Govt launches virtual school to address drop out, learning access challenges

This will be implemented via National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS) but will be fully digital in nature, union education minister Dharmedra Pradhan said underscoring that availability of physical and digital mode of schooling will benefit many who are out of the existing system.

“This school is a new model of learning and is an example how leveraging technology and innovation can facilitate greater inclusion in education,” Pradhan said, adding that “the school is first-of-its-kind initiative in the country which will provide advanced digital learning platforms through Virtual Live Classrooms and Virtual Labs etc”.

School education secretary Anita Karwal also said that the assessment and examination will also happen via remote proctoring for this initiative.

Pradhan also said that the Alternate Academic Calendar of NCERT has been developed to facilitate teachers and parents to assess the progress in the learning of children. The Alternate Academic Calendar contains week-wise plan of interesting and challenging activities, with reference to learning outcomes, themes and chapters taken from the syllabus or textbook.

The minister said NEP is a guiding philosophy to transform the hopes and aspirations of millions of the youth to reality and making India self-reliant.

Speaking on the occasion, social justice minister Virendra Kumar said the accessibility opens doorways to opportunity and growth, thus, reinstating the importance of creating an accessible environment for everyone. Kumar urged both the Departments of School Education and the Department of Higher Education to take up the task of creating accessible educational infrastructure and content on a mission mode, consistently progressing towards inclusive education, which is a vital component of the NEP.