Pakistan, Sept. 25 -- Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif on Thursday approved a new school curriculum aimed at reducing the burden of textbooks and curbing rote learning, while directing steps for mental health support and online counselling for teachers and students.

The decision was taken at a special meeting chaired by the chief minister, which reviewed the curricula for English, mathematics, social studies, Urdu and early childhood education.

Under the new curriculum, the volume of textbooks is expected to be reduced by 25 per cent. Each textbook will carry QR codes enabling students to access video lessons related to the topics covered.

The chief minister also sought details of an artificial intelligence curriculum for stud...