Thursday, March 28, 2024
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Teaching in the times of COVID19

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Editor,

We have all been reading and hearing about how various schools and colleges are reaching out to their students. Online classes, courses, education apps are all dominating the airwaves now. And rightly so! However, what does one do when most of the students are from economically backward communities and their parents don’t even have a phone, leave alone any form of internet or access to data?  Well, that’s where the teachers of The Shillong Secondary School, deserve a special mention. They have formulated a very creative way to keep the students engaged. Before proceeding further, a little more background is needed for context.

The Shillong Secondary School, established in 1959, has about 300 students from impoverished communities, from Grades V to X. The teachers take great pains, even under normal circumstances, to teach and bring the students to a standard where they can perform at an acceptable level. Most of the students have very little incentive to study given that their homes are more about basic survival. Therefore standard methods of teaching don’t work, as self motivation is few and far between. The teachers toil without the visible results oft seen in regular schools.

So, how does one keep in touch with students and ensure that none of them forget all that they had learnt or completely lose the habit of a structured lesson environment? Well, what the teachers did was quite ingenuous. First, they collected the closest mobile numbers to the students. Often this included a nearby contact, who, at pre-appointed times would share the dispersed information with the student. Next, they created WhatsApp groups of these numbers. Then, each teacher created small byte-sized lesson videos which had to be such that the data plans of the phones wouldn’t get consumed. A very important detail as all the contacts (be it the rare instance of the students/parents directly or that of a nearby contact) don’t have unlimited packets of data which most of us take for granted. Not to mention that the content had to be consumed at a preset time since in many cases, as mentioned above, the phone wasn’t with the student and was borrowed for short spurts of time only.

Every day, these teachers plan the lesson, record these videos, send them out along with questions and homework plans and hope that at least some of the students will respond. Several students are responding. A great testament to perseverance and creativity! Also another example of how Covid19 is also bringing out the best in humanity.

Yours etc.,

Arpita Majumder,

Via email

 

Stranded and disillusioned

Editor

I am deeply touched by the stories narrated by stranded persons through interviews and media reports regarding their ordeal on account of the present nationwide lockdown and also the experiences during the journey home of those who have managed to return. The process of bringing back people stranded in NE States has reportedly been completed recently and repatriation of those stranded outside the region is in progress which was a huge sigh of relief after the initial reluctance of the government. Stranded citizens eagerly await  favourable response from and look up to the government to help them  during these hours of crisis but to their utter disappointment and dismay, most of them have been told to be patient, leaving them disillusioned and confused. There are cases where stranded citizens from our state had to wave good bye to their counterparts from other states who left for their respective places thanks to timely intervention of their State government, which adds to their agony. Unable to get positive response, many people somehow made their own arrangements with support from good Samaritans and other individuals and organizations for transportation from distant places by road which Is not only uneconomical and inconvenient but also unsafe.

There are stranded persons who are struggling to survive at different places in India and elsewhere and face difficulties of varying degrees due to loss of jobs, rented accommodation, non-availability of hostel mess, harassment and other problems. I feel that Meghalaya has missed the bus and failed to take prompt action in this matter. If Assam and Tripura could arrange transportation of their students from Kota in Rajasthan during the lockdown period, I see no reason why we could not do the same to the students, professionals, patients  and others from our state who are stranded at various places especially within North East in a phased manner during the first and second phase of the lockdown .Anyway, there are lessons to be learnt in this regard. We hope and pray for prompt action by the government for a time bound evacuation of our brothers and sisters still stranded outside NER based on their distress levels, or else, provide adequate monetary incentive for those who opt to stay put. This will provide the much needed relief to the concerned persons and their parents and relatives. In case of unavoidable delay, the Meghalaya Houses may be detailed to play a nodal role to look into the interest of our citizens stranded in the respective cities and adjoining areas and states.

On the issue of shortage of quarantine centres for the returnees, I feel that the scenario is improving with reports of many such facilities being made available by Dorbar Shnong, institutions and others which is a good and welcome gesture. In this regard, I wonder if the government has explored the possibility of utilizing the guest houses and hostels (or a portion of them) under its control and those under State and Central Public Sector Undertakings and Universities in addition to those under private sectors in Meghalaya, taking into account basic hygiene and sanitary amenities, safety and security aspects. Furthermore, buildings and hotels under construction and nearing completion which may serve the purpose may also be used. The government may even consider to have paid quarantine centres at subsidized rates in hotels for those who can afford.

In conclusion, I would like to express my appreciation to the government for the relentless efforts in the daunting task of combating the Covid-19 disease through strict implementation of norms and restrictions in spite of the various challenges and constraints. However, in addition to soliciting the views of stakeholders like civil society groups, Dorbar Shnong, political parties and others within the state, consultations with other states especially of NER and sharing of best practices is absolutely essential as we face this unprecedented situation.

Yours etc.,

Name withheld on request

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