Haryana unlocks school at home campaign for students amid Covid-19 lockdown

Stay at home, study at home and school at home. That’s Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar’s 3S mantra, coined during a recent pep talk to home-bound students.

Coinciding with the 3S principle, the education department and State Council of Education Research and Training (SCERT), launched Ghar Se Padhao Abhiyan, an e-learning campaign to connect parents and students with over 50,000 teachers through WhatsApp, SMS and phone calls across the state to start academic activities.

There are 8,686 government-run primary, 2,423 middle and 1,154 high schools spread across 22 districts of the state.

REGULAR MONITORING, FEEDBACK

According to Saksham Haryana cell monitoring this campaign, 8.5 lakh students from Classes 1 to 12 are being engaged daily. At the end of the week, 1,800 mentors call 15 parents each for feedback.

While math and Hindi lessons are being taught to primary school students, the focus is on science and math in middle and high school. Teachers contact parents over phone also to share homework every day and students are maintaining a dedicated notebook to record their activities at home.

“The content is coming from multiple sources and it is being evaluated and monitored at the state level before being sent to the teachers,” an official said.

SCERT director Kiran Mayee said: “The contribution of SCERT has been valuable for the Saksham Haryana initiative. Ghar Se Padhao Abhiyan is innovative and important to engage students during the lockdown.”

NOT ALL OWN SMARTPHONES

But a large number of students don’t have a smart phone and access to internet. Steps are afoot to prepare the content that can be transferred via text message also.

“By mid-May we are hoping to start connecting with students through text message also. We are finalising SMS-friendly content,” said an official.

According to the project director of the Chief Minister’s Good Governance Associates (CMGGA), Dr Rakesh Gupta, until the schools re-open in July, teachers will continue to engage the students in academic activities.

CMGGA is monitoring Saksham Haryana cell and Ghar Se Padhao Abhiyan.

“During this period, we want teachers to raise the levels of students who are weak in mathematics and science and need handholding,” Dr Gupta said.

APPRECIATION AND MOTIVATION

In Sirsa and Jind, teachers have started issuing certificates of appreciation to students and their parents for good performance. In Kaithal, the Whatsapp group highlights the “star students” each day to promote and motivate hard work.

In Jhajjar, the homework of each student is shared publicly after correction to encourage the students.

Director, elementary education, Pradeep Daggar said, “We want teachers to regularly remain in contact with students during the lockdown. This will motivate them to study regularly.”