As per data collected and published by the Education Department of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), over 60,000 of the 6.2 lakh students in Mumbai haven’t been able to access online learning tools. The data goes on to show that although efforts were made to provide these students with offline learning material, around 1,700 students could not be reached.
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The Education Department of the BMC groups weekly data of students from 2,387 civic schools along with aided and unaided private schools in Mumbai. As per recent data, 40,888 of the 60,945 students that have missed out on online classes are from civic-run schools. It is further said that nearly 1.65 lakh students weren’t connected to the internet as of June 2020.
Around 37,213 students reportedly don’t own a smartphone or a computer while 20,367 are said to be lacking internet access.
BMC Education Officer, Mahesh Palkar said, “Our teachers have continued to reach out to as many students as they could and find ways to provide them with offline or asynchronous learning options. Through our efforts, we have been able to connect to most of the students, barring nearly 1,700 who were not traced because of their phone numbers or addresses changing.”
The data also provides an update on the number of students who come from outside the city. As per the most recent count, 37,292 students are from outside the city which is down from 1.1 lakh as of June 2020. It is said that around 22,072 of the migrated students are currently learning online under the civic body.
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In August 2020, the BMC started its offline learning program with the help of teachers, students, parents, and NGO volunteers to distribute physical worksheets and other relevant learning material among the students. It is said that over 24.6 lakh worksheets have been distributed so far via 25,000 volunteers.
Around 4 lakh students are connected with their schools via WhatsApp, the BMC said, while a majority of the students who are logging in for digital learning are reportedly using apps like Zoom and Google Meet.
“We have allowed teachers to use the medium depending on what the students are most comfortable with. Students can also use the content available on our 40 YouTube channels in case they cannot log in during the live classes,” Palkar added.
Understandably, this has uncovered the inequality among students based on their financial status. Teachers echo this sentiment as well. “Most of our students are from the nearby slum and were not able to spend money on data packs, even if they had a mobile phone. We reached out to NGOs which helped us in the initial months. But soon, we had to meet the children in small groups to ensure learning continued for all. Even when schools reopen, we would have to work out a hybrid model that works for all students,” the principal of a Kandivali school said under anonymity.
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