Summary
Shweta Sharma is an assistant teacher in a Deoghar school
Nirupama Kumari teaches at a school in Bokaro
The awards recognise innovative teaching using modern technology
Two teachers from Jharkhand who used the digital medium in innovative ways to reach out to students during the pandemic were among the 49 recipients of the National ICT (Information and Communication Technology) Awards.
The awards are given away by the Union ministry of education for innovative teaching using modern technology. The recipients act as ICT ambassadors. The awards for 2018 and 2019 were handed over at a ceremony in Delhi recently.
Shweta Sharma, 44, an assistant teacher with Vivekanand Middle School in Deoghar district and Nirupama Kumari, 40, a teacher at Ram Rudra Plus Two High School at Chas in Bokaro are among the 24 winners of 2019.
This is the first time in the two decades since the state of Jharkhand was created that any teacher has received the award for their innovative teaching using modern technology.
Nirupama, an assistant Hindi teacher in Bokaro, made videos with the help of former students for teachers in the Digisath programme (digital content through WhatsApp).
Nirupama Kumari teaches at Ram Rudra Plus Two High School in Bokaro. Nirupama Kumari
“The videos were aimed at ensuring community participation. I also developed content for a YouTube channel on digital education that has nearly 3,800 subscribers, 3.5 lakh viewers and 12,000 hours of watch time. I also created my own website www.econtenthindi.org. I made students aware of the usage of ICT in small groups,” said Nirupama, who has also won the National Teachers Award 2020.
Shweta set up a digiclass at her own cost in elementary schools of Deoghar and used ICT tools for blended teaching. She also created video content for elementary and secondary teaching on YouTube channel and extensively used special animations and live tools for educational videos.
Shweta Sharma in her classroom at Vivekanand Middle School in Deoghar district. Shweta Sharma
”I created state-specific subject-based content. I took trained teachers under Deoghar Quizathon for online classes with latest ICT apps and tools. I converted textbook lessons into comics to make the content attractive,” said Shweta, who now plans to create an English-speaking course app for government school students. ”
The teachers were selected by a jury set up by the Central Institute of Educational Technology (CIET) under the guidelines of the Union ministry of human resources. The jury considered 205 entries (for 2018 and 2019) from 28 states/UTs and five autonomous bodies and evaluated the online presentations. The names recommended by the jury were later approved by the Union ministry.
The award comprised an ICT kit, a laptop and a commendation certificate.
“We are aware of the tremendous responsibility as an award-winning ICT ambassador and are ready for it. I hope to train more and more teachers of our state in the use of ICT tools. We have been told by the ministry to train more teachers so that more students learn the use of ICT tools,” said Nirupama Kumari.
“I attended a national-level workshop at CIET Delhi in 2016 to learn the nuances of ICT. I realised that knowledge of ICT is not dependant on computers or big devices. In future, there will be a lot of effort to connect more and more teachers and children with the technology of the 21st century. Hopefully, the cooperation of district and state officials will be available so that the ICT resource pool of students and teachers can be created at each level,” Shweta said.
Last updated on 04 Mar 2022
