CHENNAI: Missed a class at school? Don’t worry. You can catch up on a YouTube channel of the Tamil Nadu State Council of Education and Research Training (TNSCERT). The channel that has over 12,000 subscribers, caters to students of varying age groups and features videos across several school subjects. While mathematics classes account for most videos, there are also playlists on economics, English, science and even career guidance.
The videos are bilingual, with teachers explaining many subjects in Tamil. Most videos are recordings of regular school classes, in which teachers and students actively involve in discussions. This keeps the videos interactive as one can hear students answer and ask questions in the background.
Along with subjects students learn at school, the channel also has songs, rhymes, lectures on information and communication technology and even toys, for that matter.
The TNSCERT has sought permission from the famous science-toy-maker, Arvind Gupta, to translate his videos into Tamil to be uploaded on their channel.
While students have a lot to take away from the channel, there is content that teachers too can make use of. A playlist of 26 video recordings of the National Teacher’s Programme (NTP) can also be found. There are also illustrations, animations and songs that can aid teachers during classes.
A senior official of the State School Education Department told Express that this channel is only one of a few measures to take learning into digital space. While the YouTube channel was started over a year ago, the recent spike in traffic attracted by the channel has encouraged officials to discuss its expansion, he said.
“The TNSCERT channel only has class videos as of now. But we intend to use it to bring about a comprehensive learning management system,” he said, adding that talking books for visually challenged students would be uploaded eventually.
“We’ve consulted experts across the country to enhance students’ digital learning experience. Introduction of e-books and virtual learning apps will be the next step,” the official claimed, adding that the channel will be expanded in the coming year.