Unveiling the next era in education - Online Schooling

Especially in the era of COVID, we all were locked in the house for a good part of our time. This adversely affected the schooling of children. Thanks to the technological advancement of our generation, we began our online education in India. The classes began happening in the numerous video calling applications, work became remote and online. 

Though online schooling has numerous benefits, it also has its fair share of struggles, cons, and pitfalls. Even though we started widely using online schooling facilities when we were hit by the pandemic, online schooling commenced way back in the year 2005. 

What is Online Schooling

Online schooling is when the schooling process happens online, via the aids of technology. This is especially true for students who are separated from their educator by any chance. During the pandemic time, online schooling and education became prevalent all over India. 

Online Schooling in India

Online schools in India are getting up to speed. The socio-economic status of India makes it a bit difficult to set up a fully accredited and recognized online school here. As the government favors the socially weakened sectors in India, government-approved Online Schools are very few here. The lack of fully-facilitated online schools in India is because of the lack of adequate digital support for a larger part of the student body. 

Online Schooling in the World

In the USA, 60% of their schools have started offering options to their students for online classes or offline ones. Some of their private and public schools are fully virtually operational with all the school’s facilities made available through online mediums. 

Online vs Offline Schooling

As the Indian Online Education System is taking its baby steps into the world of full digitization, it must also be considered that traditional schools also have their share of benefits like more interactions, the joy of bus rides, and other simple happiness. Keeping all these in mind, let us look at some of the pros and cons of this type of education. 

Benefits of Online Schooling

Flexibility

The biggest benefit of an online school is the flexibility of classes, timings, and other things. In an online school, we can fix the time, place, and space of a lesson which can have a positive impact on the absorption of the lesson in our minds. 

Reduced costs

Online schooling has brought down the cost of schooling, making it affordable for everyone. With just a smartphone to access the classes, one can have education at one's fingertip.

Personalized education

One can have their lessons personalized according to their needs. And this can have a positive impact on the way children view their lessons and education as a whole. 

Increased collaborations

Collaborations in the lessons are done easily when it is online. Collaborating for a project became much easier and friendlier with the internet to aid in it. And collaborations run fairly smoothly outlined with a near-perfect result too. 

Cons of Online Schooling 

 

Social Isolation

In an online setup for a classroom, even with 30 students in the class one tends to feel lonely with just the device in front of us. This can build up and end up as social isolation and anxiety. This is one of the biggest cons of Online Education in India.

Requires strong motivation

Online schooling needs discipline and self-motivational skills. In traditional schools, you have friends who would motivate you and also the school induces a kind of discipline with rigid timetables and timings. In online school, the concept of time has been skewed and this can lead to a lack of motivation in children which can affect their studies. 

Focus on theory rather than practical

Hands-on projects and experiments are limited in online schooling. The reason is safety as well as lack of raw materials. At traditional schools, theory classes will always be followed up by practical lessons that will help children understand the theory better. This is not possible in online schools. 

At Indus International School Hyderabad, innovation thrives within our curriculum. Alongside our Innovation Curriculum, Whole Education, and various academic therapies, IISH offers exceptional boarding facilities—making it the prime destination for comprehensive learning, nurturing, and preparing for a successful future!

How does it Work in India?

India is a land of little hamlets and remote areas. Online Schooling could bring light to these areas and that was one of the best facets of online schooling. The students in these remote and small places could continue their education despite the lockdown, pandemic, and various other physical and mental barriers. 

Online schools essentially work by providing their students with an environment and materials to study in the virtual world, along with their classmates and teachers. Here are a few steps to enroll in an online school in India.

Enrolment- Students enroll in their choice of online school.

Orientation- Shortly after enrolment, the student will get an orientation as to working on the virtual classroom, course management, class synopsis, and other essential know-how. 

Access to coursework- After the orientation session, the student will be granted access to coursework. This includes the lesson outlines, synopsis, assignments, projects, their deadlines, and other works. 

Virtual classes- This is when the students will be attending their classes like in the traditional schools. 

Support- Students will have a common place to address their concerns and grievances about the classes, assignments, deadlines, and other academic concerns regarding the virtual classes they attend. 

FAQs- Online Education in India

Q1- Is online education effective in India?

While online education can be a very good way of learning for someone who is organized, mature, and can stay motivated for a long time, an online learning environment can be detrimental to more dependent learners. These types of learners will need constant checking-ins and thus a traditional way of learning works for them effectively.

Q2- Is it legal to homeschool in India?

The Right to Education Act of 2009 which mandates free and compulsory education for children between the ages of 6 and 14 years does not consider homeschooling illegal. Thus it is to be understood that the Indian government views homeschooling as a legal way to accrue knowledge.

Q3- When did online education start in India?

The inception of online education in India can be traced back to the years 2004-05, marked by initiatives from government bodies like ISROU, MHRD, and IGNOU to establish two-way video communication. Unfortunately, these early endeavors faced challenges and fell short of expectations, primarily attributed to the limited technological advancements at that time.

Q4- What is the right to online education in India?

Against this backdrop, in 2021, the Supreme Court acknowledged the digital divide, emphasizing that the right to education extends to the online mode, particularly for economically and socially underprivileged students.