Until a few months ago, mobile phone use in schools by students was a controversial topic, often debated by parents and teachers. It was believed that cell phones cause disruption in studies and are used inappropriately by the students.
Cut to March 23, 2020 when Prime Minister Narendra Modi declared nationwide lockdown to contain the spread of deadly coronavirus leaving overnight closure of all schools and colleges in the country. Left with little choice, educational institutions asked the parents to provide android phones to the children, which was a forbidden object till now, to attend their online classes. With no signs of opening of schools anytime soon, remote teaching has now become the new normal. Since March 24, students are being homeschooled and online classes have replaced the traditional classrooms. Classes from the comfort of home sound quite thrilling for many. But are we really ready to take the plunge given the kind of education infrastructure we have at the moment.
Sunday POST spoke to some school and college teachers in the state to make a reality check.
Diptibala Mishra, a Political Science teacher of Sachitananda Higher Secondary School, Indipur says “Education department has now become completely dependent on smartphones ever since the imposition of nationwide lockdown to curb the spread of corona cases. However, many teachers who used to teach in traditional classrooms, found it difficult to sink in to the new system. They took their time to get acquainted with online learning process. But problem did not end here. There were many students who did not have smartphones as their parents couldn’t afford them. So, the attendance in the classes remained thin. We are still continuing our online classes with just 40 per cent students. Besides, there are some students who have android phones but they are not interested in study because they know teachers can’t take any action if they don’t come to the classes.”
She continues: “Frankly speaking, online teaching doesn’t excite me also. Classroom teaching is not just about the chalks and dusters, it is about the ambience which builds a bond between teachers and students. I don’t feel that teacher-student bonding through online classes. On the other hand, online teaching is often gets disrupted due to poor Internet connectivity. That apart, students find it easy to bunk classes on the pretext of poor network.”
Itishree Gita Kumari, who works as an assistant professor in Industrial Relations and Personnel Management (IRPM) department in Berhampur University says, “Teaching has undergone a rapid transformation in last couple of months. Pandemic has placed teachers in the virtual world of teaching through different apps and devices. But I believe, the system of online classes has failed to yield the desired results as many students have failed to make it to the online classes in the absence of smartphones. In rural areas, there are parents who have android phones but network is a major issue. Therefore, we can never have full attendance in an online class. On the other hand, traditional classroom teaching is enjoyable and you can read from face of your students whether they understand the subject. In online classes only 30 per cent students show interest while the rest remain aloof.”
Citing an example of a sincere student, Itishree says, “I am proud of Avinash. He lives in a remote area where getting Internet connection is very difficult. Therefore, he travels four kilometer every day to remain present in his class. He attends the class sitting under a mango tree to get better telephone network. Though many of my students live in rural areas, they don’t show this kind of interest to attend their classes.”
Much like Itishree, Arupa Gayatri Panda, assistant professor in Odissi dance in the department of Performing Arts at Sri Sri University also feels that online classes cannot be the substitute of traditional classroom training.
“Though I took the online classes for the first time, I didn’t find it difficult, theory classes in particular. But the practical classes were really challenging as you cannot see the expressions and body movements of the students while teaching the ‘mudras’. Poor network only adds to the woes,” adds Arupa.
“It is not fair to expect the same level of concentration, participation and involvement from students which you get in a classroom. While there are students who bunk classes intentionally, I feel bad for those who can’t afford smartphones and remain absent in the classes.”
Rupashree Brahma Kumari, an assistant professor of Psychology department at Gangadhar Meher University in Sambalpur, says “For some teachers, it was difficult to cope with online teaching. Lack of familiarity with technology forced them to seek help from their children to install apps and deal with the changing scenario. However, it was not the case with me as I have sound knowledge of the technology. As a teacher, I always emphasize on group discussions, group activities and projects for students, especially for those in higher classes. They form an integral part of the classroom teaching, but it’s not always possible to go for group discussions in online classes. I am missing those activities since the outbreak of pandemic. When I realised not all students have their android phones, I asked those with smartphones to invite others and join groups so that none is left out from attending the classes. Unfortunately, they had to stop the practice after Sambalpur witnessed a spike in corona cases.”
Interestingly, Rupashree found some students who attend classes just to get attendance and not to learn. They are seen cooking and doing household chores simultaneously while attending virtual classes, laments the assistant professor.
Manjula Parida, a teacher of Sahadapada UGM School, says “I am not tech-savvy, so, I find the new situation quite challenging. But I accepted it and started taking online classes in a few days of government’s announcement. While connectivity remains a common issue, households with just one smartphone are facing problems especially if there are siblings in house. With maximum students not having smartphones, I too feel disinterested to take classes. But we are left with not much of a choice.”
Lopamudra Swain, who teaches Class IX and X students at Kadabaranga Nodal High School of Bhadrak, rues, “There are a few students who take online classes seriously. But they are a minority. I am sad to see many students remaining inattentive in the classes. When online classes launched, I called one of my best students to add him to an online class group. I felt bad when she said her family couldn’t afford a smartphone.”
She continues: “I have to do a lot of preparations before joining online teaching sessions. Often I feel helpless when I am unable to solve a problem as it becomes difficult to see the copies of each and every student. There are also students who avoid giving answers on the pretext of technical problems. For me virtual learning is like ‘something better than nothing’ but it doesn’t serve the real purpose.”
Sibani Sinha, a teacher of Government UP School, VSS Nagar, Bhubaneswar, says, “We usually provide worksheets to the students on WhatsApp group. But there are only 20 students out of 67 who attend these classes as most of them live in slums and their families can’t afford smartphones. Though online classes are the need of the hour, they are not the substitute for a classroom.”
Rashmi Rekha Das, OP