The pandemic has resulted in a cataclysmic change of the entire humanity and impacted the global education system which has undergone a complete metamorphosis. Schools are yet to open from the pandemic initiated shutdown, and education system is struggling to meet the needs of millions of students. The closure has affected at least a million students in public and private schools. A study has forecasted students who are facing inadequate learning instructions might retain 70% of their annual reading gains, whereas mathematics is in a dreary situation. It has become but an imperative to find a solution that mitigates the crisis and warrants a better future for students. KiiT International School, one of the largest residential schools of the country, developed their own Learning Management Software- KiiTIS edpronto - to ensure better e-learning for the students their absence from school owing to the pandemic.
Speaking on the unique cloud system, Dr Mona Lisa Bal, Chairperson, said, “KiiT International School provides the most inclusive quality education in academic and co-curricular programmes, helping students build balanced personalities in an international setting, making them aware of global needs, while keeping abreast of developments in technology. As soon as the country went under a lockdown and students were unable to attend school, we were determined not to compromise on the quality of education they used to receive at the school, which may result in learning losses for their own development. The students showed higher concentration, greater ability and connect because of the flexibility of remote learning offered.”
School encourages both students and their parents to participate in these activities so that the parents also feel included in their children’s schoolwork.
She further added, “We have seen a lot of growth and changes among our students since the introduction of KiiTIS edpronto. A lot of our introvert students have become self-responsible and are submitting their assignments on time. This is because the system sends them reminders for submission and students get gold stars in the system beside their name when they maintain deadlines. This motivates students morally a lot. Earlier when students would get their corrected answer scripts within the classroom, they would compare their scores with each other. With the cloud system, they are unable to do this and hence do not get demotivated if they have low scores. They can reach out to their teachers privately and communicate with them freely without having the intimidation of standing in front of them. We have also received a lot of cooperation from the parents in conducting examinations. We scheduled our exams over the weekend so that parents can also monitor the examinees. Even if a child requires any assistance at 8 in the night, they can reach out to us which was not possible before in school. Irrespective of the time and location, students are connected with the teachers and the school.”
Each student has their very own unique KIITIS edpronto ID which they can use to login to the system to attend classes, submit assignments etc. Teachers can also review and correct the assignments within the system itself. Examinations have also been successfully conducted through KIITIS edpronto. The system comes with an online proctoring system to ensure academic honesty. As a part of the online surveillance, after every 10 to 15 second interval a photo of the examinee is captured and is sent to the school. If a child is away from the purview of the camera for more than a minute, their work gets automatically submitted. Moreover, the eyes of the examinee will always have to be within 60 degrees of the camera, or it will be considered an academic dishonesty. not just education and studies the system also comes with a lot of extracurricular activities like painting, dancing etc. School encourages both students and their parents to participate in these activities so that the parents also feel included in their children’s schoolwork.
Even as the country fears a second wave of pandemic putting a question mark on the reopening of schools, it has become an imperative to further develop digital infrastructures. With the advancement of technology, one must also keep on reinventing themselves to survive in this period. The uncertainty of what our future looks like is a matter of discontentment for many students. As much as the nation is emerging slowly from a pandemic created trance, the education sector is still on a virtual model and institutions must adapt with changing times and embrace technology so that students do not lose out in this battle.
