In what might be termed the first virtual gathering of parents, teachers, and students in the state of Nagaland, the parents-teachers-students conference conducted by Tetso College on 1st May, 2020 saw a total participation of 250 members and another 1200 attendees via live stream.
The primary reason for the virtual conference was to enable parents and teachers come together on a single platform and to try and provide the best environment for learning in the present COVID-19 situation. Another reason was to make parents aware of the strategies that the college has adopted and seek their support in order to fulfil the educational and academic needs of their child.
Tetso College Director Kvulo Lorin highlighted the various means by which the college has been engaging in cater to students’ academic and personal development such as regular conduct of webinars with eminent academicians and scholars, setting up of question paper banks, etc. besides the ongoing virtual classes being held regularly.
In regards to information from the Centre, he relayed the notification issued by the University Grants Commission which stated that the new academic session for freshers may begin in universities from September and for already enrolled students in August. Detailing the guidelines for examinations and academic calendar for universities, the Commission has also said that the exams for final semester students is to be conducted in July, he added.
Further, the director also advised on being prepared to continue learning remotely in case of continued or recurring lockdowns or as advised by the government and assured to continue to provide support and tools to all current students.
Dr. Hewasa Lorin, Vice-Principal, Tetso College, shared about the college’s online learning system stating that Tetso has been using Google for Education since 2016 while being able to move most of the learning process online during this period of lockdown. Expressing optimism that this has been extremely helpful for both students and teachers, the vice-principal shared that Google Classroom for students was used to share reading material, assign and collect assignments, create and conduct online tests using Google Forms. With the help of Google Hangouts Meet, 44 teachers have been able to utilize the tool to conduct virtual classes, she added, and presently, the college has rolled out online courses by partnering with Coursera, a world-class online learning platform, for both students and teachers so that they can professionally upskill themselves.
Dr. Hewasa also asserted that online learning is here to stay along the lines of UGC’s recommendation that in order to overcome such challenges in the future, faculty should be adequately trained for the use of ICT and online teaching tools so that they complete about 25% of the syllabus through online teaching and the rest through face to face teaching.