Day 66 – Q 2.Technology must play a significant part in the field of primary and secondary education for farther reach and better learning outcomes. Do you agree? Substantiate.

2. Technology must play a significant part in the field of primary and secondary education for farther reach and better learning outcomes. Do you agree? Substantiate.  

प्रौद्योगिकी को प्राथमिक और माध्यमिक शिक्षा को दूर तक पहुँचाने और बेहतर शिक्षण परिणामों के लिए महत्वपूर्ण भूमिका निभानी चाहिए। क्या आप सहमत हैं? पुष्टी करें।

Introduction:

• Primary (elementary) level: 6-14 years of age. The elementary-level education is guaranteed by our constitution under Article 21 A. For this level, the government has introduced Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) under the Right To Education(RTE) Act.
• Secondary level: Age group between 14-18. For this level, the government has extended SSA to secondary education in the form of the Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan.

Body

Technology has changed the education scenario in the last few decades by emerging as one of the most efficient tools used in the learning process, both by tutors and learners.

Significance of technology

Technology plays an important role in:

• Improving the classroom process of teaching, learning and evaluation
• Aiding teacher training.
• Improving access to education.
• Improving the overall planning, administration and management of the entire education system.
• Looking for matter beyond the textbooks is no longer a challenge with respect to time and resources anymore.
• Classroom based learning

Nowadays technology has become integral part of classroom based teachings. Today in many schools, colleges and universities in India instead of blackboard projector screens are used for teachings. Hand writings of teachers are replaced by power point presentation. Student experience a different kind of set up in today’s technology based classroom. Gadgets like tablets and laptops are used to take down notes. Animated content are created on various subjects and in different languages so that students can have better understanding of a complex subject in a simple way.

• Online learning management system

Many schools and universities in India are integrating online Learning Management System or LMS platform into their web portal. Students can remotely login to access course material and also attend live classes with teachers. Pre-recorded lectures, videos can be uploaded on the LMS platform making it easy for students to go through it multiple times.

• Learning through mobile Apps

According to a report released by Counterpoint Research, India has become the second biggest smart phone market in the world after China with more than 220 million active users. This presents a huge opportunity for delivering e-learning content through mobile apps. Today educational mobile apps are available on popular platforms like Android and iOS. Developers are creating educational apps based on particular subjects. They are simplifying complex concepts with easy to understand illustrations and animations, puzzles games etc. There are apps available for grammar, physics, chemistry, mathematics and so on. With the prices of tablets and smart phone coming down people from villages and remote areas can also make use of this apps to learn and update their skills.

Govt interventions:

The concept of ICT in schools was initially introduced in December 2004. The Central Government later revised it in 2010 to ensure opportunities for students enrolled at the secondary level of education.

• Presently, the Central Government has subsumed ICT in schools under Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan, a national drive for secondary education.

• National Mission on Education through ICT:

An autonomous body, National Education Technology Forum, set up under the Mission, will facilitate decision making on the use of technology.

• National Repository on Educational Data: maintain all records related to institutions, teachers, and students in digital form.
• Single online digital repository to make available copyright-free educational resources in multiple languages.
• Diksha has the potential to re-engineer the in-service teacher training in India. It is important to create good content and also to ensure technology consumption by teachers, the role of headmasters in promoting teachers’ professional development etc.
• The draft National Education Policy 2019 provides for reforms at all levels of education from school to higher education. It seeks to increase the focus on early childhood care, reform the current exam system, strengthen teacher training, and restructure the education regulatory framework.  It also seeks to set up a National Education Commission, increase public investment in education, strengthen the use of technology and increase focus on vocational and adult education, among others

Recognising the importance of digital literacy in rural India, in 2013 Samsung India launched a Smart Class initiative in collaboration with Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti. The initiative is available across 500 Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya Schools, benefitting over 2.5 lakh students. The brand has imparted training to over 8,000 teachers on interacting technology.

Conclusion

• While much is being done in policy formulation stage, implementation is not always up to the mark.
•  Even then, efforts in education have long gestation period before showing perceptible results. Need of the hour is to set aside political apathy towards education and invigorate India’s education sector.