FRIDAY, APRIL 26, 2024
Astride Velany Furtado
As Goa locks horns with the novel coronavirus, regular schooling and classroom teaching seems eons away. In the current scenario, with schools across the state scurrying to jump on the digital bandwagon, e-learning is the ‘New kid on the block’.
Don Bosco Higher Secondary School, Panjim, not one to be left behind, was among the first few schools to dive into this new arena, and accept the challenges head-on. Much before the department of Education initiated training for the teaching fraternity of Goa, DBHSS staff, under the able guidance of Principal, Fr Savio Gomes, in the month of May itself, were all up and about. Recognising the need to keep the crucial Std XII classes going, teachers swiftly equipped themselves with the necessary skills for online and offline teaching, some even ‘Zooming’ classes right away.
As with any new enterprise, the initial days weren't smooth. Faced with a fair share of hurdles and headaches, Our 'Bosco Warriors' didn't back down. Poor network issues, infrastructural lacunae, among other technical glitches, were all taken in stride. Time-tables were set and reset until they were precise and favourable to students and teachers alike. Skeptical parents, uninclined students, all tactfully dealt with. Also highly commendable were the efforts of the teachers who went to the extent of investing in gadgetry to make e-learning more engaging.
However, although online teaching in Goa has garnered considerable support, it hasn't gone down well with a few. Just a month ago, teachers did have to contend with accusations of ‘sitting comfortably in their homes, insensitively ramming compulsory online lessons on to students having no access to ‘Smart’ devices for learning'. The knee-jerk reaction was to hastily order all teachers to report to their headquarters irrespective of whether the institution was digitally well-equipped or otherwise. Such belligerence and the scathing remarks made by a few loud-mouthed mavericks (in the guise of concerned parents), who seemed to have got their facts all mixed up, did hurt the sentiments of the sincere hard-working teachers who are dedicatedly conducting classes and doing their best given the current circumstance.
Adding to the teachers' woes, in many villages as well as in cities, frequent power cuts, internet issues, viz. absence or poor connectivity, slow speeds, are rife. Sadly, insufficient infrastructural support for online education and the inertia to remedy the situation is worsening the digital divide among learners. All of these inadequacies, highlighted prominently at such a crucial time, are definitely a huge setback hindering quality education in our Golden State. If these issues go unaddressed, online education may very well end up being an exercise in futility.
In a recent post titled, Goa is well equipped for Online-Education, “without the internet” @ goanews.com, Sandesh Prabhudesai, editor of goanews.com reveals that Goa already has a dedicated broadband, that too underground, laid down through the most powerful Optical Fibre Cable - a clustered network of more than 1500 kms across the state. Goa Broadband Network (GBBN) was launched in Goa on December 27, 2007. It is connected to 476 educational institutes all across the length and breadth of Goa that include schools, higher secondary schools, colleges, ITIs and other professional institutes. So what are we waiting for? Oh, for crying out loud, such infrastructure would definitely serve our purpose in times of crisis!
At a time when institutions grapple with the uncertainty of what the year ahead will bring, online classes are indeed a saving grace connecting teachers and learners across the board ensuring that education must continue, come what may.
In conclusion, a word of encouragement to the teachers: Dear Teachers, rest assured, we are all doing a Fabulous Job despite the conditions. Continue to look ahead and keep up the good work of patiently leading students through these trying times. Hopefully, there will soon be light at the end of the tunnel.
