Go back to basics can also mean to follow a simple life and be self sufficient by growing your own food.

In Britain 'back to basics' can be used in a political context to mean a return to principles such as self-respect, decency and honesty. In general it means an emphasis on the most important principles or ideas. It is often used in education to mean an emphasis on the teaching of basic subjects like reading, writing and arithmetic in a traditional way.

Never. The correct phrase is: Go back to basicS. basics = beginning level

Example: when you are dealing with a difficult step in something you are doing, and the inherent basic processes will clarify that. a) You need to do a triple integral (complex step), and you need to recall what the integral of a simple polynomial is (this is the basic rule) b) you need to explain a philosophical concept (difficult step) in English, but you need before to increase your vocabulary with some terms (basic rule)