Dr. SM Shashidhar, Principal, Proudhadevaraya Institute of Technology: Time to rethink education for digital natives

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March 27, 2020

Gen Z are born to be digital; Gen Zers are digital natives, born between 1996 and 2010, they are studying in our higher Ed institutions now. These students grew up not only with computers and internet access, but also with smart phones, social media and mobile devices. It‟s time to rethink and restructure the education system for these digital natives. Gen X and Gen Y teachers, who have been using chalk & talk approach, need to reshape curriculum and content delivery differently. Being distracted learners, current students concentration span is low. We need to make their learning experience rich and engaging, to empower them.

The outbreak of novel coronavirus has created an unprecedented situation around the world, never seen in our lifetime. The shutdown is very painful; staying at home and staying safe is the top priority. Amidst this uncertainty and disruption Covid has brought in, there are opportunities to initiate some positive changes in the field of education.

The whole world of higher education is going digital. Our Proudhadevaraya Institute of technology (PDIT), Hosapete has switched to virtual class mode since the announcement of lockdown by the govt.

E-learning had been a part of our system in the past 5 years, but not mainstream. Teachers provided curated e-notes and PPT files for all modules of the syllabus in the beginning of each semester. These resources were also made available in a web repository hosted by college. With the Covid challenge, our techno savvy teachers jumped into virtual class mode using online platforms viz Zoom and G Suite for Education.

There is a saying, “when the going gets tough, the tough gets going”, similarly, “When physical classes come to a halt, classes continue in distance mode!” This was a quick but smooth transition.

Fortunately, All India Council for technical Education (AICTE), National Programme on Technology Enhanced Learning (NPTEL) and Visvesvaraya Technological University (VTU) have played a proactive role in switching the institutions to Elearning mode. AICTE has offered commercial LearnEngg, m-tutor resource apps freely available to learners. Treasures of resources are available at fingertips on web. Anytime, anywhere learning is not a dream anymore! „Work from home‟or „teach from home‟ is a reality for our faculty now. Students are learning in the comfort of their homes. Thus, we protect the health and also academic interests of each and every student.

The Vice Chancellor of VTU, to which our Institution is affiliated, conducted a video conference on 20th march and suggested all colleges to shift to Elearning mode. He also hinted that this semester may not be extended and the examinations scheduled in the month of June may not be postponed. With this strategy on the anvil, it’s become mandatory on the part of institutes to keep students engaged and teaching continued in whatever possible modes. Here, the digital divide loomed large among the faculty, as some Gen X teachers were not comfortable with virtual mode classes. Initial learning curve is steep. With some initial glitches and pitfalls, our senior staff also are gradually picking up the tricks of the trade.

We need to understand new Gen students. For them, everything has to work on smart phones! So, the course design must be mobile responsive. Just like traditional classrooms, interactive nature will not miss in Zoom classes where anybody can raise hand and ask questions; White board, PPT, graphics, videos, text, and sound all can be delivered through a virtual class using zoom platform. Mobile apps that provide enhanced learning opportunities have become mainstream. Our staff schedule classes and notify through WhatsApp class groups. Students hook up to classes at the scheduled time and attendance is between 60-90%. It’s given us a gratifying experience and we will continue it to supplement classroom learning, even after the college reopens, once this pandemic episode ends. According to an estimate, average screen time of 18-22 age students spend with, is 7.5 hours per day. Hence, our educational leaders have to find ways to reach out our students through this smart screen. Teachers have to develop pedagogy for this digital shift.

COVID-19 has become a catalyst for educational institutions worldwide to search for innovative solutions in a relatively short period of time. E-learning is emerging in a big way as a game changer. We will not let corona virus attack the learning!

upGrad joins hands with Agora to build new learning platform

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March 27, 2020

Amid coronavirus outbreak, all the schools and educational institutions are shut down till further notice. The students and teachers are suffering in the lockdown. India’s leading online higher education provider, upGrad has joined hands with Agora.io. The Agora.in, is country leading voice, video and live streaming platform.

The new upGrad Live platform, which is built to replicate a real-time classroom learning experience for upGrad learners by providing greater interactivity, real-time doubt resolution, in-class concept check & session analytics.

upGrad has created some most advanced online programs to help thousands of professionals.

“At upGrad we have taken a strong shift to Learning Experience 2.0 which will be largely driven by the core objective of delivering personalisation and outcomes for our learners. We had evaluated several possible solutions but chose Agora.io because it is reliable and delivers high-quality content despite network, mobile and geographical challenges. A huge deciding factor in choosing Agora was their dedicated local team that continuously stays on top of their game, striving to ensure the very best of services rendered,” said Mayank Kumar, Co-Founder & MD, upGrad.

Tony Wang, Co-founder, Agora.io, said “Our partnership with upGrad is an exciting opportunity to collaborate with an innovative and ever-evolving company that is focused on providing an immersive and engaging platform for professionals to keep themselves updated as they advance in their respective careers.”

Wang also said, “Providing innovative, real time engagement solutions in a demanding and fast-growing environment remains a priority as we expand in the region.”

Supporting in the cause of lockdown, upGrad has announced free access of the platform to all colleges, universities, NGOs and Government bodies.

Manisha Saxena, Principal, Deccan School of Management, Hyderabad: Digitization blessing in disguise

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March 27, 2020

INTRODUCTION:

As it is well known that COVID-19 outbreak initially, and then its spread to India has become a havoc across the globe. It has adversely affected many sectors and among them one of the severely affected one is the education sector. This being examination time and almost on the verge of the end of the semester, is hampering the teaching and examination activities.

MEASURES TAKEN TO MINIMIZE THE DAMAGE TO THE STUDENTS:

Although no amount of alternate measures will compensate for the loss of studies, attempt has been made in our institution to compensate through online classes. The immediate remedial measure that occurred to us was to start the classes’ online classes and give assignments. We also conduct a quiz and take attendance at the end of each class so that we ensure that students have been attentive in the class and were present.

In April second week our internal examination is scheduled. We have opted to give online assignments and the students will complete and submit through e-mail. Evaluation and awarding of marks will follow.

Admission and placement process also takes place around this time. Although it will affect to some extent, but by and large the processes are now a day’s online. Even admission tests are conducted in online mode these days. But we should enhance technology further so that they shall be able to appear for tests in online mode from home.

Digitalization is indeed a blessing in disguise for the academic functioning of the college.

Observations:

It has been observed that students are participating with enthusiasm and are looking forward for the classes as lockdown has probably brought about a realization in them and thereby making them more sincere. We encourage sincerity and not seriousness.

Secondly the students of today are technology savvy. Hence whatever app is being used for the classes, they are able to get connected and are comfortable.

In fact since they have to attend from the comfort of their home, they are happier about it.

They find it advantageous as we are also sharing the power point presentations. Hence they are having ready study material.

Admissions process will have to be modified and that is conducting admission tests online, Group discussion and personal interview may be done through online mode.

So we can say that technology is the breather for all academic related problems. It is connecting minds and studies.

CONCLUSION:

Although this a black period in the history of human beings, it is teaching everyone many things. The students understand the importance of class room teaching. Those who were known for absenteeism are the first ones to get connected to the link. They are able to understand, comprehend, make running notes and clarify the doubts at the end of sessions.

Thus we would like to spread the message to our counterparts that we should have all our study material accessible through online mode. Even if the college shuts down at a short notice, we should be able to deliver our duties with justice from home. This is possible only if we are organized, and technology friendly.

Acknowledgement:

I place my deep sense of gratitude to our Chairman, Darussalam Educational Trust (DET) and Managing Director, Deccan College of Medical Sciences and Trustee , DET.

• Principal, Department of Hospital Management, Deccan School of Management, Darussalam, Nampally, Hyderabad-500001 (TS).

Check syllabus of UPSC Prelims exam

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March 27, 2020

Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) conducts Civil Service (Preliminary) exams for recruitment of various government posts. The Civil Service exam will be conducted on 31 May, 2020.

The UPSC Civil Service exam comprises of two papers, which consists of 200 marks. Both the papers are objective types and duration is two hours. The questions are set both in English and Hindi.

Syllabus for exam

– Current affairs of national and international importance

– History of India and world

– Economic and social development, poverty, social sector initiatives

– India’s geographical changes and movements

– General Science

Paper II

– Interpersonal skills

– Comprehension

– Reasoning and problem solving ability

– General mental ability

In paper II, questions are multiple and objective type. The qualification for the paper is minimum 33 marks.

Sasi Kant, CEO, LearningTree NextGen: Learning must continue

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March 27, 2020

For the nation and the world alike, we face dire circumstances that teach us important lessons of social distancing and no contact. Man being the social animal yearns and thrives on society for its needs both physical and emotional. We have found today’s method to be inclusive and involved. While the country and the world fight the crisis together and in isolation, we have good news for all as the learning will not stop.

A bag of mixed reactions for all, but the aspirants that prepare for the examinations to further their careers, we have in time created a solution. LearningTree also has made adequate provisions to work from home and has taken all necessary precautions to ensure the safety of all its employees. We have geared up to make your learning possible and now.

Learningtree NextGen Private Limited is an EdTech venture that specializes in providing education to you – anytime, anywhere, using technology. We are an online learning and assessment platform that helps you assess and measure your preparation and learning. The platform is powered by machine learning algorithms that monitor, track and analyze learning preferences and styles. While each learner accesses our portal, each is delivered learning and assessments in various modes. The system is equipped with AI technology designed to capture learning preferences and styles to deliver similar content across the curriculum. The technology is able to suggest the most suitable learning content and methodology that the learner should adopt to get the best results.

The Assessment engine provides real time simulated exam environments. The learner gets a detailed report of topic by topic and question by question analysis. Adding to those parameters such as stamina, pacing, correctness, skipping and time management analysis is provided to each learner so that they can assess their learning preparation and gear up better for the exams. The detailed reports are visual ready reckoners for the students to focus on other parameters to improve scores in exams.

LearningTree has been and is focused in bringing in the next generation of learning technology to the institutions across India. We have prepared our systems to meet the standards of Sarva Shiksha to Outcome based learning for technical institutions and is geared up to provide even home-based solutions to the institutions and learners alike.

We hope and pray for all to find ourselves safe from this dreaded virus outbreak and extend our services and products to institutions and learners alike with a promise that we shall make sure that Learning Shall Not Stop.

Kajal Chhatija, Principal, Global Talent International School, Pune- calls to use time productively

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March 27, 2020

This time will also pass

Here is a message from a teacher to her students, straight from heart, sitting at home connecting the children in their homes.

My dear students

I know you all might be getting a lot of instructions from your parents and all elders in the family.

So let’s be positive, follow the set of rules and look around and it is time for decluttering and rejuvenating ourselves.

Here are a certain simple ways to keep you busy and happy.

#See you have a book-shelf which is so unorganised so start segregating them genre wise.

#In your stationery drawer, there are many pens, pencils, erasers, sharpners, markers, crayons, sketch pens, stick-ons, etc which you haven’t used so start organising and give away the unwanted things to the needy people.

#See your unwanted things can become the most wanted things for many

#Give a surprise to your Dad by cleaning his vehicle and same goes for your Mommy, help her out in the kitchen, create a new recipe and in completing regular chores.

#Remember make your parents happy, they can make you the happiest person

on the earth

.

#Involve yourself in some fitness activities which is indoor or restricted to your lobby area.

#Spend some time with your grand parents if they are around or talk to them daily over mobile.

#Of course not to forget your favorite mobile games, you can play but needs time restriction as it is not good for eyes and brain.

#Listen to good music and sing songs.

#Make some artistic articles, draw and paint.

#Do meditation and some easy yoga asanas along with your parents.

#Read your favorite book and make it a habit of reading for one hour a day.

#Express your thoughts and pen down in your personal diary.

#Rejuvenating#Time#Is#Now#Enjoy#Stay#Healthy#Love#KajalMa’am#

#

Sapna Simmi Sukul, Educationists- Utilize time meaningfully

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March 27, 2020

The world has been shaken and stirred before being brought to a grinding halt. Protests and agitations have died down. Major sports leagues and tournaments have been deferred. Meetings, seminars, fairs, and expos are postponed indefinitely. Religious pilgrimages have been halted and celebrations have been discouraged. Even the most sacrosanct annual deadline which is the financial year has been pushed three months. Political parties are now forced to come to a common agenda. Nations are being forced to join hands in their efforts. This is the first-ever war when all of humanity is united.

The twenty-one days of isolation is a unique event in the lives of most people in India. This is for the first time that families all over India by force of circumstance are locked down at home with only each other for solace and comfort. It is the first time that even the most dynamic and pushy individuals are showing signs of helplessness and fatalism in the face of a foe that can only be defeated in a distant future and brought under control through the most lethargic method that one could have imagined. While it has become imperative to stay at home, we need to decide as to how to meaningfully utilize our time. At this time while the world searches for clues, advice for Covid 19 is coming thirteen to a dozen. Needless to say, students need all this advice and more. In response to all these challenges, educators need to link up with parents and students and get their messages across on a daily basis.

Fortunately, most of the schools have their own independent websites. Students have their own accounts and Login Ids and are therefore already interacting with the school regularly. Students of 21st Century are thus prepared to deal with school while staying at home. Lessons can now easily be imparted online. However due to lack of physical proximity with students, much more has to be incorporated into assignments.

The first subject that should see resurgence is values. By staying at home with family, one lesson shining bright for people of all ages is the need for positivity. This starts with empathy and respect towards all elders and those around us such as RWA staff or helpers cleaning the premises.

This period can breed both creativity and destructiveness among students. Towards this end, we should start with the simpler lessons. For starters, children should be encouraged to contribute towards household jobs that they may not have hit her to fore performed. In this process, they will get fresh ideas of what to do with discarded clothes, bottles or paper to indulge themselves in the artwork.

Online is a lifeline. Social distancing means, even more, socializing, even more meetings and even more research. So we have Webinar, Google hang out, Zoom calls, video calls and many other possible ways to connect and pass on knowledge.

The growth of the Covid 19 pandemic has actually struck fear in many people like never before. We have never witnessed such frequent twists and turns in life. Just when we thought that China will destroy the virus Italy started facing the worst possible brunt, followed by Iran, Spain and now even the mighty USA. In this milieu of uncertainty, contentment and being happy with whatever we have in possession is what Covid 19 is teaching us. This is not just a spiritual lesson, but undeniably is a new skill being gradually inculcated. This can be further emphasized by parents and teachers.

Covid 19 has also taught us as teachers how to run a school and class by connecting virtually. It may be a long haul, but we ultimately will altogether fight it out only if we are prepared to learn the good truth and root out the ugly truth.

Bihar Board 10th Result 2020 to be declared, check date

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March 27, 2020

After 12th class results, the Bihar School Examination Board (BSEB) is set to announce the Bihar Board Class 10 results. The BSEB is all set to declare its result in first week of April.

The board will declare its result on official website i.e. biharboardonline.in.

Candidates can check their BSEB 10th results on the official site.

The class 10 exams began on February 17, 2020, and ended on February 24, 2020.

The exams were conducted in two shifts- the first shift from 9.30 am to 12.30 pm and second shift from 1.45 pm to 4.30 pm.

Steps to check exam results:

-Visit the official site biharboardonline.com

-Click on the ‘Results’ on the home page

-Select stream and click on its results section

-Log-in using credentials

-BSEB Class 10 Result 2020 will appear online

Resilience must be built into your educational system: Daljeet Singh, Principal, CT Public School, Jalandhar, Punjab

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March 27, 2020

With the world on lockdown and dealing with a global pandemic caused by COVID 19 and nearly all the nation’s schools closed, it has not stopped any of us from working round clock to arrange social services and stand up to some kind of distance learning program. In the light of this scenario, CT Public School has taken a holistic approach by shouldering the responsibility of empowering the students with knowledge and keeping them abreast with the latest syllabus by providing them a platform where they can be in touch with their teachers and mentors through online learning.

CTPS believes that during a closure, communication between administrators, staff, parents and students is more important than ever as everyone’s anxiety is high and channels of communication need to be frequent and clear. Therefore educators are strenuously working to identify more and more key practices for successful online learning by reorganizing the school schedule. Teachers are sending online learning material, notes, worksheets and practice assignments to the students in the morning whereby they have the afternoons to work independently and interact with their teachers.

In extreme circumstances like an impromptu closure, it’s tempting for the teachers to upload worksheets for students to complete and return. Efforts are being made to make these online classes as engaging as the classroom experience (if not more) so that the students do not suffer.

This online learning is planned in such a way that it should never be an excuse to assign busy work, but rather to address clear engaging learning objectives.

The children need time to adjust and cope up with the emergency caused due to this deadly virus. Therefore they are provided with manageable and achievable goals to work on each week. Teachers take their feedback and communicate with them frequently.

Keeping in mind that parents might either be working from home and unable to help much, lesson plans are designed in a manner that does not require a lot of support from parents. In fact, parents are also provided with guidance on how they can support their kids in online learning.

It’s similar to homeschooling, however, the biggest challenge is parents supervising what their kids are supposed to be doing and at what time. In this regard, parents are also guided.

One of the best things that CTPS has done to support parents is streamlining information by creating broadcast groups for all the assignments, schedules and expectations.

It may be a little harder for students to follow classroom assignments when you are not there face to face. So online instructions are kept short, simple and clear. Students and parents are urged to prepare testimonials. The staff is encouraged to work effectively from home and therefore teachers are also creating blogs and writing articles on various issues.

Children are encouraged to read books and newspapers and listen to the news. Helping our children become a reader is the most important thing that we can do to help the child to succeed in school-and in life. The importance of reading simply can’t be overstated. Reading helps children in all school subjects. More important, it is the key to lifelong learning.

CT Public School will not leave any stone unturned to bridge the gap and the adverse effects of coronavirus on education.

(Daljeet Singh, Principal, CT Public School, Jalandhar, Punjab)

Dr. Pratima Sheorey, Director, SCMHRD, Pune: Balancing teaching need of the hour

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March 27, 2020

The Covid 19 outbreak is the biggest disruptor in this century. In my opinion, it is 3rd World War only this time all nations are fighting against a virus. Every single person has been adversely impacted either directly or indirectly. There is a lot of analysis out there in terms of the impact of the Covid outbreak on various sectors and the steps being taken by various industry sectors to battle it.

At SCMHRD we took a slew of measures as a constituent of Symbiosis International (Deemed University) and also at our end to ensure that the students and staff were safe and also gainfully occupied.

First and foremost we urged the students to return to their hometowns/countries, if possible. Else the campus facilities were appropriately ramped up to deal with the students who would be left behind. The campus was also sanitised and deep cleaned to ensure safety. The students were also encouraged to travel light (in case they were traveling back home) and to leave their belongings in a cloakroom, which they could collect as and when possible for them.

The balance teaching was done via google meetups and zoom wherein the faculty and students were engaged in an online classroom. The feedback for these sessions from the faculty as well as the students has been very good. Since SCMHRD already does continuous assessment for all its courses, the same marks were used to give final grades for end semester exams that were cancelled on account of the Covid outbreak. In fact, Symbiosis was the first higher education institute to use continuous assessment grades for end semester exams.

Any backlogs were handled by giving students assignments in lieu of the exams and the submissions for the same were done in a time bound manner to ensure fairness and safety of the student. In addition, Skype and Whatsapp video calls were also used to ensure that the faculty understood the depth of preparation of the students by conducting a viva-voce.

On account of the nationwide lockdown and a fair degree of uncertainty surrounding when ‘normal’ activities would resume – a lot of companies have deferred, delayed or a few companies have cancelled summer internships. In a business school summer internships are needed to complete the degree and also secure placements. Students pay high fees because they have a fair degree of clarity in terms of the learning and their future career prospects. Summer internships have hit a roadblock on account of the Covid outbreak.

While some companies have already given project charters such that students can begin the secondary work. At SCMHRD we have assigned 15 students to one faculty member so that they can mentor the students for their summer internship. In light of the changed circumstances, the faculties are now also mentoring students to write one research paper in a Scopus or Web of Science indexed journal to ensure high-quality learning and researching continues. We already subscribe to many online databases and the access of the same has been enabled for the students to conduct research and connect with their faculty mentors via video calls, voice calls or emails etc.

The intention is to ensure that learning continues in a safe environment and the students are productively engaged in these uncertain times. In fact, we are also recharting our pathways given the new uncertain normal that is clearly the reality.

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