Remote Learning Initiatives in Nagaland

Introduction

The COVID-19 Lockdown forced the majority of the school children to be occupied with entertainment programs on TV and mobiles for the whole day. As this may cause psychological depressions in children, the Department of School Education, Nagaland started exploring ways and means to keep the children engaged in the continuous process of education during the lockdown period. In the meantime, the Ministry of Human Resources Development suggested States to consider telecasting educational programs through Doordarshan broadcast. Motivated by the initiative of MHRD, the department has developed the idea of Tele Education further and launched the innovative Online Digital Education in the State. 

Pre-Telecast Preparations

The department had invited applications from teachers residing in and around Kohima for delivering lessons through the digital media. Nearly 50 teachers have volunteered for rendering their services and a total of 23 teachers (11 from Govt. schools and 12 from private schools) were selected through a screening process for executing the project. A temporary video recording studio was set up at the Directorate and a private production unit was commissioned to make the videos. Directorate officials guided the teachers in the task of delivering lessons in the studio and coordinated shooting of the episodes well ahead of the proposed date of telecast.

A Memorandum of Understanding was signed between the Department of School Education, Doordarshan Kendra and All India Radio for daily broadcast of the recorded lessons in the 3 hours per day time slots for an initial period of one month which shall be further extended for another two months. 

Commencement of Broadcast

The video broadcast of lessons through Doordarshan commenced from 1st May 2020 and the audio broadcast through All India Radio commenced from 2nd May 2020. Initially, the broadcast is done for students of classes 8 to 10 and 12 and it is proposed to extend the same for students of classes 5 to 7 from the month of June 2020.

In order to ensure maximum coverage for the DD and AIR broadcast across the State including the remote areas, all the District Education Officers, Sub Divisional Education Officers and School Heads were directed to work in association with the District Administration in each district and make necessary arrangements for students who do not have TV facilities at home to view/listen the broadcast at a common place like Village Hall, School Auditorium etc. The broadcast schedule was made in such a way that children could follow the norms of social distancing while viewing the broadcast from public places.

Efficient Utilization of Social Media

As the digital social media platforms have more influence on people, all the videos telecasted through Doordarshan are also shared with the public through the YouTube channel of the department, ‘DoSE Nagaland’ and also through the Facebook page ‘School Education, Nagaland’. The YouTube channel of the department has registered more than 20,700 subscribers within a short period of its launch and the Facebook page has 12,500 followers as of now. The Online Digital Education Program of the Department has earned the appreciation of people from different walks of life and thousands of students from other States have also subscribed to the department’s YouTube channel.

Supplementary Study Materials

The department directed schools to devise mechanisms for preparation and circulation of notes and exercise materials for the lessons being broadcasted. The department also proposes to make Class wise DVDs/Pen Drives of the entire telecast and distribute to interested parents, teachers and schools at a nominal charge. 

Online Evaluation Portal

Evaluation is an integral part of education and is very much essential for guiding students towards development. As the conventional tools of evaluation could not be used during this period of crisis, the department has developed the Online Students Evaluation Portal ‘https://dosenl.in’. The portal is developed in such a way that it could be easily accessed through any Mobile/Laptop/PC and would work efficiently even in 2G internet connections.

Two numbers of tests, each of duration 45 minutes will be conducted for each subject from the video lessons broadcasted in the previous month; May 2020. The evaluation schedule will be made available to students in advance so that they could view the video lessons again and prepare well for the assessment. On the specified date and time of evaluation, students will have to login into the portal and give responses to 20 numbers of Objective Type Multiple Choice Questions by clicking against the correct options within the given time limit. The page will be made active only during the specified time and will become inactive after the scheduled time.

The result analysis of the ‘Online Tests’ will be made available to all stakeholders so that they could employ appropriate remedial measures. Best performing students and schools will be rewarded so that it will serve as a motivation for all others. The main objective of conducting the online test is to encourage students to keep them engaged with the processes of continuous learning and the marks scored in these tests will not be considered for any purpose of formal evaluation.

Utilizing Services of Expert Educators

The department proposes to make use of the talents and expertise possessed by educators from the State and also from other parts of the Country. Original Video recordings on different lessons/ topics have been solicited for broadcasting through the department’s YouTube Channel & Facebook page and this initiative is greeted with a good response from educators across the State. Best presentations will be rewarded and producers of all videos selected for the broadcast will be honoured with certificates of appreciation. It is proposed to extend this adventure to students also in the next phase.

Online Admission

Admissions in all the government Higher Secondary Schools is conducted online.

IEC materials on Safe Online Learning

In order to protect the children from clutches of Cyber predators, a well thought of initiative to safeguard children, IEC materials on safe online learning is available on the website of Nagaland education department.

With the introduction of online teaching by schools, there are reports about possibility of online exploitation of children and increase in activity related to child sexual abuse materials.

Materials can be accessed through the link Department of School Education Nagaland

Making use of goodwill of Private Enterprises

• FREE APP for Classes IX & X Mathematics and Science Learning: The department issued advisory to students of classes 9 and 10 on 20th March 2020 for downloading and using the ‘Bright Tutee’ App which supports learning of the subjects Mathematics and Science. The APP services were offered free by M/s Clixa Technologies Private Ltd, New Delhi.
• Live online Mathematics and Science classes for Classes VI to VIII: The department issued advisory to parents of students of classes 6 to 8 on 21st April 2020 for downloading and using the ‘Bright Tutee’ App which offered broadcasting of conduct of live online classes in the subjects Mathematics and Science based on the books published by NCERT w.e.f. 22nd April 2020 till re-opening of schools.

Limitations

People viewing TV telecasts using private DTH service providers are unable to view the Doordarshan telecast as private service providers have not included the DD Kohima satellite transmission in their telecast list. The matter is already taken up with the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and it is hoped that the issue will be resolved soon. Poor internet connectivity in various parts of the State also remains as a hindrance for many students across the State to make use of the program to the optimum level.

Conclusion

In spite of various difficulties being faced during the lockdown, the department has made the remarkable achievement of making the services of few of the best teachers from the State Capital available to all sections of students across the State.

This initiative has opened the avenue of sharing of knowledge between students from rural and urban areas in the State in the coming days. It is worth mentioning that Nagaland is the 14th State in India to launch the Tele/Online Education Program during the COVID-19 Lockdown and might be the first Indian State to introduce the Online Evaluation Portal for Upper Primary and Secondary School Children. The department proposes to carry forward these initiatives even after the lifting of lockdown.

Source : Remote Learning Initiatives Across India