becoming an entrepreneur, you can practice these
qualities.
Sushma, the Toy Maker
Sushma is a mother of two young kids. She saw
some parents giving their children mobile phones
to play with while others gave plastic toys. Both of
these are bad for the kids and the environment.
She wanted her children to enjoy playing with
toys which were good for their brain and did not
cause health problems. She came up with the idea of
making wooden toys, which are not only fun to play
with, but also help kids learn as they play with them.
She made a few toys and started sending pictures to
her friends and family. They were excited to buy these
new types of toys from her.
Unit 4.indd 143 23-08-2018 16:59:24
144 Employability Skills � Class IX
Her best friend told her that the toy she had bought
had sharp edges and had hurt her child. Sushma
immediately changed the design to soft edges. Very few
people bought her products. She made huge efforts to
persuade her customers to buy her toys, specifying the
excellent qualities of her products.
She did not give up and tried to understand the buying
pattern of parents as customers. Soon she realised that
people prefer to buy toys for their kids from established
and permanent shops. She made efforts to partner with
different toy shops to sell her products. She also created
a web site to sell her products online. After 2 years,
the demand for her toys increased and soon she was
selling her toys not only in India, but also in other parts
of the world.
An entrepreneur needs to have the following set
of qualities.
Patience
Entrepreneurship is not a one-day job. Success may not
be achieved quickly and therefore, it is important for
an entrepreneur to be patient in running the business.
Sushma kept working for 2 years before success came
her way.
Positivity
When a person starts a business, he/she
may face lots of difficulties and failure. An
entrepreneur has to think positively even
when he/she takes a big risk. There may be
losses at times but even then an entrepreneur
should stay positive and continue to work
hard towards their goal. For example, Sushma
listened to her customers� complaints. She
did not get upset and improved her product.
Hardworking, Never Giving Up and
Perseverance
Every new business goes through failures and
therefore, an entrepreneur needs to work hard till it
becomes successful. It is necessary for an entrepreneur
to continuously work hard towards his/her own and
Unit 4.indd 144 23-08-2018 16:59:24
Entrepreneurship Skills 145
company�s goals. Sushma kept trying even
when the toys were not selling.
Confidence
An entrepreneur needs to be very confident
and take decisions about their business.
An entrepreneur needs to communicate
confidently with the customers. For example,
Sushma was confident about the quality and
effective use of her toys. This led to her success.
Open to Trial and Error
Entrepreneur needs to be open to new ideas and try
them without fear of failure. She/he will have to use trial
and error and experiment with different ideas till the
business becomes successful. This allows the product
or service to improve for the customer and helps the
business grow. For example, when Sushma could not
sell the product within her friends and family circle, she
partnered with other shops.
Creativity and Innovation
An entrepreneur should be able to see a problem from
different perspectives and come up with original and
creative solutions. They should also be able to recognise
an opportunity in a problem and find an innovative
solution.
One must note here that a self-employed person
may not be an entrepreneur if she/he does not have
these qualities. An entrepreneur should be willing to
take a calculated risk and is always open to new ideas
to make his/her business grow. A person who has does
not take risks, is not open to new ideas and is running
the business only to earn a steady source of income is
not an entrepreneur.
The teacher will facilitate these activities and give additional
feedback and summarise for the students as needed.
Unit 4.indd 145 23-08-2018 16:59:24
146 Employability Skills � Class IX
Activity 1
A successful interview
Procedure
� Form pairs of students. One student imagines him/herself
to be a successful entrepreneur (maybe 10 years from
now).
� The other student will act as an interviewer from a TV
channel who will interview this entrepreneur.
� The interviewer asks questions given in the table below
and note down the answers.
� One volunteer pair will present their questions and
answers to the class.
Questions Your Answer
What business do you do?
Why did you start this business
and not take up a job in a
company?
How did you come up with the
business idea?
Were you successful when you
first started?
What did you find most difficult?
How did you overcome this
difficulty?
Have you faced any failures? If
yes, what?
What advice would you give to
others who are trying to start
their own business?
Activity 2
Entrepreneurs near me
Procedure
Each student should visit businesses in their neighbourhood,
talk to the owner and list their qualities that have helped them
with their business. Fill the table given below.
Owner of the
business
Qualities How did it help
the business?
Is this person an
entrepreneur?
Notes
Unit 4.indd 146 23-08-2018 16:59:24
Entrepreneurship Skills 147
A. Short answer questions
1. Identify qualities of the following entrepreneurs. Also
write why you think this person has this quality or the
qualities.
(a) Anil wanted to do something very different and
something no one has thought of before. He decided
to start a special travel services for old people/
senior citizens.
(b) Rakesh loves playing outdoors. He used to spend his
evenings with his friends, playing games. But, he
had seen that many of his friends didn�t like playing
outdoors because they didn�t feel safe. He decided
to open a playground for children of all ages, with
proper security. He found an unused playground, got
permission to use it and asked his friends to help him
clean it. He hired a security guard for the playground.
He charged a small fee for people who wanted to play.
Both parents and children liked his idea, and started
playing there regularly. His business helped children
who would not play outdoor before.
(c) Radhika was a cook in a small restaurant in her area.
She made enough money to support her husband
and children. She decided to start her own food
stall to sell Punjabi food. She would make special
parathas. A few days after starting her business, the
police came and told her that she was not allowed
to run her stall in the area. Radhika did not give up.
She started a Tiffin service through which she would
deliver fresh food to people.
2. Do you think you have the qualities of an entrepreneur
in you? If yes, give examples when you have shown
these qualities.
3. Read the story of Sushma, the Toy Maker once again
and fill in the boxes mentioning the various qualities
that Sushma might have possessed as an entrepreneur
Check Your Progress Notes
Unit 4.indd 147 23-08-2018 16:59:24
148 Employability Skills � Class IX
What Have You Learnt?
After completing this session, you will be able to
� identify successful entrepreneurs around yourself.
� identify and describe the qualities of a successful
entrepreneur.
Session 4: Distinguishing Characteristics
of Entrepreneurship and Wage Employment
In the last session, we learnt that entrepreneurship
means organising, developing and managing a business
venture along with any of its risks in order to make profit.
Entrepreneur takes risks to make a profit. Let us now
try to understand the meaning of the word profit and
risk before we understand the various characteristics of
entrepreneurship.
Profit: M/s Ram Prasad owns a sweet shop in a remote
village. He incurs a total cost of Rs 35 per kg of sweets
and sells at a rate of Rs 42 per kg to customers. The
amount of profit earned by Ram Prasad�s sweet house
amounts to Rs 7/kg, i.e., Rs 42�Rs 35 = Rs 7 per kg.
The profit earned is the excess earning after deducting
all expenses.
Risk: A situation where the result is not known and
could lead to a loss. For example, when I am making
10 kg of sweets, I risk spending Rs 300/- on buying milk,
sugar, maida and some other person may also start the
same business in the same area and sell sweets at a
lower price.
Entrepreneurship is not without risks but
entrepreneurs are not afraid of taking calculated risks.
Taking risks can lead to failure but failure is acceptable
and entrepreneurs continue their course of action till
they succeed.
Characteristics of Entrepreneurship
Let us now look at some of the distinguishing
characteristics of entrepreneurship.
1. Ability to take up risks
2. Believe in hard work and discipline
Notes
Unit 4.indd 148 23-08-2018 16:59:24
Entrepreneurship Skills 149
3. Adpatable and flexible to achieve the goals of
enhancing quality and customer satisfaction
4. Knowledge of the product and services and their
need or demand in the market
5. Financial literacy and money management skills
6. Effective planning and execution.
Have you ever observed a sudden closure of a shop/
store/business in your neighbourhood? Why did the
business fail?
� Was he/she selling low quality goods/services?
� Was he/she selling products not required in the
neighbourhood?
� Was the right opportunity not spotted?
� What was the risk he/she had taken?
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
Wage Employment
In case of wage employment, there are always two
parties. One is known as the employer and the other is
the employee. The wage employment does not involve
too much risk but entrepreneurship involves taking
certain amount of calculated risks. However, the
continuity of the service in case of wage employment
depends on the terms and conditions laid down in
the contract between the two parties and also
sometimes the relationship between the employer and
the employee.
Now, let us understand the difference between
entrepreneurship and wage employment (working for
someone to earn money). Let us compare a cook in a
restaurant and a street food vendor.
Notes
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150 Employability Skills � Class IX
Questions to think about A Cook in a
Restaurant
Street Food Vendor
1. How does the person make money
through the activity?
2. Is this person solving a community
problem?
3. Did this person sell something and
make profit?
4. Do they use the resources/
knowledge that they have to make
most of the money?
5. Do they use innovation and
creativity to attract clients?
6. Does the activity involve taking
risk for earning money?
7. Is this person an entrepreneur?
As you can see above, the cook in a restaurant holds
a job and is an employee of the restaurant, while the
food stall vendor is an entrepreneur as s/he works for
himself and runs a business because of the following
things:
Activities done by the person Entrepreneurship Employment
1. Allows a person to make money Yes Yes
2. Finding solutions for a community
problem by himself/herself
Yes No
3. The job done by the person is decided by
himself/herself
Yes No
4. Use personal knowledge and interest to
make money for oneself
Yes No
5. Use innovation and creativity to attract
clients
Yes No
6. Keep most of the money, i.e., profits made
for a product/ service
Yes No
7. Takes risk to make profit Yes No
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Entrepreneurship Skills 151
Benefits of entrepreneurship
The various benefits include the following:
� Do what you are interested in: Entrepreneurship
allows you to start and do something you like
using your hobbies and skills.
� Work for yourself, and not for others: As an
entrepreneur, you can work for yourself and not
for someone else. You can decide the kind of work
you like to do and how you want to do it.
� Make profits for yourself: As an entrepreneur,
you can decide how much money you want to
earn and how you want to earn it.
� More risk, more profit: Even though there are
risks in entrepreneurship, it allows you to decide
how much risk you want to take. Usually, the
larger the risk, the bigger could be the profit!
The teacher will facilitate these activities and give additional
feedback and summarise for the students as needed.
Activity 1
Characteristics of enterprise
Procedure
� Create groups of 5 students each. So if there are 30
students in class, there would be 6 groups of 5 students
in each group and select a leader who can run the activity.
� Each group should discuss the following information (in
table) and fill it up with either �Yes� or �No�.
� One group can volunteer to explain to the class their
answers. The other groups give feedback if correct or
wrong and also check their answer against the right one to
make sure it is right.
Type of
Business
Is it
making
money?
Does
it sell
something
for profit?
Do they
use what
they have
or know
best?
Does it
take a
risk?
Stationery Shop
Local Milk Dairy
Plumbing Shop
Notes
Unit 4.indd 151 23-08-2018 16:59:25
152 Employability Skills � Class IX
A. Fill in the blanks
1. State whether the person engaged in the activity
mentioned below is an Entrepreneur or an Employee
(a) Rahul starts a shop to sell Chaat and special Paani
Puri. He is an ______________________
(b) Shahid becomes the manager of a dealership selling
food products. He is an ______________________
(c) Ritu leaves the company she worked for and starts
catering food for marriage programmes. She is an
_________________.
B. Short answer questions
1. List any four characteristics of entrepreneurship.
2. List any two characteristics of wage employment.
3. Name any one factor that is common to both
entrepreneurship and wage employment on contract
basis.
Activity 2
Advantages of entrepreneurship over wage employment
Procedure
� Create groups of 5 students each. So if there are 30
students in class, there would be 6 groups of 5 students
in each group and select a leader.
� Each group prepares charts showing advantages of
entrepreneurship over wage employment.
� Two groups volunteer to present their charts to the class.
Other teams give feedback on the charts presented and
can ask questions after the presentation is made.
Check Your Progress
What have you learnt?
After completing this session, you will be able to
� describe the difference between entrepreneurship
and wage employment.
� identify unique features of entrepreneurship versus
wage employment.
Session 5: Types of Business Activities
So far, we learnt who an entrepreneur is, and the
meaning of entrepreneurship. We also learnt about the
Notes
Unit 4.indd 152 23-08-2018 16:59:25
Entrepreneurship Skills 153
unique features of an entrepreneurship. In this session,
we will learn about different types of business activities.
Let us read the story of Rahul to understand different
business activities.
Rahul, the cricketer
Rahul loved cricket! His favorite player was Sachin
Tendulkar and he never missed a match. He went for
daily practice with his friends in the park. He was an
all-rounder, like M.S. Dhoni, but he wanted to be a
great batsman.
He started improving in his game and at the age of
16, he played for the state team. His team lost, but he
was sure that he would play for India one day. He was a
great player and everyone in his village came to him for
advice on cricket.
Rahul kept trying but did not get to join any team.
Perhaps Rahul could have thought of other options to
stay in touch with his passion for cricket.
Here are some of the options he could have explored.
Fill the table with your friends
Start a Cricket
Coaching Centre
Start a Sports
Shop
Sports Academy
Is this
Entrepreneurship?
What do you think he
will be doing (kind of
work) in each of the
options?
Types of business activities
From the story of Rahul, we understood that there can
be three types of business activities:
� Product business
� Service business
� Hybrid business
Product business
A business where a seller and buyer exchange an
item, which can be seen and touched, is called a productbased
business. For example, a Sports Shop.
Unit 4.indd 153 23-08-2018 16:59:25
154 Employability Skills � Class IX
Service business
A business where a seller helps the buyer to finish some
work. For example, a cricket coaching center.
Hybrid business
A hybrid is the one where the business is doing both
selling product and selling services. For example, Rahul
starting a sports academy for coaching and selling
sports equipment. We also see this in restaurants where
the food itself is the product sold and the catering is the
service provided.
The teacher will facilitate these activities and give additional
feedback and summarise for the students as needed.
Activity 1
Product and Services
Procedure
� The class is to be divided into 3 teams � product business
team, service business team and hybrid business team.
� Each team will get about 15 mins to think of as many
examples of product/service/hybrid based businesses.
Students will have to think of different types of businesses,
rather than just different companies with the same type
of business. Fill the following table. The team with most
number of examples wins.
Type of
Business
Product
Business
Service
Business
Hybrid
Business
Large Businesses 1.
2.
3.
1.
2.
3.
1.
2.
3.
Local Community
Businesses
1. Tea Stall
2.
3.
1. Hair-cut,
Barber
Shop
2.
3.
1. Petrol
Pump
2.
3.
Notes
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Entrepreneurship Skills 155
Check Your Progress
A. Fill in the blanks
State the type of business � product, service or hybrid
1. Arun bakery, which makes and sells bread to people.
_________________
2. Ram�s repair shop, which repairs motorcycle.
__________________
3. Hari�s hair-salon, where he cuts hair for women and
men. _______________
B. Short answer question
1. What are the 3 types of business activities? Explain
with examples.
Session 6: Product, Service and Hybrid
Businesses
In this session, we will understand the difference
between a product-based and service-based business
activity. Let us take Rahul�s example from the previous
session and write yes or no in the following table:
After completing this session, you will be able to
� identify successful entrepreneurs around yourself.
� identify and describe qualities of a successful
entrepreneur.
What have you learnt?
Cricket Coaching Sports Shop
1. Can be seen and touched
2. Can be stored
3. Can be made somewhere and then
transported
4. The customer gets exactly the same thing
most of the time.
Unit 4.indd 155 23-08-2018 16:59:25
156 Employability Skills � Class IX
Therefore, the key differences between product and service
business activities can be summarised as follows.
Product Business Service Business
1. Seen and
touched
Product can be seen and touched.
Customer pays for physical exchange
of things.
Service cannot be seen or
touched. Customer here pays
for an experience.
2. Stored A product can be made and stored in
a shop or a warehouse (usually).
A service, for example, cutting
hair, cannot be stored. Service
is provided when a customer
asks for it.
3. Made and
transported
A product can be either made at
home or in a factory. It can then be
transported to different places where
shopkeepers sell it.
A service cannot be made
or transported. It is given to
the customer at the time of
delivery.
4. Same quantity
and quality
The quality and quantity of the
product will be the same every time.
The quality and quantity of
a service can be different at
different times.
In the last session, we also learnt about another type
of business hybrid which is a mix of product and service
businesses.
Read the following case-studies and identify what kind
of businesses are these
Sana, the Jewellery Expert
Sana wears beautiful new earrings every day which she
makes by herself. She finds the designs online, buys
cheap materials and makes them at home with the help
of her sister. Her friends at the college were amazed and
placed orders for similar earrings.
Harish, the Dabba-wala
Harish lives alone in Delhi. He left his house in Meerut
to work in a big company. He used to make his own
lunch and take a dabba everyday to office. He had many
bachelor friends who depended on the office canteen
for lunch. They loved to eat the food he brought. This
gave him an idea to make and deliver healthy, homemade
food to different offices. He knew there would be a
demand for his food, as there were many boys and girls
from other cities working in the area who had no time
to cook food on their own.
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Entrepreneurship Skills 157
Pragya, the Delivery Girl
Pragya�s parents bought her a bike on her birthday last
year. She used it to go to her college and to meet her
friends. Since her friends usually had to take a bus
for transport, in case of an emergency, they would
sometimes ask her to drop them. This gave her an
idea of starting a quick, goods-delivery service using
her bike! In her free time, she started the delivery
service for people in her area. She became
famous! She later employed five people to work
in her delivery company.
Classify the three entrepreneurs, based on
the kind of business they do and give reasons.
Sana, the Jewellery Expert Pragya, the Delivery Girl Harish, the Dabba-wala
Types of product-based business
In the above examples, we saw that there are three types
of business activities�Product, Service and Hybrid.
Now we will learn about a product business.
Let us go back to Sana�s example, who made her own
jewellery. Now imagine if instead of making her own
earrings, if Sana was buying earrings from a wholesale
market and selling it to people. Would it still be
a product business?
Yes, it will be! There are two types of product-based
businesses
Manufacturing businesses
These are the businesses that make a product and
sell it. Products are usually made in factories. In case
Unit 4.indd 157 23-08-2018 16:59:26
158 Employability Skills � Class IX
of Sana, she was manufacturing or making her own
products. Factories need funds (money) to be set up.
Sana could make her products on a small budget.
Factories have many people working in them. Sana
made her products with the help of her sister.
Trade businesses
These businesses buy and sell a product. They also
transport the product from the factory to warehouses
and then finally to shops near the customers. Examples
of these business include wholesalers, distributors and
retail shops.
The teacher will facilitate these activities and give additional
feedback and summarise for the students as needed.
Activity 1
Business activities around us
Materials required
Pens, chart paper, colours, etc.
Procedure
� Divide the class into 3 groups of students.
� Each group needs to make a list of business ideas which
are either Product,Service or Hybrid based. Each group
will prepare a poster by either making a drawing or using
newspaper cut-outs for the kinds of business they have
selected.
� Each team will present their posters to others.
Check Your Progress
A. Fill in the blanks
1. Write P- Product, S- Service and H- Hybrid for the
following businesses.
(a) Ice-cream seller: ___________
(b) Restaurant/Cafeteria Owner: __________
(c) Car-driving School owner: ___________
B. Short answer questions
1. What are the key differences between product- and
service-based businesses?
2. If you had a choice to start a business of your own,
which business will you start (include in your reply the
Notes
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Entrepreneurship Skills 159
Session 7: Entrepreneurship Development
Process
Entrepreneurship development is the process of
improving the skills and knowledge of entrepreneurs.
It can take place through formal and informal learning
system. In the formal learning system, training
programmes are conducted to bring about awareness,
knowledge and skills related to entrepreneurship. In
this session, you will learn about the entrepreneurship
development process through examples of successful
entrepreneurs. It will help you to understand the
qualities of entrepreneurs and then you can also make
an assessment of whether you also possess those
qualities. So let us begin with a story.
Prem Ganapathy, the Dosawala
Prem Ganapathy is also known as the
Dosawala, is the owner of the famous food chain
'Dosa Plaza'. 'Dosa Plaza' currently has 26 shops.
It has 150 employees and makes approximately
Rs 5 crore every year.
Prem�s story of struggle and success
When he came to Mumbai, Prem had no friends
and did not know the language. He struggled in
product or service that you would like to take up)? Why
do you want to start this type of business?
3. What is the meaning of manufacturing and trading
based business?
After completing this session, you will be able to
� identify difference between product and service
business activities.
� classify business examples as product, service and
hybrid businesses.
� identify different types of product-based businesses.
What have you learnt?
Unit 4.indd 159 23-08-2018 16:59:26
160 Employability Skills � Class IX
Mumbai for many years. He washed plates and cups,
cleaned tables and served tea at different shops. He
even started a business with someone during this time,
but the partnership failed.
Prem had saved some money and wanted to start a
Dosa shop. He asked his brother and uncle for a small
loan to set up a small Dosa stall near a railway station.
At the railway station there lot of people came but did
not have many options for tasty food.
His customers praised his food and gradually he
had customers from far-off places too. As he spoke to
his customers, he found out that his customers like
different kinds of dosas. He had worked in a Chinese
kitchen earlier and knew how to make
tasty chowmein and other Chinese items.
This gave him an idea to invent new
types of dosas with Chinese flavours like
American Chopsuey, Paneer chilly, Spring
roll dosa, etc. The 108 types of Dosas on
his menu got him a lot of publicity.
Then he took the biggest risk of his
life and opened a new shop near a station
and named it as Dosa Plaza. Dosa Plaza
is one of the most famous Dosa shops in
Mumbai. From this story, what do you
think are the different steps of starting a
business?
Steps of starting a business
Idea The first step is to come up with a business idea. A business idea could
be based on
(a) Something you are interested in doing (For example, making Dosa)
(b) A need you see in the market (For example, Tasty food next to the
station)
Getting money
and material
Once you have the idea, you can start on a small scale with some money
which will help you in buying basic material.
Understanding
customer
needs
Once you start selling, you will find out what your customer likes and
wants. You will also find out what your customer does not like during this
stage.
Improving
Product/
service
You can use this knowledge of what your customer likes and does not like
to improve your product. (For example, Prem�s customers liked variety)
Unit 4.indd 160 23-08-2018 16:59:26
Entrepreneurship Skills 161
The teacher will facilitate these activities and give additional
feedback and summarise for the students as needed.
Activity
Business on Make-and-Sell
Materials Required
Scrap material like old newspapers, tins, glasses, etc.
Procedure
� Form groups of 4 or 5 people in each group.
� Each group comes up with an idea to make a product
using scrap material. The product will be made for other
students in class as the customer and should be useful
for them. Follow the four steps of starting a business listed
above.
� They make the product using scrap material they get from
home, etc. If time is less, students can make the product
after class and bring to the next session.
� After the teams have made the product, each team will
come and present how they used the 4 steps to come up
with the idea and build the product.
� They will then try and sell this product to everyone in
the class.
� The rest of the teams will give feedback and say what they
like and what they do not like in the product. They will
also say how much money they are willing to pay for the
product (vs. what the selling team is asking)
� At the end of this, each student writes answers to the
following questions in their notebook.
� As a seller, what were you thinking when you decided
about the business idea? Why did you select this idea for
business?
� Did you make any changes to your idea after listening to
your friends? If yes, what changes did you make?
� As a buyer, did you want to buy the product your friends
were selling to you? If yes, which product and why?
� As a seller, did you think your friends would pay you
money for your business idea? Why?
� As a buyer, did you want to pay money for the things made
by your friends? Why?
� What did you learn about business through this activity?
Notes
Unit 4.indd 161 23-08-2018 16:59:26
162 Employability Skills � Class IX
Check Your Progress
After completing this session, you will be able to
� identify different steps of starting a business.
� identify the characteristics of business.
A. Match the following
Column A Column B
1. Business idea A. Arun goes to the bank to get loan
for the shop
2. Get money B. Arun and Shyam are thinking
about selling tea in front of their
school
3. Customer needs C. Arun and Shyam decide to sell
tea along with free biscuits
4. Attract customers D. Shyam takes his tea samples to
customers to understand their
taste preferences
B. Short answer questions
1. My customers are not buying my food product because
they do not like the flavour of it. What step of the
business should I follow next?
2. Write the four steps of entrepreneurship development.
Give one example.
What have you learnt?
Notes
Unit 4.indd 162 23-08-2018 16:59:26
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 resources from which food is made and we depend
on the community of living plants and animals, which
form a web of life. Everything around us forms our
environment and our lives depend on the flora and fauna
around us. Similarly, our school environment comprises
the physical and the socio-cultural environment. The
physical environment includes the school building and
the classrooms, library, laboratories corridors, kitchen,
toilets, garden and also the playground. The sociocultural
environment is manifested by the school, with
climate teaching, by the teachers, student activities,
inclusivity, attitude towards learning, social behaviour,
discipline, respect for each other�s caste, religion and
creed, achievement of students, etc.
UnitUnit
Green Skills
5
Unit 5.indd 163 24-08-2018 16:40:38
164 Employability Skills � Class IX
Over the years, with economic development, there
has been an increase in environmental pollution. For
example, with the advent of high input agriculture, we
could grow more food by using fertilisers and pesticides
and using hybrid crops, but it also resulted in the ill
effects of overuse of chemicals, which led to soil and
environmental degradation. This threatens the stability
of the environment. We need to plan the maintenance
of the areas in a sustainable manner so that we can
enjoy the good environment created by us;it may
be sustainable agriculture, developing eco-fashion
design, manufacturing of solar panels, or designing
environmentally sustainable homes.
Session 1: Society and Environment
People live together in villages, cities, states and
countries,thus forming a �Society�. Society interacts
with the environment, and changes it at the same time.
The interaction of the society with the environment
sometimes affects the ecological balance in the
environment. With the increase in population and
economic activities, people�s interference with nature
has started destroying the environment. The industrial
development and intensive agriculture that provides the
goods for our increasingly consumer-oriented society
uses up large amounts of natural resources, such as
water, minerals, petroleum products, wood, etc.
Natural resources
A resource can be defined as any natural or artificial
substance, energy or organism, which is used by human
being for its welfare. Ever since the earth was inhabited,
humans and other life forms have depended on things
that exist freely in nature to survive. These things include
water, land, soils, rocks, forests, animals, fossil fuels
and minerals. They are called natural resources as they
are the basis of life on earth. We use these resources to
survive and also to function properly. Natural resources
can be consumed directly or indirectly. For instance,
humans depend directly on forests for food, biomass,
health, recreation and increased living comfort.
The Constitution
of India contains
specific provisions
for the protection
and improvement of
environmental quality.
Article 48-A of the
Constitution says
that �the state shall
endeavour to protect
and improve the
environment and to
safeguard the forests
and wildlife of the
country.�
Unit 5.indd 164 24-08-2018 16:40:38
Green Skills 165
Indirectly forests helps in regulating climate, preventing
flood, storm protection and nutrient cycling. The
resources, which have been developed by human beings
during the growth of civilisation, are called artificial
resources. For example, biogas, thermal electricity,
plastics, etc.
Natural resources come in many forms. It may be a
solid, liquid or gas. It may also be organic or inorganic.
It may also be metallic or non-metallic.
(i) Land Resources: Human beings thus, use land
as a resource for production as well as residence
and recreation. It is a finite resource which is
subject to agricultural and non-agricultural uses,
such as infrastructure development.
(ii) Forest Resources: A forest is a natural, selfsustaining
community characterised by vertical
structure created by presence of trees. Wood is
used for making furniture, tool-handles, railway
sleepers, matches, ploughs, bridges, boats, etc.
and as a source of energy for cooking purpose
and for keeping warm. Tannins, gums, drugs,
spices, insecticides, waxes, honey, horns, musk,
ivory, hides, etc. are all provided by the flora and
fauna of forests.
(iii) Water Resources: Water covers about threequarters
of Earth�s surface and is a necessary
element for life. Water resources include rivers,
lakes, oceans, and underground aquifers, etc.
Water is a vital resource in agriculture, industrial,
household and recreational and environmental
activities.
(iv) Mineral Resources: A mineral deposit is a
concentration of naturally occurring solid, liquid,
or gaseous material, in or on the Earth�s crust
in such form and amount that its extraction
and its conversion into useful materials or items
are profitable now or may be so in the future.
Mineral resources are non-renewable and include
metals (e.g., iron, copper, and aluminium),
and non-metals (e.g., salt, gypsum, clay, sand,
phosphates). Some minerals consist of a single
Notes
Unit 5.indd 165 24-08-2018 16:40:38
166 Employability Skills � Class IX
element, such as gold, silver, diamond (carbon),
and sulphur.
(v) Food Resources: Resources that are used as
food, or provide food for organisms are called
food resources. Plants serve as food resources for
herbivores and omnivores. Animals and birds are
the source of food for many organisms who are
carnivores and omnivores. Agriculture is the main
source of plant food resource for human beings.
(vi) Energy Resources: An energy resource is
something that can produce heat, power life,
move objects, or produce electricity. There are 5
fundamental sources of energy: (i) Nuclear fusion
in the Sun (solar energy), (ii) Gravity generated
by the Earth and Moon, (iii) Nuclear fission
reactions, (iv) Energy in the interior of the Earth,
and (v) Energy stored in chemical bonds. Most of
the energy we use today come from fossil fuels
(stored solar energy). But fossils fuels have a
disadvantage in that they are non-renewable on
a human time scale, and causes other potentially
harmful effects on the environment.
Natural resources fall under the following main
categories:
(a) Inexhaustible Resources: The resources which
cannot be exhausted by human consumption are called
inexhaustible resources. These include energy sources
like solar radiation, wind power, water power and tidal
power, etc.
(b) Exhaustible Resources: There are some resources,
which are available in limited quantities and are going
to be exhausted as a result of continuous use. For
example, the stock of coal in the earth is limited and
one day there will be no more coal available for our use,
if we keep on using it excessively.
(c) Renewable Resources: Renewable resources are
those that are constantly available (like water) or can be
reasonably replaced or recovered, like vegetative lands
(Table 5.1). Even though some renewable resources can
Notes
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Green Skills 167
be replaced, they may take many years to form and that
does not make them renewable.
Some of the exhaustible resources are naturally
regenerated after consumption and are known as
renewable resources. e.g., Forest trees and plants that
make a forest may be destroyed but new ones grow in
their place. But if forest is totally cut down to get land
for construction of buildings, it is lost forever.
Renewable energy systems use resources that are
constantly replaced and are usually less polluting.
Examples include hydropower, solar, wind, and
geothermal (energy from the heat inside the earth).
(d) Non-renewable Resources: Non-renewable resources
are those that cannot easily be replaced once they are
destroyed (Table 5.1). For example, fossil fuels. Minerals
are also non-renewable because even though they
form naturally in a process called the rock cycle, it can
take thousands of years, making it non-renewable.
Non-renewable resources can be called inorganic
resources if they come from non-living things. For
example, minerals, wind, land, soil and rocks.
Table 5.1: Non-renewable and Renewable Resources
Non-renewable Resources Renewable Resources
Coal
Coal is one of the cheapest sources of
fuel.It is used in power houses, factories
and houses for cooking and heating.
Water
Only about 2.5 % of water on earth is fresh
water. Energy from rivers is used to make
electricity. Energy produced by tides in sea and
oceans can also be converted into electricity.
Petroleum
It includes petrol, diesel and mineral
oils. It is used to run motor vehicles,
furnaces and power-houses.
Sun
Sun�s energy can be used to generate electricity.
These are used in calculators, street lamps,
and even in room heaters and water heaters.
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168 Employability Skills � Class IX
LPG
Liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) is made
from petroleum gas. LPG is used for
cooking and also for running vehicles.
Wind
The energy from the force of the wind is wind
energy. This energy can be used for work as
grinding grain, pumping water, etc. This energy
can also be converted to electricity.
Natural Gas
It is formed by decomposition of dead
animals and plants that are buried under
lakes and oceans. It is found above the
oil in the oil wells. Compressed natural
gas (CNG) is used for running vehicles.
Biomass
Energy can be produced by wastes from plants
and animals. It can be used for any heating
purpose, such as cooking. It can also be used
to produce electricity and heat.
Nuclear Plants
Nuclear energy is made available to us
with the help of nuclear power plants.
Nuclear energy is becoming a common
source of electricity throughout the
world. It has the danger of causing great
harm in case of an accident.
Soil
Nutrients in the soil helps plants grow. Soil
is used to provide shelter. Soil quality gets
damaged due to addition to harmful chemicals,
land pollution, construction activities, and
cutting down of trees.
Minerals
The earth contains minerals like gold,
bauxite, mica, iron-ore and many others.
They are reducing as larger and deeper
mines are being dug to obtain these
minerals. Mining these minerals causes
damage to the earth.
Forests
Forests are necessary to preserve ecology. They
play an important role in providing clean air
and attracting rain clouds. They also provide
the wood, fruits, and plant products which
have medicinal value.
Traditional societies had a small population and
required less resources. They could preserve their
biodiversity as a life supporting resource. But today,
with the increasing consumerism and affluent societies,
resources are getting rapidly depleted, even to the extent
of leading to the irrecoverable loss due to extinction of
several plant and animal species. Some of the human
activities, which cause damage to the environment are
over exploitation of resources, pollution, deforestation,
mining, destruction of natural habitats, construction,
etc. Let us now discuss how some of these activities are
damaging our earth and environment.
(i) Overexploitation: This results when harvesting
of resources exceeds their reproduction or
replenishment. It means that when we exploit
the species faster than the natural populations
can recover, then it may result in extinction of
the species, thus affecting directly or indirectly
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Green Skills 169
the ecological cycle and our environment. For
example, removal of wild medicinal plants,
excessive grazing of pastures by animals,
destruction of forests, and water aquifers,
overfishing and over hunting, results in
overexploitation of forests and natural habitats.
(ii) Mining: Mines are dug below the earth�s surface
to get ores. The ores are then refined to extract
the valuable elements, such as metals, gems,
minerals, etc. Some of the environmental impacts
of mining include erosion, formation of sinkholes,
loss of biodiversity, and contamination of soil,
groundwater and surface water by chemicals
from the mining processes.
(iii) Deforestation: It is the clearance of a forest or
stand of trees where the land is converted to a nonforest
use, such as agriculture and construction
of houses. It results in loss of habitat for many
plants and animals living in the forest. It may also
lead to extinction of plant and animal species.
(iv) Pollution: This word is derived from the Latin
word �polluere� meaning �to soil� or �defile
(contaminate)�. Pollution is caused by pollutants,
which may be solid, liquid or gaseous in nature.
Pollution is the effect of undesirable changes in
our surroundings that have harmful effects on
plants, animals and human beings. Pollutants
are produced due to human activity, which
have a detrimental effect on our environment.
For example, factories consume a lot of water
and electricity and release harmful chemicals
in air, land and water, thus contaminating the
atmosphere. Water pollution caused by factories
and other industries can be the most serious
problem. They also pollute the air through fossil
fuel emissions. These emissions include carbon
dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide, which are
harmful to the living beings.
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170 Employability Skills � Class IX
Pollutants are of two types, as described in Table 5.2.
Some of the other factors responsible for polluting the
environment are as follows:
� Exhaust fumes released from vehicle pollutes
the air.
� Excessive use of chemicals in agriculture (like
insecticides and fertilisers) affect the alkailinity
of the soil or the soil pH. It adversely affects the
health of microorganisms and other organisms in
the soil.
� Plastic waste like bottles, bags, etc., thrown on
land and sea pollutes the water and destroys the
flora and fauna.
� Dangerous gases (cholorofluorocarbons or CFCs,
methane, carbon dioxide, etc.) released into
the air.
The various types of pollution are summarised in
Table 5.3.
Table 5.3: Types of Pollution
Land Pollution Water Pollution Air Pollution
What it is? � Damage to the
land because
of harmful
substances is
known as land
pollution.
� Adding harmful
substances and
disease causing
bacteria and other
microorganisms to
rivers, lakes, and
oceans results in
water pollution.
� Addition of harmful
gases and particles
in air results in air
pollution.
Table 5.2: Pollutants
Pollutants that can decompose Pollutants that cannot decompose
Pollutants that break down into simpler,
harmless substances naturally (by the
action of moisture and bacteria) are called
biodegradable pollutants
Pollutants which cannot be broken down into
simpler and harmless substances are called
non-biodegradable pollutants. The harmful
effect caused by these pollutants will be there
for hundreds of years.
Examples: vegetable waste, sewage waste,
paper, wood, cattle dung, agricultural waste
from organic farms, etc.
Examples: plastics, insecticides, pesticides,
chemicals like mercury or lead, aluminium,
glass, etc.
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Green Skills 171
Land Pollution Water Pollution Air Pollution
What happens
because of this
pollution?
� Diseases, such
as dysentery,
cholera and
typhoid
� Less land is
available for use
of forests, farms
or homes
� Diseases, such as
dysentery, diarrhoea,
jaundice, typhoid, etc.
� Local earnings, like
tourism, fishing, etc.
are adversely affected.
� Less drinking water
� Heart and breathing
problems and
cancers.
� Climate change,
droughts, famines
and floods
Why does it
happen?
� Cutting down
forests
� Harmful
pesticides and
fertilisers
� Mining and heavy
construction
� Release of
sewage, toilet
waste, waste from
houses/factories,
and chemical
waste
� Throwing waste in
water
� Leakage from sewer
lines
� Release of waste water
from houses, farms
and factories
� Accidental oil leakage
from ships
� Burning of fuels
� Smoke from traffic
� Burning waste and
remains of crops
� Pesticides and
fertilisers
� Smoke from factories
� Dust from
construction
How to prevent
it?
� Reduce waste
� Segregate
(separate) waste
products
� Plant trees
� Adopt natural
and organic
farming methods
� Use biodegradable
items
� Do not throw waste
into water bodies
� Do not throw
chemicals, medicines,
oils, etc., in drains
� Avoid using pesticides
and fertilisers
� Ensure proper
treatment of sewage
and factory waste
� Use water wisely
� Use renewable
sources of energy
� Avoid polluting
vehicles
� Stop others from
burning waste and
left-over crops
� Avoid pesticides
and fertilisers which
release harmful
gases
If we separate all our waste before throwing it away, it
will help us manage the non-biodegradable pollutants
in a better manner. For example, if you keep all your
vegetable waste covered in soil for some weeks, it will
make the soil fertile and you will have less waste to
throw away. Also harmful wastes can be separated from
water before it mixes into our drinking water.
Climate change
Have you ever sat in a car or bus which has been
parked in an open area under the sun, with windows
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172 Employability Skills � Class IX
closed for a long time? Have you felt that it is much
hotter inside a closed vehicle because the heated air is
blocked inside? Similarly, the earth is becoming hotter
because of burning fossil fuels (coal, petrol, diesel, etc.).
These gases trap and prevent the earth�s heat from
escaping, leading to a global warming. This is called the
�greenhouse effect�.
Forests are the main mechanism for the conversion
of carbon dioxide into carbon and oxygen. The loss
of forest cover, coupled with the increasing release of
carbon dioxide and other gases through industrialization
contributes to the �greenhouse effect�. Some greenhouse
gases occur naturally and enter the atmosphere as a
result of both natural processes (such as decomposition
of organic matter) and human activity (such as burning
fossil fuels and agriculture).
Greenhouse gases that occur both naturally and
from human activities include water vapour, carbon
dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O) and
ozone (O3). Other greenhouse gases have essentially no
natural sources, but are the side products of industrial
processes or manufactured for human purposes,
such as cleaning agents, refrigerants, and electrical
insulators. These include the fluorinated gases:
chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), hydro chlorofluorocarbons
(HCFCs), hydrofluorocarbons (HCFCs). This greenhouse
effect causes snow to melt very fast.
Carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere from
burning oil, coal and gas for energy use is a serious
problem as it is harmful to the environment. Carbon
dioxide in the atmosphere has increased by 31% since
pre-industrial times, causing more heat to be trapped
in the lower atmosphere. As a result, there are frequent
floods and changes in climate as well as damage to
crops and animal life.
Harmful radiation
You might be knowing that the atmosphere protects us
from harmful radiation from the sun. This is done by a
layer all around the earth, in the atmosphere, called the
�Ozone Layer�. It is made of a gas called �Ozone�. This
Notes
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Green Skills 173
layer in the atmosphere protects us from the harmful
radiation.
Cleaning chemicals, coolants in refrigerators and airconditioners,
etc., release ozone depleting substances,
such as chlorofluorocarbons in the atmosphere. These
destroy the ozone in the atmosphere, making �holes� in
the ozone layer. The harmful radiation comes in through
these �holes� and cause increased incidence of health
disorders, such as skin cancer.
Natural disasters
Natural disasters include floods, earthquakes,
landslides, storms, etc. Our actions in exploiting
natural resources for building structures, such as large
dams and buidlings sometimes aggravates the impact
of natural calamities and disasters.
Saving the environment: What can you do?
To save our environment, we need to educate people.
Education is important, as it gives people the knowledge
and skills that they need to perform. Educating people
about the environment, through the environment and
for the environment will enlighten them in utilizing
their knowledge and skills for saving the environment
as responsible citizens.
(i) Learning about the environment: Learning
about the environment focuses mainly on
acquisition of knowledge and understanding of
our surroundings and related issues.
(ii) Learning through the environment: Learning
through the environment refers to the processes
of learning while being engaged with environment
inside and outside the classroom. It focuses on
learning process, such as observation, hands-on
experience, learning-by-doing, problem-solving
through an exposure to the environment and
learning. The direct contact with the environment
provides the relevant context for acquiring
knowledge, skills, aesthetic appreciation and
practical experience to learning. Environment
damage can be minimised by developing the skills
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Unit 5.indd 173 24-08-2018 16:40:38
174 Employability Skills � Class IX
and knowledge required for efficient resource
utilisation, green processes and technologies
and integrating these into our businesses and
daily activities.
(iii) Learning for the environment: Learning for
the environment aims at the development of an
informed response and responsibility towards
the environment.
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
There are three Rs which you can apply for saving
the environment � Reduce, Reuse and Recycle. It is a
concept of the modern waste management.
Reduce: Do not use what you do not need. If we reduce at
source, there is a lesser chance of waste generation and
the pressure on our already stretched natural resources
is reduced. On an individual level we can reduce the use
of unnecessary items while shopping, buy items with
minimal packaging, avoid buying disposable items and
also avoid asking for plastic carry bags. Use your own
reusable cloth or jute bags instead of plastic bags.
Reuse: Reuse the materials for other purposes, such
as making pillow covers or rags out of used shirts or
ladies suits.
Recycling: Recycling is reusing some components of the
waste that may have some economic value. Recycling
has readily visible benefits, such as conservation of
resources reduction in energy used during manufacture
and reducing pollution levels. Some materials, such
as aluminum and steel can be recycled many times.
Metal, paper, glass and plastics are recyclable. Plastic
items are recycled into new plastic products. Kitchen
wet waste can be utilised to make compost that can
be used as an organic fertiliser. To do this every house
should segregate the waste into wet and dry garbage.
Wet garbage includes most kitchen wastes, which can
be used for preparing vermicompost. Most dry garbage
is recyclable. Several technological breakthroughs
have recently been made to recover material from
industrial waste. Non-toxic solid waste should be
properly segregated and disposed of in landfills that are
RE DUCE
USE
CYCLE
Unit 5.indd 174 24-08-2018 16:40:38
Green Skills 175
properly sealed to avoid leakage and contamination of
surrounding land and groundwater.
Let us now see some examples of 3 Rs (Table 5.4).
Table 5.4: Examples of Reduce, Reuse and Recycle
Reduce: Use less things Reuse: Use things for
longer time
Recycle: Use things in new or
different ways
Paper for each notebook
means cutting down
of a tree. Do not leave
too much spaces, while
writing the text. Reduce
the wastage of paper.
Use both sides of paper
for writing. Give your old
books and notebooks to
someone who can use
them. In this way, you
will promote reuse of
paper.
Paper is recycled into making
paper again. It is also used to make
papier mache, which is a composite
material consisting of paper pieces
or pulp which is sometimes
reinforced with textiles, bound with
an adhesive, such as glue, starch,
or wallpaper paste.
Actions for saving the environment
Some actions that you can take for yourself and
encourage your friends, family and neighbours to take
are shown in Table 5.5.
Table 5.5: Actions for Saving the Environment
Avoid Prefer
Air pollution Burning materials, for example
burning wheat or rice straw in
agricultural field
Using natural ventilation or fans in
place of airconditioners
Energy use Leaving electrical lights or
appliances on, when not required
Using public transport buses and
cycles (instead of cars), using solar
or wind energy
Water pollution Throwing waste in rivers and
lakes
Using recycled water or water
harvested through rains for
watering garden plants
Waste Using plastic bags Segregating waste before throwing,
so that the biodegradable waste
can be harvested
Chemicals in food Using chemical pesticides or
fertilisers
Organic (natural and chemical free)
food to promote organic farming
Forest Plants Over-use of paper should be
avoided
Reusing paper for making paper
based products
Water Over-use of water should be
avoided
Reducing water use during bathing
by using water filled in a bucket
instead of shower
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176 Employability Skills � Class IX
The teacher will facilitate these activities and give additional
feedback and summarise for the students as needed.
Activity 1
Factors influencing the environment
Materials required
Pen and Notebook
Procedure
� Form groups of three students.
� Based on what you learnt about the environment and how
different things or actions are effecting the environment,
make a list of all factors (things or actions) that affect the
environment.
� Think about all the articles you use daily that are made
from plastic and answer the following questions
(a) How plastic is made?
(b) What are those plastic articles you usually use?
(c) What effects does plastic have on our environment?
(d) How can you reduce the amount of plastic you use?
(e) What happens to plastic when you throw it away?
� Discuss these factors in detail. One volunteer group
explains their list to the rest of the class who give feedback.
Activity 2
Steps you can take to save the environment
Materials required
Pen, Notebook
Procedure
� Use same groups as above.
� Think about your day from the time you wake up until the
time you sleep. In this time, what steps can you take to
help save the environment?
� Write a note on the actions that you would take at home
or at school to do the following activities:
(a) Collecting waste paper and reusing what is reusable
(for crafts, papiermache, making rough books, etc.)
(b) Encouraging use of both sides of paper.
(c) Discouraging wastage and casual use of paper,
pencils, etc.
(d) Proper use of notebooks and not tearing out pages.
(e) Discouraging use of throw away pens and encouraging
use of refillable items.
(f) Making rough pads with blank sheets from old
notebooks.
Notes
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Green Skills 177
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 are some of the environmental changes caused
due to modern methods of agriculture?
(a) Chemical pollution due to fertilisers
(b) Improvement in the environment
(c) Lower air pollution due to crops
(d) Decrease in forest areas
2. How can we conserve our health and environment?
(Choose all the correct options)
(a) Grow organic crops
(b) Use natural fertilisers
(c) Manage waste water
(d) Use more air conditioning
3. A steel factory burns firewood and charcoal for heating
and melting the steel? What are the possible effects on
the environment? (Choose all the correct options)
(a) Increase in global temperature
(b) Decrease in global temperature
(c) Increase in air pollution
(d) Decrease in air pollution
B. Short answer questions
1. What are the five sources of energy available to us?
Give two examples of each source?
2. What are the sources of pollution?
3. Classify the following under the three respective
categories of natural resources:
Air, iron, sand, petroleum, wind, clay, fish, forest, gold,
pearls.
Inexhaustible Renewable Non- renewable
What have you learnt?
After completing this session, you will be able to
� describe the relation between society and environment.
� identify common environmental problems.
Notes
Unit 5.indd 177 24-08-2018 16:40:39
178 Employability Skills � Class IX
Session 2: Conserving Natural Resources
In this session, you will learn about the actions that we
can take to conserve natural resources. Conservation
is the proper management of a natural resource to
prevent its exploitation, destruction or degradation.
Conservation is the sum total of activities, which
can derive benefits from natural resources but at the
same time prevent excessive use, which may lead to
destruction or degradation. It means using them more
efficiently and less wastefully.
As a first step, we can conduct the resource audit
to examine the consumption of the resources and
accordingly take measures to conserve them. For
example, for an energy use audit, we can examine the
use of the air conditioning system, ventilation system,
light system and entry of sunlight into the room or the
building. We can plan energy saving measures, such as
cleaning the dust from the tubelights to get more light,
regular servicing and maintenance of home appliances
and switching off lights and devices when not in use,
etc. to conserve energy. Energy conservation also help
in saving fossil fuel and money.
Soil conservation
Soil conservation means checking soil erosion and
improving soil fertility by adopting various methods.
Soil conservation can be useful for the following:
1. Maintenance of soil fertility: The fertility can be
maintained by adding manure and fertilizers
regularly as well as by rotation of crop.
2. Control on grazing: Grazing should be allowed
only on specified areas.
3. Reforestation: Planting of trees and vegetation
reduces soil erosion.
4. Terracing: Dividing a slope into several flat fields
to control rapid run of water. It is practised mostly
in hilly areas.
5. Contour ploughing: Ploughing at right angles to
the slope allows the furrows to trap water and
check soil erosion by rain water.
Notes
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Green Skills 179
Water conservation
Conservation and management of water are essential
for the survival of mankind, plants and animals. This
can be achieved by adopting the following methods:
1. Growing vegetation in the catchment areas, which
will hold water in the soil and allow it to percolate
into deeper layers and contribute to formation of
ground water.
2. Constructing dams and reservoirs to regulate
supply of water to the fields, as well as to enable
generation of hydroelectricity.
3. Sewage should be treated and only the clear water
should be released into the rivers.
4. Industrial wastes (effluents) should be treated
to prevent chemical and thermal pollution of
fresh water.
5. Judicious use of water in our day-to-day life.
6. Rainwater harvesting should be done by storing
rainwater and recharging groundwater.
7. Watershed, which is a single unit of land with its
water drainage system includes soil and water
management for developing vegetative cover in
the area.
Energy conservation
We use a lot of non-renewable energy resource for our
needs. Since resources are limited, we need to conserve
them as much as possible. Conservation of resources or
energy means saving them and using them efficiently.
Can you think of ways to save the natural resources?
Some ideas have been given here in table 5.6.
Table 5.6: Ways of Conserving Energy
� Switch off lights, fans, TV and other electrical items, when not in use
� Use tube lights and energy efficient bulbs that save energy rather than bulbs.
� Keep the bulbs and tubes clean.
� Remove dust on the tubes and bulbs to improve lighting levels by 10 to 20%.
� Use pressure cooker to save energy required for cooking.
� Keep vessels covered with a lid during cooking. It is useful in cooking the food
faster
and saving energy.
� Electric items like air conditioners geysers, heaters and dryers use a lot of
electrical
power. Use them when necessary.
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180 Employability Skills � Class IX
The teacher will facilitate these activities and give additional
feedback and summarise for the students as needed.
Activity 1
Conserving natural resources
Material required
Pen, notebook, chart paper, colours, crayons etc.
Procedure
� Form a group with four students in each group.
� Make a list of all the energy or natural resources you use
in a day, such as petrol or diesel for coming to school in a
bus, electricity for light, etc. Then make a list of how you
can reduce the amount of resources in each step.
� Make a poster on �Conserving the Environment�. Write
short note on the following topics:
(a) Rain water harvesting
(b) Home composting
(c) Garden on terrace,
(d) Organic gardening
(e) Drip irrigation
Food conservation
Food conservation and storage have been practiced to
feed mankind in times of shortage. Food is stored in
warehouses on large scale and in refrigerators at home.
Food is also preserved through various methods to
prevent the spoilage due to harmful bacteria and other
microorganisms.
Forest conservation
Forest conservation means the retention of existing
forest or the creation of new forest at the levels prescribed
by the State or local authority. Participation of the
community living in and around the forest is important
for the success of the forest conservation programme.
Do you know?
In the long-term,
renewable energy will be
cheaper and will cause
less pollution.
� Do not keep the door of a refrigerator open for a long time.
� Cool hot food before putting in the refrigerator.
� Use methods of cooking that use less energy, like use a pressure cooker or solar
cooker
to cook food.
� Travelling in a bus or travelling in a group in a carpool is better than going
alone in
a car.
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Green Skills 181
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 does conservation of energy mean? (Choose all
options that apply)
(a) Saving energy
(b) Producing energy
(c) Using energy efficiently
(d) Creating energy sources
2. Which of the following are non-renewable resources?
(Choose all options that apply)
(a) Coal
(b) Diesel
(c) Sun
(d) Water
3. Which of the following is an example of renewable
resources?
(a) Coal
(b) Solar Energy
(c) CNG
(d) Petroleum
B. Short answer questions
1. Write any three actions which you can take to conserve
energy.
2. Describe any three methods of water conservation.
3. What is the purpose of soil conservation?
4. State any three ways by which we can save energy.
What have you learnt?
After completing this session, you will be able to
� describe methods of conservation of energy resource.
� differentiate between renewable and non-renewable
resources.
� demonstrate the knowledge of conserving electricity,
water, energy, etc.
Session 3: Sustainable Development and
Green Economy
The current strategies of economic development are
using up resources of the world so rapidly that our future
generations, the young people of the world, would have
Notes
Unit 5.indd 181 24-08-2018 16:40:39
182 Employability Skills � Class IX
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
utilization of natural resources, which are required
for producing goods. Society must thus change its
unsustainable 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,
judicious utilisation of resource is necessary.
Now let us try to understand the meaning of
sustainable development. Sustainable development is
defined as �development 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 chemicals so as to avoid adverse effects to
soil, water and biodiversity.
Biological diversity or biodiversity in short is that
part of nature which includes the differences in genes
among the individuals of a species, the variety and
richness of all the plant and animal species at different
scales in space, locally, in a region, in the country
and the world, and various types of ecosystems, both
terrestrial and aquatic, within a defined area. Biological
diversity is essential for preserving ecological processes,
such as fixing and recycling of nutrients, soil formation,
circulation and cleansing of air and water, global life
support (plants absorb CO2 , give out O2 ), maintaining the
water balance within ecosystems, watershed protection,
maintaining stream and river flows throughout the year,
erosion control and local flood reduction.
What is sustainable development?
Sustainability is the development that satisfies the
needs of the present without compromising the capacity
Notes
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Green Skills 183
of future generations, guaranteeing the balance between
economic growth, care for the environment and social
well-being. Sustainable development is a concept that
appeared for the first time in 1987 with the publication
of the Brundtland Report, warning of the negative
environmental consequences of economic growth and
globalisation.
Sustainable development includes the following:
� reducing excessive use of resources and enhancing
resource conservation.
� recycling and reuse of waste materials.
� scientific management of renewable resources,
especially bio-resources.
� planting more trees.
� green grassy patches to be interspersed between
concrete buildings.
� using more environment friendly material or
biodegradable material.
� use of technologies, which are environmental
friendly and based on efficient use of resources.
Sustainable Development Goals
The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs),
otherwise known as the Global Goals, are a
universal call to 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.
The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its
17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) adopted by
world leaders in 2015, embody a road map for progress
that is sustainable and leaves no one behind. The SDGs
have been framed with the objective to address vital
issues facing businesses, governments and society, such
as poverty, gender equality, water use, energy, climate
change and biodiversity. Countries are now establishing
policies and regulations that will promote sustainable
systems needed in all economic sectors to provide a
secure, affordable, and sustainable economy. The core
�The principle of common
but differentiated
responsibilities is the
bedrock of our enterprise
for a sustainable world�
Narendra Modi
Prime Minister of India
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184 Employability Skills � Class IX
skills identified as necessary for the green worker
include environmental awareness and willingness to
learn about sustainable development as well as general
learning and decision-making ability.
Green growth
The concept of green growth aims at achieving economic
growth that is socially inclusive and environmentally
sustainable. The Ministry of Environment, Forest, and
Climate Change, Government of India recognized green
growth in its vision, wherein �poverty eradication� along
with green growth is to be seen as the focal point for
green economy.
The Finance Commission of India articulated green
growth as involving �rethinking growth strategies with
regard to their impact(s) on environmental sustainability
and the environmental resources available to poor and
vulnerable groups.� The extent to which its economy
will �grow green� will depend on its ability to reduce
the quantity of resources required over time to support
economic growth that leads to enhancement of social
equity and job creation. Green growth could play an
important role in balancing these priorities.
To ensure sustainable development, any activity that
is expected to bring about economic growth must also
consider its environmental impacts so that it is more
consistent with long term growth and development.
This means vehicles on the road which leads to traffic
congestion, waste of time for all the commuters, and a
great load of particulate matter and carbon monoxide
from the exhaust of vehicles should be slowly replaced
with an efficient public transport system.
Green Economy
The term �Green Economy� was first coined in a 1989
report for the Government of the United Kingdom by
a group of leading environmental economists, entitled
Blueprint for a Green Economy. UNEP has defined
the green economy as �one that results in improved
human well-being and social equity, while significantly
reducing environmental risks and ecological scarcities.
Notes
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Green Skills 185
It is low carbon, resource efficient, and socially
inclusive� (UNEP, 2011). A �Green Economy�
is a system which helps in economic growth
while at the same time, taking care of the
environment as shown in Figure 5.1.
Certain ways of economic growth, such as
building factories, using chemicals for more
crops, etc., harm the environment. Some
ways of saving the environment, such as not
using fertilisers will harm the economy of the
farmers. But then, both the environment and
economy are important for us as a society. As
people begin to learn about the serious health
hazards caused by pesticides in their food,
public awareness can begin putting pressures
on farmers to reduce the use of chemicals that
are injurious to health. In the longer term, as
people become more conscious of using �green
products� made by ecosensitive industries, the
products that cause severe damage to the environment
may not be used.
Green Consumer
A green consumer is someone who is very concerned about the
environment and, therefore, only purchases products that are
environment-friendly or eco-friendly. Products with little or no
packaging, products made from natural ingredients and products
that are made without causing pollution are all examples of ecofriendly
products.
Components of a Green Economy
A green economy includes the following components as
shown in Table 5.7.
Society
Environment Economy
Benefits of All
Fig. 5.1 Green Economy
Table 5.7: Components of a Green Economy
Renewable energy Renewable energy from renewable
resources like wind, water, sun, earth,
biomass, etc., are available in large
quantities and cause less pollution.
India ranks amongst the top 10
countries for production of renewable
energy through solar, wind and
biomass.
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186 Employability Skills � Class IX
In other words, we can say that a green economy uses
less resources, causes less pollution and provides
growth for everyone.
Skill development for Green Economy
The key challenges for India are to expand access to food,
energy, water and other essential goods and services to
its growing population. It needs to work towards the
objective of alleviating poverty and catalysing sustainable
development. The development of skills for green
jobs is crucial to ensuring an efficient transition from
Green building Green buildings are buildings that
cause minimum damage to the
environment during their construction
and operation. They use energy, water,
and other resources wisely, with
minimum waste.
Well-managed
(Sustainable)
transport
Sustainable means what is good for the
economy as well as the future of the
environment. A sustainable transport
system will cost less, help more people
to move quickly and cause less or no
damage to the environment.
Water management We need to avoid water pollution and
not waste water. We should not waste
water, rather we should recycle it for
various purposes.
Waste management All wastes result in loss of resources
and increases land, water and air
pollution. You can prevent this by
separating waste before throwing.
Using the 3Rs�Reduce, Reuse and
Recycle will help in managing waste
material.
Land management Land is used for farming, forests,
factories, homes, roads, etc. In a
green economy, land is used in a
way that it meets the requirement of
people without causing damage to the
environment.
Notes
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Green Skills 187
unsustainable to a green economy by matching supply
and demand for skills. A green job can be with business,
nonprofit organizations, government or education. Some
green jobs may have specific requirements for green
skills, such as organic farmer needs to have a knowledge
and skills for growing organically certified crops. Solar
technicians or engineers should possess the knowledge
and skills for design, installation and maintenance of
solar panels and appliances. Other green jobs may not
necessarily require specific skills, for example a graphic
designer or a cashier working for a green company or
organization will be contributing to the development of
green growth and economy.
Green skills
The skills used for promoting green economy are
known as green skills. These skills are needed in areas
similar to renewable energy, sewer water treatment,
climate resilient cities, green construction, solid waste
management,etc. The Green Skills Agreement defines
skills for sustainability as �Skills for sustainability,
also known as green skills, 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.� Some of the areas
in which green skills contribute to the sustainable
development are as follows:
� using renewable energy (example, using solar
power and wind energy)
� water and waste management
� rain water harvesting
� conserving energy
� reducing pollution
Green skilling is crucial for making a transition from
energy and emissions � intensive economy to cleaner
and greener production and service. It also prepares
people for green jobs that contribute to preserving or
restoring the quality of the environment, while improving
human well-being and social equity. Many technologies
have been developed to make use of the solar energy,
Green skills
Green skills are those
skills required to adapt
processes, services
and products to
climate change and the
environmental rules
and necessities related
to it. They embrace
the information,
abilities, values and
attitudes required to
live in, develop and
support a sustainable
and resource-efficient
society.
Unit 5.indd 187 24-08-2018 16:40:40
188 Employability Skills � Class IX
such as solar lights, solar cooker, solar water heaters,
etc. The installation of the solar panels and appliances
requires engineers and technicians.
Most vocational training programmes focus on
vocational or technical skills rather than �soft� or
�green� skills. Green skills contribute to preserving
or restoring environmental quality for sustainable
future and include jobs that protect ecosystems and
biodiversity, reduce energy and minimise waste and
pollution. The National Skill Development Mission,
which was officially launched by Government of India in
2015 has been developed to create convergence across
sectors and States in terms of skill training activities,
including green skills. The knowledge and skills that
may be needed for managing resources and supporting
efficiency have been summarised in Table 5.8.
Green skills are going to be more important in the
future as all countries will move towards a greener
economy. Good communication skills are also needed
so that workers in different sectors can work together
Green Consumer Day is
celebrated on September
28 of each year. It is a day
when people celebrate
the earth and bring
about awareness on how
small actions can help
earth to remain green
and clean. People tend
to recycle more than
usual on that day and
wear the colour green
to express to the world
their feelings regarding
the universe and mother
nature.
Table 5.8: Knowledge and skills needed for managing resources
and supporting efficiency
S.No. Purpose Knowledge and skills needed for green economy
Manage natural
resources
� To assess environmental impact
� To design and adopt technologies that help in reducing the
consumption of natural resources
� To understand legislation and guidelines for sustainable
utilisation of natural resources
Support climate
resilience
� To develop models for interpreting climate change
projections
� To develop risk management strategies for future resource
availability
� To adopt technologies that improve resilience
Support resource
efficiency
� To develop resource efficient business models
� To develop and adopt technologies that maximises
resource utilisation and reduces waste
Support low
carbon industry
� To develop technologies that promote renewable energy
sources (wind, solar, water)
� To design and adopt technologies and products that
minimises carbon emissions
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Green Skills 189
effectively towards green solutions. In the green building
sector, for example, the ability to work with other trades
is critical to improving a building�s energy efficiency. The
Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change
has taken up an initiative for skill development in the
environment and forest sector to enable India�s youth
to get gainful employment and/or self-employment,
called the GREEN SKILL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME
(GSDP). The programme endeavours to develop green
skilled workers having technical knowledge and
commitment to sustainable development, which will
help in the attainment of the Sustainable Development
Goals.
Environmental change can be seen as an important
factor that affects labour demand and skills supply
across all sectors, such as Automotive, Retail,
Electronics, Power, Construction, etc., which impacts
the economy. Green Skills thus, are the skills that aim
to balance economic development with environmental
conservation so that the needs of the society, economy
and environment are efficiently met, with minimum
damage to the environment.
What are green jobs?
A �green job� is employment in any industry that
contributes to preserving or restoring environmental
quality in that sector and allowing for sustainable
development. It includes jobs that help protect ecosystems
and biodiversity and reduce energy, materials and
water consumption through high efficiency strategies.
Green jobs can be in any sector, such as agriculture,
manufacturing, research and development activities,
etc. They can bring about the much needed transition
from high carbon to low carbon economy by promoting
environment friendly technologies. A rise in green
buildings and energy efficiency is increasing the demand
for architects, engineers, technicians, plumbers,
construction workers, etc. Some of the sectors, which
have the potential for green jobs are as follows:
Notes
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190 Employability Skills � Class IX
S.No. Sector Areas/Field Green Jobs
Agriculture � Organic farming
� Watershed management
� Rain water harvesting
� Water quality technician
� Rain water harvesting
professionals and
technician
� Solar pump technician
� Greenhouse or
polyhouse professionals
and technicians
Construction � Planning, design and
manufacturing of energy
efficient lighting appliances and
equipment
� Increasing efficiency of existing
buildings through energy audits
� Planning, design, and
construction of green buildings
� Green plumbing, using sensor
based equipment
� Green builders
� Green design
professionals
� Green workers
Energy � Research, construction, and
monitoring of power plant,
including plant efficiency and
carbon sequestration
� Increased power plant efficiency
� Solar Cell Technicians
and Engineers
� Wind energy
professionals
� Wind energy workers
� Biofuel professionals
� Wave energy producers
Forestry � Reforestation and afforestation
projects
� Agroforestry and vertical farming
for better utilisation of natural
resources.
� Natural scientists
Manufacturing � Pollution control
� Energy efficiency
� Recycling waste materials
� Recyclers
Retail � Greener products and
specifically targeted green stores
� Green salesperson
� Accountants
� Cashiers
� Sales associates
Automotive
and Transport
� Research and design on more
fuel efficient vehicles and on
public transport systems
� Manufacture of alternatively
fuelled vehicles
� Clean car engineers
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Green Skills 191
Tourism and
Hospitality
� Eco-friendly practices, such
as centralized lighting and air
conditioning systems for saving
electricity
� Eco-tour guides
� Eco-tour guides
� Green tour guides
Education � Research and development
activities for promoting green
growth and economy
� Teaching environmental
education
� Research and development
in conservation of natural
resources
� Teachers teaching
environmental education
� Green scientist
� Conservation biologists
Green projects
Many people and organisation are concerned
and motivated about doing something to save the
environment. They are implementing green projects
in areas like waste management, energy conservation,
green sanitation, biofuel use, green buildings, etc.
Examples of the green projects undertaken by some of
the organisations are given in Table 5.9 to highlight the
various aspects of green practices and techniques that
could help us in saving our environment and making
our efforts more focused for sustainable development
and growth.
Table 5.9: Examples of Green Projects
Solid Waste Management by 'Swachh Cooperative'
'Swachh Cooperative' is wholly owned by waste pickers. The
Cooperative has members who are engaged in door step
collection of waste in Pune. This integrates informal waste
pickers into Pune city�s
Solid Waste Management
system. This project has
become a success with the
support of government
and the waste-pickers.
Waste pickers now work
with dignity and provide a
decentralised waste
management system. They
ensure efficient disposal of
wet waste through biogas
regeneration, along with recycling of solid waste. Biogas is
produced from plant material and animal waste, garbage,
Unit 5.indd 191 24-08-2018 16:40:41
192 Employability Skills � Class IX
The teacher will facilitate these activities and give additional
feedback and summarise for the students as needed.
waste from households and some types of industrial wastes,
such as fish processing, dairies, and sewage treatment plants.
It is a mixture of gases which includes methane, carbon
dioxide, hydrogen sulphide and water vapour. In this mixture,
methane burns easily.
Modern Chulha of �Society of Development and
Environment Protection�
Energy efficient cooking stoves or �chulas� help the movement
of air through it so that the wood is burnt more efficiently.
The Society of Development and Environment Protection
developed the �Modern DEEP (Development and Environment
Protection) Chulha� that uses biomass to reduce consumption
of wood by 50%. This chulha reduces smoke by 80%, reducing
environmental and health problems. The project trains
masons and welders, to produce the chulhas, thus increasing
employment and entrepreneurship opportunities. The initiative
was started in 35,000 households of Solan district in Himachal
Pradesh in 1995.
Biotoilet by �Green Solution Foundation�
GSF (Green Solution Foundation) has created a bio-toilet
solution for hygienic sanitation in
villages and slums in cities that lacked
sewage systems. Users or donors fund
these bio-toilets while GSF provides
training on toilet use and servicing
involving the local population, thus
creating employment and
entrepreneurship opportunities.
The Bio-digester tank forms the basis
for this eco-friendly toilet. Using
aerobic bacteria, this tank converts
human waste into environment
standard compatible water, which is
used for flushing, or even for irrigation.
Green benefits
� Water conservation due to less flushing
� Efficient sewage system
� Decrease in soil and water contamination
� Decrease in diseases due to hygienic sanitation.
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Green Skills 193
Activity 1
Importance of Green Skills
Procedure
� Form groups of 3�4 people in each group.
� Within your group, discuss the importance of green skills
and their role in making a green economy.
� One volunteer group explains the importance of green
skills and a green economy to the rest of the class.
Activity 2
Importance of green economy
Materials required
Pen, chart paper, colours, crayons
Procedure
1. Keep the same group as the previous activity.
2. Make a poster on �Importance of a Green Economy� using
the points from your previous discussion. You can use
magazine and newspaper cuttings.
Check Your Progress
A. Multiple choice question
Read the questions carefully and circle the letter (a),
(b), (c) or (d) that best answers the question.
1. Which of the following options describe a green economy
correctly? A green economy _____________________.
(a) uses less resources
(b) uses more resources
(c) wastes less items
(d) wastes more items
B. Short answer questions
1. What are green skills?
2. Give two examples of green skills that you can start
learning from now.
What have you learnt?
After completing this session, you will be able to
� demonstrate the knowledge of green skills, green
economy and green jobs.
� identify the green jobs in various sectors.
Notes
Unit 5.indd 193 24-08-2018 16:40:42

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