Online Resources for Teaching Remotely During the COVID-19 Pandemic: An Indian Perspective

       

       The novel coronavirus pandemic has forced all human activity to a grinding halt with grave consequences in various sectors. With the growing number of infections in India, the government enforced lockdown has mandated the shutdown of all educational institutions. This has brought forth an unforeseen outcome where students and educators have to resort to attending academic activities from the confines of their home, without convenient access to resources made available to them by their institution.

This predicament needs a suitable solution to prevent the loss of the academic continuity and maintain standards of education comparable to in-person classroom teaching. The immediate answer seems to be a switch to virtual classrooms. Such a quantum change would not be easy for the majority of institutions and students, due to a lack of basic resources and a proclivity to ensure a seamless transition.

India has the second-highest number of internet users in the world, accounting for 12% of global internet users. This along with a predominantly younger population, allows India to uniquely adapt itself to new technological trends. Hence, the successful infusion of technology into education does not sound too farfetched if implemented in a staggered manner with a laser focus on students residing in remote areas and belonging to lower socioeconomic groups.

       The past decade has seen a surge in start-ups with a focus on developing and embracing a technological approach to education. These resources need to sufficiently account for the lack of infrastructure in most areas of the country. Some important features include intuitive audio-video classes and cloud storage for archiving the same, assessment tools such as assignments or quizzes, and a mobile application to make universal access possible for those without access to a computer.

       Considering all the aforementioned challenges, we have listed out some of the Indian educational technology services that could assist institutions around the nation to carry out their educational activities without hindrance. Educators may select from any of these resources in consideration of the unique requirements of their institution.

List of Indian Education Technology Resources (in alphabetical order):

1. BrainCert (https://www.braincert.com/online-virtual-classroom)

2. Brihaspati (http://home.iitk.ac.in/~ynsingh/tool/brihaspati.shtml)

3. Classkonnect (http://www.classteacher.com/classkonnect.php)

4. ClassPro (https://www.classpro.in/)

5. EduBull (https://www.edubull.com/)

6. e-Gurukul (https://www.egurukulapp.com/)

7. Eloit (https://eloit.com/)

8. Entrar (https://entrar.in/)

9. Globus (https://learn.globusinfocom.com/)

10. Illumine (https://illumine.app/virtual-class)

11. Impartus (https://impartus.com/)

12. Indglobal (https://indglobal.in/e-learning-lms-solutions/)

13. Kneura (https://kneura.com/)

14. LiveKrypt (https://www.livekrypt.com/)

15. National Digital Library of India (https://ndl.iitkgp.ac.in/)

16. Proctur (https://proctur.com/)

17. Skugal (https://skugal.com/)

18. Smart Classes (https://smartclasses.in/)

19. SWAYAM (https://swayam.gov.in/)

20. UZ (https://uzlms.com/)

21. Virtual ClassEdge (https://www.tataclassedge.com/digital-classrooms-teach/virtual-classedge/)

22. Virtual Classroom (http://www.virtualclassroom.co.in/index.html)

23. WizIQ (https://www.wiziq.com/)

24. Zoho (https://www.zoho.com/in/classes/)

There are well-documented benefits associated with the incorporation of learning management systems into education. Despite its apparent limitations which can be ameliorated with planning and policy changes, the effect on academic performance cannot be understated. Till the conditions return to normal, these online resources could assist educators in providing a similar learning experience in a safe, virtual space.

References:

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