“Digital learning should not lead to the digital divide,” said Vice President Venkaiah Naidu when he called for increased internet access, especially in rural areas and remote places, and to “keep inclusivity at the heart of the educational experience.”
At the opening of the Sports Center of the National Institute of Technical Teachers Training & Research (NITTTR) in Chennai on February 14, he stressed that while central and state governments are taking steps to promote digital learning, it is important to ensure that there are no digital distribution.
He also stressed the need to improve teachers’ e-learning skills. He stressed the importance of good teacher education, saying that “teachers are the intellectual lifeblood of a nation and play a vital role in charting its development.”
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The Vice President also inaugurated the NITTTR Open Educational Resource (OER) today. He called it an important step in improving inclusiveness through distance learning and said it would help teachers improve their knowledge base and teaching methodology. He advocated transforming education from a one-way communication to a two-way mode where activities must be connected from content to context.
“Education doesn’t just mean degrees,” he said, adding that the true purpose of education is enlightenment, empowerment and wisdom. He further praised the role of teachers as ‘COVID fighters’ and doing their best to ensure the academic continuity of their students during the pandemic.
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He emphasized the need to promote and preserve Indian languages and also appreciated AICTE for starting technical courses in Indian languages. He reiterated that no language should be imposed or hindered, and believed that one should learn as many languages as possible, but that priority should be given to the mother tongue.
Referring to the National Education Policy 2020 as a visionary document, the vice president said it aims to transform the education ecosystem in our country and underlines the importance of encouraging and motivating young faculty members.
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