This is a significant improvement from a month ago when the survey was initiated, when only around 60% were aware of or were taking part in distant learning initiatives via WhatsApp or televised programmes, department officials said.
The survey was started in May to familiarise students with remote learning processes during the lockdown, imposed to curb the spread of the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic, and monitor their progress, especially those students who did not have access to technology. As part of the ongoing-survey different education officers, from school principals to block-level officers, reached out to families on a daily basis to find out if students are facing any hurdles in remote learning.
Officials handling the survey said that easing of lockdown restrictions had played a role in bridging the gap between students and remote lessons. With the easing of restrictions, students who did not have smartphones were able to reach out to friends and family for sharing of resources, said officials.
“When we started over a month ago, only around 60% of students were aware of remote lessons that were taking place. Our recent assessment has shown that around 90% of the students surveyed daily are aware of remote lessons and are connected with distant learning in some way or another,” said Ravinder Alawadhi, deputy director, State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT) and the survey in-charge.
SCERT officials are conducting the survey on behalf of the education department.
Alawadhi said teachers were connected to students, be it via WhatsApp or phone calls, due to which a regular learning momentum was being maintained. “Students who don’t have smartphones or television sets receive daily calls from teachers and are kept in the loop about homework. Even if they are taking lessons through television broadcasts, teachers call and inform them about the homework that needs to be done,” he said.
He added that the easing of lockdown restrictions had enabled students to step out and reach out to classmates and relatives from whom they could share notes and status of the day’s class work. “If children don’t have smartphones at home, they are able to go out and obtain resources from neighbours. Earlier, with the lockdown in place, this was not possible as people were confined within their homes,” said Alawadhi, adding that the survey would continue for now.
District education officer Indu Boken couldn’t be reached for a comment.
Suman Sharma, principal of Government Model Senior Secondary School in Sector 4/7, Urban Estate, said that the school was in touch with a good number of students with teachers apprising them about daily lesson updates. “Most students are getting lessons through WhatsApp. For those who don’t have smartphones, we are advising that they tune in via television. On a daily basis, we call a fixed number of students and share the homework for the day with them,” said Sharma.
Lalit Kumar, a painter, whose daughters study in a government school, said that accessing lessons was a challenge for families like his in the absence of a phone and television set. Kumar’s daughters, however, borrow smartphones from relatives to catch up on lessons occasionally. “Lessons are not taking place as before. There is disruption. Officials have asked my daughters to watch lessons on TV but we don’t have one. My daughters try to exchange notes with friends, whenever there’s a chance,” said Kumar.
While the department estimates that more children are gradually being covered through remote lessons, volunteers who are working on the ground with students of government schools said that challenges remained due to the digital divide.
Viren Jain, a class 11 student of a private school carrying out a volunteer-driven programme as part of which government schoolchildren are taught over the phone, said that remote learning was challenging for many students. “Online classes have been very limited. Some of the active teachers have been doing it. But there are students who are in need of additional support, due to lack of resources. Many of them have gone back to their native places and are no longer taking any classes due to the absence of internet and smartphones,” said Jain.
He added that many children being taught under this initiative had dropped out due to accessibility issues. “With their families moving, some students dropped out. For others, finding the right time for teaching is a challenge. Most of these children come from families where there is only one phone at home, which needs to be shared with others,” said Jain.
No comments:
Post a Comment