The Hindu : Tamil Nadu News : Students eager to attend virtual classroom sessions

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Tuesday, Apr 17, 2007
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Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu

Students eager to attend virtual classroom sessions

Anasuya Menon

About five schools in the city have signed up for this method of remote learning

GOING HI-TECH: Students of G. Ramasamy Naidu Matriculation HSS in the city watching the satellite-based remote education programme at the school. — Photo: M. Periasamy

COIMBATORE: While the teacher appears on screen, the class listens in rapt attention. Five schools in different parts of Tamil Nadu are listening to the teacher simultaneously. As soon as the teacher asks a question, a healthy competition ensues among the participating schools to give the right answer first. This is one of the virtual classroom sessions, which was on at the G. Ramaswamy Naidu Matriculation Higher Secondary School. The school has introduced the concept of virtual classrooms for its Classes X and XII for its summer coaching.

The schools participating in the session can ask their queries and answer the teacher's questions either through the microphone or type it in. The virtual classroom acts as a point of convergence for various schools, says P. Jayaprakash, Business Development Executive, of Everonn, a company that provides this satellite-based remote learning service. The students assemble in front of the LCD projector and the teacher delivers the lecture from the studio in Chennai.

While it is a new method of learning for the students, it is a much-required relief for the regular teachers in the school. "It is much more interesting than an ordinary class," say R. Priyanka and Jessie Ananthi of Class XII. Through animation, graphics, flowcharts and diagrams, the concept is explained while the teacher speaks through the microphone. "This reduces the monotony of the subject or the lessons," says Gandhimathi, a student of Class XII.

The faculty take the classes at the studio in Chennai and the audio-visuals are uplinked to a satellite. The schools, equipped with V-Sat to receive the signals can display the lectures live on an LCD projector, with the help of a computer.

About five schools in Coimbatore have signed up for this method of remote learning. "However, the response from the rural areas is tremendous. The concept of remote learning is of most use to rural students," Mr. Jayaprakash says.

"Through this students can visualise concepts, which is helpful especially for science and maths subjects. This method also helps them retain what they have learnt for a longer time," says Seetha Poovaiah, Principal of the school.

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