the goan I network
VASCO
The Khushi (Khushalbharit Sikhshan) programme, a new initiative of the Department of Education to introduce IT as a subject and learning using tabs as a shared resource for students of primary schools, was inaugurated in Vasco on Thursday morning.
The pilot project (Khushi) was inaugurated at the Government Primary School, New Vaddem by Rukma Sadekar, OSD to Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar, Dr Uday Gaonkar (Dy Director of Education, South) and other officials of the education department.
Speaking to reporters, Sadekar said this was a first-of-its-kind initiative taken up by the education department as a pilot project before it could be adopted in all primary schools across Goa at a later stage, depending on the feedback. “This programme implemented is part of a pilot project in 24 government schools, two schools in each Taluka.”
“It is a multi-grade multilevel teaching programme which also brings IT in teaching today, which is the first for primary schools in Goa, especially in Government primary schools where it did not have IT before.”
“We will have a tablet for each child, which will be used as practice tools and will also act as an assessment tool for them. The teacher will be able to gather data on the teacher’s tab. While each child gets a tab as a shared resource, the teacher also gets her own tab, where data from the child tab gets connected to the teacher’s tab,” Sadekar said.
Sadekar said such a system would ensure that the focus shifts from teacher-centric to child-centric education. “The entire effort is to make children independent learners and decide for themselves, while moving at their own pace. If children are lagging somewhere, they also get time and attention from the teacher to work and learn separately. Remedial teaching will happen within the classroom other than out of out of school,” said Sadekar.
She informed that 5 tabs have been provided in each school, wherein 4 tabs are for the children where the tab is used as a shared resource and 3-4 children will be assigned one tab to be used only in the classroom. “For safety reasons, we have not put internet on the children’s tabs. Internet is only accessible on the teacher’s tab and the WiFi on the teacher’s tab updates the child’s tab and hence, children have access to only
classroom content.”
“In Goa, it is one of the first type of an initiative by education department where tabs are used in the classroom as a teaching and learning material,” added Sadekar.
