Learning through virtual classrooms

Hyderabad: Amogla Imsong settles in front of her computer, plugs in the earphones and smiles into the webcam. Some 4 km away, the screen flickers to life. A hush descends on the classroom of the State-run school. The classroom gaggle subsides and students sitting cross-legged on the ground smile.

“Good Morning, children,” Ms Amogla’s voice crackles over the speaker. For the next 60 minutes, she teaches the children English.

Low-end computers

It is not a video-conferencing facility. The unique thing in this virtual classroom is the use of low-end computers and peripherals on a normal Internet connection and yet achieving real-time audio and video streaming, normally possible only through use of expensive equipment and a high-speed Net connection.

This virtual classroom that began in the Red Cross Government High School in Masabtank last week was started by a group of technocrats, who hope to bring together those interested in teaching and the students who need teachers, irrespective of their locations, using the normal computers and Net connections.

It took almost a year for group of technocrats in Hyderabad to develop the system using software for high compression of the data enabling real-time audio and video streaming on low end computers.

“The system is not just for compressing the data. It’s a synthesis of advanced technologies and research into pedagogy,” says Sridhar Muppidi, the driving force behind the initiative, ‘Education For Free’, a non-profit initiative.

Opportunity

Simply put, EFF ( www.educationforfree.org) provides an opportunity for anyone who can spare a few hours a week to teach to connect to the schools needing teachers.

Schools and volunteer-teachers, after registering with the website, would be brought together free of cost. All they have to do is to download a programme at both places, which would provide access to online teaching tools and audio and video streaming.

The two initiatives, ‘Teacher for Free’ for the schools, and ‘Adopt a Classroom,’ Sridhar says, would help even those living abroad to contribute their mite to solve the big problem of lack of resources for rural students.

Those signing up to be a teacher will be trained in basics and given access to the online teaching tools. Those willing to adopt a school need to register themselves and provide a low-end personal computer, a webcam and a projector (that together cost about $1,000).

“The sponsor could also contribute about $50 a month to the school directly to provide the power and Net connections,” Sridhar points out.

Expansion

The group of technocrats, in which Amogla Imsong, who has a doctorate from the Hyderabad Central University, takes active interest in teaching, is planning to expand the virtual classroom experiment to three more schools in Hyderabad using money they pooled together from far and wide.

The entrepreneurs are confident that those settled in the U.S. and other countries would join the effort, and that their platform would address one of the most serious problems a large number of rural Indian schools face – that of lack of teachers.