Nikhil Babychan is like any other teenager, spending a large part of the day on mobile phone and computer. Except that this Plus Two student of St. Joseph’s Higher Secondary School here is the person behind the interface of the Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA)’s new Navaprabha mobile application.
The app, part of the Navaprabha remedial teaching package to provide academic support to Class IX students, has been created by Nikhil and Vidhu P. Nair, Headmaster at NSS Lower Primary School, Kappu, Ernakulam.
Nikhil, introduced to computers when in Class VII, initially used applications designed to help people without any knowledge of programming. Before long, he understood he would have to learn programming. He turned to engineering students for help. Later, he learnt another language to design websites, and tapped an international online forum to clear doubts.
Turning to Android applications was a natural step forward for Nikhil as Android phones were becoming popular. He also began learning programming languages in depth.
Apps, though, are a different story from a website, says Nikhil, adding that the learning process is still on.
A year ago, Mr. Vidhu got in touch with Nikhil for developing an app ‘Know my child’ that sent personalised reports of children’s evaluation to their parents.
With Navaprabha app, Nikhil says, the challenge was to ensure that volumes of data uploaded from across the State reached the database without being duplicated or cut. “We finally had to develop a separate database,” says Nikhil.
The app was developed in three months, and then tested by Mr. Vidhu’s friends and Nikhil’s online acquaintances, before being readied for release.
Mr. Vidhu says the Navaprabha app provides the RMSA teachers’ feedback on the module taught each day. “By evening, we will get an idea of what was taught and how the students have fared. This data will help us identify the problems and help design a package for immediate intervention. This will be shared on the app and website.”
The app, he points out, ensures that teaching and evaluation go hand in hand.
Mr. Vidhu and Nikhil have also developed a website for Navaprabha.
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