The Hindu : Kerala / Thiruvananthapuram News : Learning stations enhance cognitive skills

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Wednesday, Apr 01, 2009
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Kerala

Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram

Learning stations enhance cognitive skills

Staff Reporter

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A study conducted by the Department of Social Welfare on the impact of computer learning stations in the government-run children’s homes of Thiruvananthapuram and Kozhikode has found an improvement in cognitive skills among the children.

An assessment of cognitive skills was undertaken based on a child’s understanding of English, numerical abilities, writing skills and technical words.

In other words, the effort was taken to gauge whether the children were able to understand and assimilate the acquired information or not.

According to the study, a significant number of children from the children’s homes said that the exposure to learning stations had impacted their cognitive skills positively. The learning stations or computers embedded inside the walls of the juvenile homes are known as a hole-in-the-wall intervention. The learning stations are currently operational at three juvenile homes in two districts. The facility would be spread to all other districts soon, said a senior official at the Department of Social Welfare.

Participation

The hole-in-the wall intervention motivates children to avail themselves of educational opportunities and skills by facilitating participation in the learning process. In the words of the carers at the Poojappura home, more than 50 per cent of the children there are using computers regularly. The usage was found to be high among boys than girls.

The home, spread across 1.6 hectares, is meant for students with behavioural problems hailing from financially backward families. The institution is different from a special home meant for children who have committed criminal offences functioning within the same premises.

Challenges

In fact one the biggest challenges faced by special homes are to educate and empower children with special needs. The carers explained how exposure to computers had awakened interest in technology among children with special needs. Before the introduction of the hole-in-the wall learning stations, children with disabilities such as speech and hearing impairment used to assist only in chores such as cooking and cleaning.

Learning computers provide these children a sense of self-worth, apart from enhancing their thought process, said the study report.

The study, which included 30 children, 13 carers and the superintendent of the special homes, was conducted through personal interviews, questionnaires assessing social impact, group discussions and observations.

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