Odisha School Education Programme Authority to rework on e-learning plan

OSEPA State Project Director Anupam Saha said that an action plan is being prepared by the three education directorates and will be submitted to the department soon for approval.

BHUBANESWAR: As students continue to keep away from online classes on different platforms, the State government on Friday asked the Odisha School Education Programme Authority (OSEPA) to chalk out a fresh action plan to strengthen digital learning programmes and increase student-teacher interaction.

School and Mass Education Secretary Bishnupada Sethi who chaired a review meeting with the officials of OSEPA and directors of elementary, secondary and higher secondary education in this regard said that as classes are continuing in online mode after closure of schools from January 7, steps will be taken to increase engagement of teachers with students.

OSEPA State Project Director Anupam Saha said that an action plan is being prepared by the three education directorates and will be submitted to the department soon for approval. Saha said the action plan will come up with ways to strengthen the ongoing programmes and improve access to digital content for students in rural areas.

As students participation in YouTube classes has declined at secondary and higher secondary level, schools will be entrusted with the responsibility of improving the attendance. Besides, OSEPA will resume live YouTube classes for the students of Class I to VIII from January last week. The tentative date for commencement of the YouTube classes has been fixed as January 27.

Saha said the access to digital platforms has remained around 40 per cent. While students in urban areas have better accessibility, it is still a concern for those in villages. "Efforts are on to reach out to rural students in every possible way to ensure that their education is not hampered," he said.

Accordingly, the ongoing cluster teaching at village-level will also be strengthened as part of the action plan. The OSEPA has also asked the Directorate of Elementary Education to ensure the Radio Pathsala programme launched for Class I to VIII students and aired from 11 am to 12 pm on a daily basis is made accessible to maximum number of students in both urban and rural areas.