GUNTUR: With the aim to provide children with opportunities to experiment and widen their understanding, NITI Aayog under Atal Innovation Mission has introduced Atal Tinkering Laboratories in the schools. As a part of it, as many as 51 labs have been set up at government, gurukul, and private high schools in the district. Of the total, 46 are being utilized by the students.
The objective of these labs is to foster curiosity, creativity, and imagination in young minds and inculcate skills such as design, computational thinking, adaptive learning, and physical computing. Each lab has been set up with Rs 10 lakh. The Centre allots Rs 2 lakh in every four years for the maintenance of these labs.
Machinery and equipment related to electronics, robotics, sensors, 3D projections, AI, hydroponics are made available through these labs. Education department officials said, headmasters and teachers are trained to utilise and maintain the labs. The teachers were also instructed to include science concepts in school curriculum and conduct experiments at labs. Headmasters have been directed to submit a monthly report on the activities carried out in these labs.
The state education department has set up a special team that educates the students and teachers and ensures they utilize the labs efficiently. They conduct special classes for students twice a week to discuss various experiments they can do in the labs and also give them suggestions.