Students attend live YouTube classes in Odisha

The Odisha government has started live streaming of classes on YouTube platform for Classes I to X as schools are closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The classes are being streamed from Monday to Friday from 10.45 am to 1 pm with four periods of 30 minutes duration each. There is no class on Saturdays so that teachers can prepare lessons and other related works.

While Odia, English, history, geography, Hindi and Sanskrit classes will be held thrice a week, science and mathematics classes will be telecast twice a week for Class X students. 

The Directorate of Secondary Education has decided to hold four classes of Odia and English and three classes of remaining subjects per week for Class IX students. 

While lessons for Class X students will be imparted as per the revised syllabus of last year, lessons of Class IX will be based on Utkarsh books. In the first phase, eight districts have been selected to conduct YouTube classes from June 21 to July 2. Classes for the students of Class I to III will be held from 9 am to 10 am while Classes IV to VIII will be held live from 9 am to 10.30 am.

Teachers will prepare subject-wise/class-wise worksheets/assessment sheets on each chapter and it will be sent to student’s home through WhatsApp. Teachers will evaluate and record their scores using individual files for each child. These will later be monitored by the education officers at the block, district and state levels. 

Teachers’ body criticises move 

The move has been criticised by various teachers’ body. According to them, uninterrupted internet connectivity is required to conduct online classes through YouTube. Also, the quality of education will be compromised. They are of the view that classes through television are not expensive and they are also better than other modes of teaching during the pandemic. 

Read more: 

• Govt panel suggests use of satellite TV to bridge digital divide in education 
• Online classes are good, but they have their own challenges, say IITians