Jammu: Closure of educational facilities triggered by subsequent lockdowns have pushed schools to shift from traditional classroom system to digital mode of learn
ing impacting over 240 million children in the country. The task to confront the crisis gets even more challenging in areas of complicated social, political dynamics such as Jammu and Kashmir. In order to find out how the Union Territory handled the challenge posed by the pandemic, The Voices tracks the measures taken by the Directorate of School Education, Jammu (DSEJ).
In an attempt to acknowledge Internet issues and bridge the learning voids, DESJ distributed hard copies of books among the students of Classes 1 to 8 in the union territory at an outlay of Rs. 1105.44 lakh.
Organising Community Classes at village levels was another attempt by DSEJ to bridge the digital divide in learning. Classes were conducted in open spaces with strict adherence to COVID-19 Standard Operating Procedures to achieve twin objectives of safety and education at one go. DSEJ says they have been aiming a 100% attendance in the region. Apart from various interventions to compliment digital teaching infrastructure, DSEJ also uploaded a range of digital content on platforms such as YouTube.
It wasn’t just academics which was at the core of recalibration anchored by DSEJ. These unprecedented times have brought drastic changes in mental health, owing to stress, anxiety, suicidal tendencies in student communities. To deal with it, the education department launched ‘Manodarpan’ initiative with the aim to provide psycho-social support and counselling to students for mental health and well-being. In harmony with the same, DSEJ constituted a psychological task force of more than 130 faculty members to strengthen the counselling set up in Jammu region.
The department has also nominated around 30 District Council Coordinator (DCC) and Zonal Counselling Coordinators (ZCC) to coordinate counselling activities in ten districts of Jammu region. All the DCCs and ZCCs are experts in Psychology and hence they play a crucial role in awareness and information dissemination.
Neha, a student of class 12th from Jammu tells The Voices “Teaching has been taken to new heights by introduction of Guidance & counselling cell. Apart from zonal guides, counsellors at school level are also engaged in initiatives to push us further.”
Apart from conventional academics, DSEJ focused on co-curricular activities too. Khushi a student from Jammu, who wo
n National Level Competition ‘Kala Utsav’ in Solo Music – Vocal Category tells The Voices “My talent came out through the support of my teachers and School Education Department. Such initiatives coupled with parents motivation inspire girls to come forward and showcase their talent.”
Launch of counselling calendar, constructive home assignments, organisation of webinars on well-being themes etc. has helped almost 14,000 students in Jammu region to breach the challenge of the times and excel. Recently DSEJ launched ‘Well-being House’ under the Student House System in all the Govt. Schools of Jammu Division. Speaking during the launch Dr. Ravi Shankar Sharma, Director, DSEJ said “Mental and physical well-being is the key to a happier, more productive sociable student. Well-being House will provide psycho-social support to the students and teachers and sensitize them about child protection issues, health, hygiene and fitness issues.” Three houses namely Eco, Wisdom and Peace were already in place. Together they aim at achieving sustainable development of the children, which is the ultimate aim of any education model.
Story Edited By NK Jha
1 Comment
Wahan Jammu ghati mein education Kathin hai…the efforts mentioned by writer are great and hopefully they bring the desired impact