30 September,2021 02:59 PM IST | Mumbai | BrandMedia
ITM Global School
ITM Global School, Gwalior is a New Age School which has always stayed abreast with the various technological revolutions and pedagogical practices in the field of education. Since its inception in 2014, it has remained committed towards providing quality education to the students of Gwalior and beyond. It has established itself as a pioneer in the region - its very commitment towards its vision is sincerely rendered through its world class infrastructure, lush green campus surrounded by the undulating hills of the Vindhyachal Range, diverse creative activities, rigorous professional development of its teachers and deep involvement in the community services.
Despite all the wonderful physical facilities in place, the pandemic disrupted the very use of the same. The biggest challenge before the school was how to virtually and remotely continue with the education of the school children, and yet meet the expectations of the various stakeholders under such a circumstance.
The use of various cutting-edge technology for delivering knowledge and skills was not new to the ITM Global fraternity. The pandemic only made them more pervasive and acceptable. The need of the hour was to shift the schooling experience from being physical to being virtual. Luckily for the School, two virtual platforms - an ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) and an LMS (Learning Management System) were already in place. All that was needed was to augment them for suiting the purpose. This was done with a war footing. And while these platforms were being enhanced, orientation sessions were organized for the students, and extensive computational skills were provided to the teachers. It was amazing to witness how quickly the teachers and students overcame their digital challenges - learning, unlearning and relearning one thing at a time. With every new technique mastered, the online classes became more and more lively and interactive.
It is worth mentioning that ITM Global was the first among schools in the Chambal region to start the online classes. It not only stayed true to its Year Calendar, it did not allow the loss of a single working day in order that its students do not lose out on their education. Not only this, believing firmly in the ethos of the holistic development of the child, various activities were shifted to the online platforms - the Morning Assembly, the Investiture Ceremony, the Summer Camp, the Model United Nations, the Olympiads and the various Competitions. While Microsoft Teams linked to the LMS became the portal for delivering the virtual lessons, the ERP became the Exam Portal of the School. Having all the advanced features, the latter was designed for the systematic conduction of the exams. Thus, the parents could even see the corrected answer scripts of their children.
Various other platforms like the Google Meet or Zoom were utilized for a plethora of purposes - like constant remote coordination between the staff members or organizing regular Virtual PTMs. WhatsApp was used extensively for forming various purpose-based groups, and this allowed for constant flow and sharing of information.
ITM Global even extended the facility of Digital Library to its students, wherein the students had the access to all the digital books and reference books. Not only this, Virtual Science Labs were introduced for the students for the smooth conduction of the practical sessions. The various events of the Academic Year were shifted to the Facebook Live platform and conducted through the StreamYard studio.
The pandemic presented an unprecedented condition for which the School had to prepare itself: in terms of infrastructure and SOPs. Strict Covid-19 Protocols were put into place and sincerely adhered to. Simultaneously, vaccination of staff members were followed up, and that resulted in 100% vaccination of all staff members in the campus.
Now that life is gradually returning to normal and the students are returning to the School, as per the Government directives, one can witness an amalgamation of two environments - high-tech digital learning and traditional face-to-face learning. Blended Learning will henceforth be entrenched in the curriculum of ITM Global, as part of the post-Covid development. At ITM Global, there has always been something for every learner - be it those who learn better in a structured environment comprising face-to-face learning with an educator, the independent learners, or those who prefer to learn online using digital tools and technology. The New Normal has accelerated the push towards being prepared for the uncertain, being independent and accepting the pervasive presence of the digital interface and the AI in our lives.
John Dewey, once said, "Children are not to be confined by our own learning as they are born in a different time. If we teach today's children as we taught yesterday, we rob them of their tomorrow." So, at the ITM Global School, the students are being equipped with knowledge, skills and values which prepare them to be independent in accessing the needs of the time, the challenges they possess, and the integrity with which one should face the situation and seek resolution. Within the set-up of the New Normal, the School has continuously endeavoured to educate and prepare them for life - so that they learn how to balance their Intelligence Quotient with their Emotional Quotient, or their Social Quotient with their Adversity Quotient.
