On the outskirts of Tumakuru is a nondescript village.
It is like any other that you find in this part of the world; it has a typical landscape, households with clay-tiled roofs, narrow alleys, farmlands, a herd of cattle, the village dogs, the mud roads that seldom welcome buses, and folks going about their daily chores.
Every helping hand can make a difference and every single contribution can make quality learning a reality for a child.
At the end of the village is a school…. Which, however, is unlike what we imagine a typical village school to be. The kids here learn using technology. You can see them fidgeting over tablets and navigating through their curriculum with a flair. They don’t just learn the lessons from the tablets, they take quizzes on science, play games on math, see movies on history, and also take tests on the device. Surprising isn’t it?
The school was not always like this. If we were to rewind to not long before the COVID-19 lockdown, the students had no means to attend online classes, not until the school came under the BYJU’S Education for All initiative.
The BYJU’S Education for All is a CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) initiative that aims to provide quality education to 5 million children from the underserved, geographically remote and economically weaker sections by 2025.
The initiative has made a difference in the lives of many students like Asha an 8th grade student at the school. Asha’s family is dependent on her father’s income who is a landless laborer. The coronavirus had forced them to endure with limited resources, and online education was not an option they could afford.
When the BYJU’s Education for All initiative adopted their school, Asha and many others were able to resume their studies. Asha says, “I never imagined I will be able to study this year as we don’t have a smartphone at home. I was surprised when our class teacher came to our home and said I will receive a tablet to help us study. I thank my principal, teachers, and BYJU’S”.
“The learning content is delivered in Kannada, which makes it very easy for the students to understand the concepts. I am happy to see our government school children gain access to digital learning material”, says Asha’s class teacher.
Under the initiative, the school is now equipped with all the tools they need to create a blended learning atmosphere. Everything from tablets, learning content, and the software is provided free-of-cost. The tablets are pre-loaded with the BYJU’S The Learning App and distributed according to the grades. It requires no internet or additional infrastructure to enable learning.
Partnering BYJU’s in such initiatives is Magic Bus, United Way Chennai, Right to Live, American Indian Foundation, and others. You too can make a difference. If you have any old and disused android devices at home consider donating it to the BYJU’S Give Initiative.
