JK Samagra Shiksha e-launches Coding Project under NEP 2020
JAMMU, JANUARY : The Directorate of Samagra Shiksha, Department of School Education today e-launched a Coding Project for students of Class 6th and above.
The project, which was launched by Project Director, Samagra Shiksha J&K, Deep Raj Kanethia, is a joint collaboration of Samagra Shiksha’s flagship ICT initiative, JK Knowledge Network (JKKN), UNICEF India and Pi Jam Foundation.
Under the programme, 50 school teachers have been selected as Master Trainers to learn and impart training on scratch and other programming languages. The programme also included an innovative component of teaching ‘coding without computers’ through a board game for children in remote areas. It is aimed at to generate scientific temperament and inculcate problem solving skills among the children.
Project Director, while speaking on the occasion, said that one of the key recommendations made under NEP 2020 has been to introduce coding in schools for class 6th and above and it is great privilege for the UT that Jammu and Kashmir has been one of the frontrunners in this initiative. “As a computer engineer myself, this initiative is close to my heart and I am happy to note that children nowadays are fortunate to get exposed to technology at such a young age”, she maintained.
Saurabh Agarwal, Edtech Specialist, UNICEF India, outlined the importance of teaching coding to children in schools saying that this course will facilitate students of J&K with an internationally standard coding language.
Shoaib Dar, Founder and CEO of Pi Jam Foundation, said that this initiative envisages making children ‘creators’ rather than ‘consumers’ of technology.
Pertinently, COVID-19 has made the use of technology in education most imminent and EdTech initiatives have grown leaps and bounds in the past one year under the Directorate of Samagra Shiksha J&K. JKKN is the ICT arm of Samagra Shiksha which works on these innovations and has successfully run many ICT based programmes and trained hundreds of teachers and students.
The programme shall be run by the JKKN Core, Dr. Ravinder Jangral and team comprising Vikrant Singh, Ayaz Raina, Hilal Lone, Manbir Singh and Renu Bala.