The Education Department of Kerala (India) has launched four separate EDUSAT-based education channels for primary, secondary, high school and higher secondary classes in order to broaden the reach of IT (Information Technology) education in the State. < ?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />
Education Minister M. A. Baby, while delivering the presidential address at the launch of the second educational channel under VICTERS (Virtual Classroom Technology on EDUSAT for Rural Schools) programme run by the IT@School project and the first anniversary celebrations of the VICTERS programme, requested the assistance of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) in setting up two more EDUSAT-based channels in Kerala. The Education Department has been able to reach IT-enabled education to 54,000 teachers and 25 lakh students through the EDUSAT project. The department will focus on setting up district-level resource centres to aid the spread of IT-enabled education in the State. The EDUSAT-based educational channels will also be used to expose the children of Kerala to educational and cultural values. In his inaugural address, Chief Minister V. S. Achuthanandan said the possibilities of IT as a learning tool should be fully used in schools. Under the VICTERS programme, students will soon be able to watch educational content from their homes. Along with reaching the EDUSAT programme to all schools, the Government would also seek to bring the Internet to all schools by linking them to the State Wide Area Network, which would soon be set up in Kerala, he said.
