THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Union budget proposal to expand the number of TV channels under the PM eVidya programme to provide supplementary education in regional languages comes at a time when Kerala’s KITE-Victers channel exists as a tried and tested model for imparting digital education in both regional languages as well as English.
The ‘First Bell’ digital classes for students of standards 1 to 12 that was rolled out in 2020 had earned accolades from various quarters and helped bridge the digital divide when regular classes were disrupted for months on end due to the pandemic.
KITE-Victers channel (formerly ‘Victers’) was launched in 2006 and became available through cable TV in 2009. After the pandemic in 2020, arrangements were made to make the state-owned educational channel available in Direct-to-Home (DTH) platforms as well. “With the inclusion in DTH, that comprise 30% of the viewership, KITE-Victers was able to ensure a state-wide reach,” K Anvar Sadath, CEO, Kerala Infrastructure Technology for Education (KITE), told TNIE.
Digital classes on KITE-Victers are also available on its YouTube channel as well as on social media pages making it accessible to students in case they miss the telecast. During the previous academic year, classes offered through KITE-Victers were common for both English and Malayalam medium students. From this academic year, KITE-Victers introduced separate classes in English and Malayalam.
Owing to the demand of students from areas bordering Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, classes in Tamil and Kannada were also brought out. Classes in Tamil and Kannada are aired in areas bordering the two states in association with local cable TV operators.
Edu channels
Anvar Sadath, CEO, Kerala Infrastructure Technology for Education, said availability of educational channels across all TV platforms is a very crucial aspect to ensure its success.