After running around in the school garden during their break, students of classes 5 and 6 from the Government Higher Primary School at Kadya Konaje village rush to their e-classroom as it’s time to watch an educational video.
The science teacher plays a short film on evolution of sun, earth and the solar system.
On an average, children spend nearly two hours at their e-classroom where systems run on solar power.
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“We make good use of the classroom as there is no worry of power shutdown,” says H. Parameshwarappa, senior teacher of the school. The average power supply in this village is four hours, he says, but that makes no difference to their e-classroom.
This school is one among the 80 government schools in Dakshina Kannada district where the SELCO Foundation has set up solar power enabled digital classrooms. SELCO’s Assistant General Manager Guruprakash Shetty says these schools are at places where power supply is erratic. “Our intent is to make available e-content to the students and bring about a change in the way they learn,” he says. SELCO Foundation has joined CLT India and Menda Foundation in providing this facility. The cost of setting up each classroom is Rs. 77,500, of which 7,500 goes towards annual maintenance of the system. The CLT provides the e-content of science, mathematics and English for classes 5 to 10. The Bengaluru-based Menda Foundation bears 50 per cent of the installation cost. The rest of the cost is borne by social organisations namely Rotary and other local donors.
“There is no cost on students,” says Mr. Shetty.
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Among the schools that have e-classrooms include the Government Higher Primary School in Balpa village in Sullia taluk, which has been adopted by Dakshina Kannada MP Nalin Kumar Kateel under the Sansad Adarsh Gram Yojana. E-classroom in the 116-year-old Government Higher Primary School in Bantra Mardala village in Puttur started functioning from April 14.